Long-Term Care Issues: Personal / Financial Review
Contributed by Gerard A. Goulet

Health coverage
Do you believe your current health coverage adequately covers:
  • Hospitalization costs?
    		• Yes No
  • Nursing home costs?
    		•  Yes No
  • Home health care costs?
    		•  Yes No
  • Adult day care or adult foster care costs?
    		•  Yes No
  • Assisted-living costs?
    		•  Yes No
    Government programs
    Do you understand what is covered (and not covered) by:
  • Medicare?
    		•  Yes No
  • Medicare Supplements?
    		•  Yes No
  • Medicaid?
    		•  Yes No
    Do you understand:
  • The ramifications of the Estate Recovery laws?
    		•  Yes No
  • The extent to which Congress is restricting Medicaid?
    		•  Yes No
  • The changes in Gov’t. payments for nursing homes?
    		•  Yes No
  • That Gov’t. programs take away personal choices?
    		•  Yes No
    Health care preferences
    If you suffered a long-term disability as a result
    of a stroke or dementia, where would you prefer to receive care?
  • Your own home?
    		•  Yes No
  • Your children’s home?
    		• Yes No
  • An assisted-living facility?
    		•  Yes No
  • A nursing home?
    		• Yes No
    Financial resources for health care
    If you were faced right now with a long term care
    bill of $40000 per year (such as for a nursing home),
    how would you pay for it?
  • Current salary (or retirement) income?
    		•  Yes No
  • Savings?
    		•  Yes No
  • Bank loan?
    		•  Yes No
  • Investments?
    		•  Yes No
  • Retirement nest egg?
    		•  Yes No
    How long could you personally afford to pay
    this $40000 bill from those resources?
  • 1 year?
    		•  Yes No
  • 2.5 years (the average nursing home stay)?
    		•  Yes No
  • 5 years or longer?
    		•  Yes No
    Would you expect your children to help pay for this care? Yes No
  • If yes, would your children be willing/able to help pay?
    		•  Yes No
    How would you prefer to pay for this care if you had a choice?
  • Private resources?
    		•  Yes No
  • Insurance benefits?
    		•  Yes No
  • Welfare (Medicaid)?
    		•  Yes No
    If your answer was insurance and you do not currently have it ,
    is there any reason why you haven’t purchased it?
  • Too expensive?
    		•  Yes No
  • Too complicated?
    		•  Yes No
  • Don’t trust insurance companies / agents?
    		•  Yes No
  • Waiting till I get closer to needing it?
    		•  Yes No
  • Not sure I qualify medically?
    		•  Yes No
  • I’m too young?
    		• Yes No
  • I’m too old?
    		•  Yes No
    Personal resources for health care
    If you became ill tomorrow, would your family
  • Be trained to provide you with enough home care?
    		•  Yes No
  • Have the time (and proximity) to provide this care?
    		•  Yes No
    - For a week? Yes No
    - For a month? Yes No
    - For six months? Yes No
    - For a year or more? Yes No
    - For an even longer extended period? Yes No
  • Be able to quit work to provide care?
    		•  Yes No
    Goals for financial resources
    Would you like to leave an estate:
  • To any children or other relatives?
    		•  Yes No
  • To help pay for your grandchildren’s education?
    		•  Yes No
  • To give money to a church or charity?
    		•  Yes No
    Do you know that if you die after you or your spouse
    has had any nursing home costs paid by Medicaid (welfare),
    that the federal Estate Recovery Act mandates
    that your state of residence puts a claim on your estate
    (and usually takes your home) in order to recoup the Medicaid money they paid?    		 Yes No



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