Live Free Home Health Care, LLC. - Bristol, New Hampshire

All posts within: insurance

Monday, March 22, 2010

What you didn’t know about long-term care insurance

You’ve heard the rumblings….health care reform….Medicare misery…and the expected senior care upheaval of the boomer generation, the so called “silver tsunami”. Perhaps now is the time to take a second look at a long-term care insurance policy. What you might not have known is that long-term care insurance does often cover the cost of in-home care services. In fact, policies are now more flexible than ever. Take a look at this informative article on today’s long-term insurance policies in Forbes.

And with taxes coming due soon, did you know you could deduct a portion of the cost of that long term care insurance?  Recently, LTC Financial Partners, a long-term care insurance agency, noted that consumers can get a break in their federal taxes if they pay for long-term care insurance. The amount they can get depends on a person's age. View the article here.

To learn more about long-term care planning, view these resources.

Tags:   eldercare, home care, insurance, long-term care

Enjoy this post? Share it with others.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Long Term Care

(Plymouth – Oct 5, 2009) – Long-term care is a subject of growing importance in today’s aging society, since according to the American Society on Aging, after age 65, a full 70 percent of Americans will need some form of long-term care. Not only will long-term care solutions be a major issue for the parents of baby boomers who are now in their 70s and 80s, but baby boomers as well will need to plan for their own long-term care needs.

Live Free Home Health Care, LLC is raising awareness in the local community about long-term care needs and services because we understand the importance that education and planning make in positive outcomes. Too many individuals underestimate both the risk and costs related to long-term care options, or believe the government will cover their needs. Taking action now may enable an individual or couple to experience greater dignity, control and independence over how future care needs are met.

“I’m often asked if Medicare will cover all long-term care costs for seniors and the disabled,” said Jason Harvey, Co-Administrator of Live Free Home Health Care, LLC. “It’s amazing how many people think that, but the answer is, unfortunately, no.” Medicare, a federal health insurance program for disabled adults and adults age 65 and older, has specific rules that apply for payment of care, and the coverage is very limited in scope. “Most people don’t know that Medicare is not intended to cover long-term care,” added Harvey.

There are options available to finance long-term care, though, including:

• A private health insurance or retirement health plan specific to long-term care
• An individual’s own income, savings or sale of other assets
• The family home as collateral for a reverse mortgage
• Veterans; programs for eligible Veterans and spouses
• Care from children/relatives on an informal basis
• Medicaid, a public medical assistance program for people with low incomes and limited financial resources
• County/local resources aimed at keeping people out of nursing homes (where available)

It is very important to plan in advance when it comes to financing long-term care needs. To compare the costs of nursing home care, assisted living and home health care by state, a useful long-term care calculator is available at http://longtermcareinsurance.org/carecalculator.html.

Preparing a long-term care plan may seem daunting, but will help alleviate the burden if and when the time comes and it is necessary. Key areas to consider when developing a long-term care plan are as follows:

• Communication with family and friends
• Comparing and understanding long-term care insurance options
• Decisions on who can be counted on for help
• Establishing clear legal directions
• Focusing on available finances
• Learning what is offered in the community
• Making necessary home improvements
• Taking control of health and personal needs

In addition to providing in-home care services, Live Free Home Health Care, LLC also offers long-term care planning resources and help in coordinating community services outside of the usual home care setting. For more information about when home care is appropriate to help meet long-term care needs, please contact Live Free Home Health Care, LLC.

About Live Free Home Health Care, LLC

Serving Central New Hampshire and the Lakes Region, Live Free Home Health Care, LLC is dedicated to providing top quality care in the comfort of home as an alternative to assisted living facilities or nursing homes. Family owned and operated, Live Free Home Health Care offers a wide range of services, from companion care and assistance with activities of daily living to skilled nursing, and all care is supervised and updated by a registered nurse. Live Free Home Health Care also offers medical alert systems to provide extra peace of mind should an emergency care need arise. Whether the need is for short or long term care, Live Free Home Health Care’s compassionate staff promises to treat each client respectfully and like a cherished family member. For further information, contact (603) 217-0149 or visit www.LiveFreeHomeHealthCare.com.

Tags:   communication, in-home care providers, insurance, long-term care

Enjoy this post? Share it with others.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Planning for Your Elder Years

If we were to ask an older person what his or her most important concerns for aging are, we would probably get a variety of different answers. According to surveys frequently conducted among the elderly, the most likely answers we would receive would include the following three principal concerns or life wishes:

1. Remaining independent in the home without intervention from others
2. Maintaining good health and receiving adequate health care
3. Having enough money for everyday needs and not outliving assets and income

To address these concerns or wishes and maintain the quality of life wanted in the elder years, it simply takes a little preplanning.

