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• What is Long-Term Care?
• Paying for Long-Term Care

Long-Term Care Defined

When disease or injury keeps you from taking care of yourself over a long period of time, you may need some form of long-term care (LTC).

Why Would I Ever Need It?

No one can predict if and when you will need long-term care, or for how long.  We do know that:

• At least 70% of people over age 65 will require some long-term care ¹
• Of those who need long-term care, 40% are under age 65 ¹

That is, you may need help as part of the normal aging process – something we all face - or you may have a medical crisis, like:

• Stroke
• Alzheimer's disease
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Vehicle accidents
• Multiple sclerosis
• Diabetes

Any serious injury or illness with long-lasting effects could keep you from doing activities of daily living (ADLs):

• Eating
• Taking a bath
• Getting dressed
• Moving in and out of bed
• Grooming
• Using the restroom

That's when long-term care steps in.

What Are The Types of Long-Term Care?

Either in your home or in a facility, long-term care refers to any kind of support for daily living on a long-term basis. These types of long-term care services can occur at any location – for a person of any age.

In your home care can be delivered by:

• Personal Care Assistants or Companions – for household tasks like cleaning, cooking, running errands
• Home Health Aides – for personal care like bathing and dressing
• Nurses – support IVs, medications, more complex health issues

 In a facility the range of care levels includes:

• Adult Day Health Care – offers daytime social and therapeutic activities, while you still live at home
• Assisted Living – allows you to live independently with on-site support for daily basics
• Nursing Homes – give more skilled and intense care, supervision, medication, therapies, and rehabilitation

To learn more about long-term care, request a free consultation with a financial professional.

1 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Clearinghouse for Long Term Care Information, 10/22/08.

114282 11/19/10