Planning for the Future

Obtaining an insurance policy is insuring protection of an event that may or may not ever happen. The question is, "Do we plan or hope for the best?" Long term care insurance provides dollars to pay for needed care in the home or facility settings in the event of an extended illness [...]

Celebrating our traditions of summer with cookouts, vacations and long nights gives us a joy of grateful fortune, an outlook of success, a bright future, and happiness in the days ahead. Many are not able to enjoy these celebrations due to some of the realities of life that are not so pleasurable. We’ve always been told by our elders, not to take life for granted. Respect and enjoy the freedoms given to us. If we plan for our tomorrows, that often involves insurance that help us manage events that could otherwise have catastrophic financial consequences. [...]

Planning often involves reviewing insurance programs that help us manage events that could otherwise have catastrophic financial consequences. One of the most important conversations to have with family members is Long Term Care Planning. As we age, our bodies begin to require certain assistance for us to function. Long term care is assistance provided because of the inability to perform activities of daily living due to an illness, injury, or progressive cognitive impairment. [...]

A properly designed long term care plan may seem small in the grandeur of financial planning, but its’ absence is very real at the time of an event. An unexpected turn of health can cause consequences that one may never financially recover from. Simply put, as you age, your body may require a variety of care options that come at a cost from an accident or a progressive debilitating illness. As you enjoy life today, the thought of an extended care event is not on most radars but you still need to plan if and/or when that event could occur. [...]

Three words we want to hear are “I love you.” Three words families don’t want to hear are “Long term care.” These are three words that many families learn the hard way when a loved one’s extended care event begins. Long term care is assistance provided because of their inability to perform activities of daily living due to an illness, injury, or progressive, sudden, cognitive impairment such as dementia or Alzheimer’s. [...]

I am honored to write a few thoughts about extended care planning each quarter. The objective of my column is to equip you, the reader, to prepare for an unannounced health event leading to a short or long term care event that could potentially have huge consequences to your retirement plan. Sometimes it’s only one reader whose comments make it all worth the effort. [...]