New York Life Insurance Company and New York Life Insurance and Annuity Corporation

The first image that often comes to mind when people think about long-term care is an elderly person sitting alone in a depressing nursing home. The misconceptions about what long-term care involves and peoples’ images of the most common care settings are understandable, since long-term care insurance originally started as nursing home insurance four decades ago. However, it has evolved into a much more flexible solution that allows you to receive care in a variety of settings.

Most of us want the ability to age at home, in a familiar setting surrounded by family and our favorite things. The fact is, 90 percent of adults who need long-term care services receive assistance at home or in another community setting.1

If the level of care you need evolves over time, most long-term care insurance policies not only allow you to transition to a nursing home, but some may also provide you with support during the transition. Since you can’t predict the care you might eventually need, it’s important to have the flexibility to choose the setting that best fits your needs at any given time.

Many long-term care policies available today can provide you with a choice of where you want to receive care, including:

• At home, with the help of a home health aide or in some cases a family member or friend to assist with daily activities

• In a community setting, such as adult day care services

• At an assisted living facility, where you can receive help with transportation and meals

• In a nursing home, if you need around-the-clock care

Each of these options provides a different level of care depending on how much assistance you need. Receiving care at home is the most popular and preferred option, and some policies even provide benefits that allow you to make home modifications that can help you stay at home longer. Policies that provide home care allow you to receive care from a professional, or possibly a friend or family member if informal care is covered.

While most people hope they won’t ever need to worry about long-term care, the reality is Americans have almost a 70 percent chance they will need some type of long-term care assistance after age 65.2 Women are even more at risk, primarily because they tend to live longer. The thought of not being able to care for yourself can be difficult and creating a strategy for care can be daunting. However, it’s best to not let long-term care preparation get pushed aside, because your age and health both factor into whether you’ll qualify for insurance and how much you’ll pay for coverage.

By including long-term care in your retirement strategy, you’ll have the peace of mind that you’ve taken the steps to help protect your family from the financial and emotional impact of a long-term care event. Take the time to research available options, decide how much coverage you need based on estimated costs, and create a strategy that will give you the flexibility to choose where and how you receive care. If you need additional information, contact a New York Life agent to find out more about our solutions.

This educational, third-party article is provided as a courtesy by Michael Damon, Agent, New York Life Insurance Company. To learn more about the information or topics discussed, please contact Michael Damon at (508) 321-2101.

1 Edem Hado and Harriet Komisar, “Long-Term Services and Supports Fact Sheet,” AARP Public Policy Institute, August 2019.

2 “How much care will you need?” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, February 2020.

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