Few people do this kind of planning.

It is human nature not to worry about an event until it happens. We may prepare financially for unexpected financial disasters by covering our homes, automobiles and health with insurance policies.

However, no other life event can be as devastating to an elderly person’s lifestyle, finances and security as needing long term care. It drastically alters or completely eliminates the three principal lifestyle wishes listed above.

The majority of the American public does not plan for this crisis of needing eldercare. The lack of planning also has an adverse effect on the older person's family, with sacrifices made in time, money, and family lifestyles.

Because of changing demographics and potential changes in government funding, the current generation needs to plan for long term care before the elder years are upon them.

Let us look at some facts.

• The population of the "very old,"--older than age 85--is the fastest growing group in America. This population is at highest risk for needing care. (Statistical abstract of the United States, 2008, population)
• Medical science is preventing early sudden deaths, which means living longer with impaired health and greater risk of needing long term care.
• The Alzheimer's Association estimates the risk of Alzheimer's or dementia beyond age 85 to be about 46% of that population.
• It is estimated that 6 out of 10 people will need long term care sometime during their lifetime.
• Children are moving far away from parents or parents move away during retirement making long distance care giving difficult or impossible.
• Government programs--already stretched thin for long term care services--will experience even greater stress on available funds in the future.

One of the important things for planning is how to maintain your lifestyle as you age. You may be healthy enough to stay in your own home with help provided for the following activities of daily living:

• maintaining a home,
• providing meals,
• supervision,
• companionship,
• transportation and
• shopping services.

This type of care at home is non-medical and must be provided free of charge by family, friends, or volunteers or the care must be paid for out-of-pocket by the family.

Government programs, in most cases, will not pay for this kind of care. It is estimated that 80% of all long term care is non-medical, with 90% of that care provided in the home. It is most likely that your long term care will begin with home care.

It is wise to plan now how you will pay for care when it is needed. In evaluating your future income you may find it necessary to add some resources such as long term care insurance to pay for assisted living or nursing home costs. Long term care insurance must be purchased while you are younger and healthy. Failing health, stroke or other aging issues will not allow you to qualify for this insurance.

A reverse mortgage will also help pay for home care if staying in your home is an option.

Consider where you may want to live in your elder years. Many assisted living facilities offer complete care alternatives with a nursing home wing if needed. Senior retirement communities also offer many amenities with some including home care options.

Now is the time to do estate planning. A professional estate planner will give you direction on how best to protect your assets for future needs and for Medicaid planning.

Do your paper work. Now is the time to create your trusts, will, medical directives in a living will and any other documents you want noted for future use. Gather insurance policies and bank records where they can be found by family members in case you are not able to get them yourself.

We don’t like to think of our elder years in terms of health problems, but a sudden stroke, heart failure or onset of dementia could make it impossible to carry out our own wishes if preparation was not made ahead of time.

The process of long term care planning involves the following four principles:

1. Knowledge and preparation are the keys to success.
2. Having funds to pay for care expands the choices for care settings and providers.
3. Using professional help relieves stress, reduces conflict, and saves time and money.
4. Success is assured through a written plan accepted by all parties involved.

(The above excerpt is quoted from "The 4 Steps of Long Term Care Planning," National Care Planning Council)

The National Care Planning Council' s website -- www.longtermcarelink.net -- provides over 700 pages of information for long term care planning and lists services of professional care providers in estate planning, long term care insurance, reverse mortgage, home care and many other important long term care services.

The National Care Planning Council' s book, “The 4 Steps of Long Term Care Planning,” provides information on what Medicaid and Medicare will cover as well as an overview of professional long term care service providers and how their services can help you create and execute your long term care plan. A check list of what to do to create a plan and forms for creating necessary paperwork are also included in the book.

You can also visit Live Free Home Health Care for more information.

Tags:   home care, insurance, long-term care

Enjoy this post? Share it with others.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Putting Home Care In Perspective

The Evolution of Home Care

In the first century of our country's history there was no such thing as nursing homes or assisted living. Society was mostly rural and people lived in their own homes. Families cared for their loved ones at home till death took them. In the latter part of the 1800's because of an increasingly urban society, many urban families were often unable to care for loved ones because of lack of space or because all family members including children were employed six days a week for 12 hours a day. During this period many unfortunate people needing care were housed in County poor houses or in facilities for the mentally ill. Conditions were deplorable. In the early 1900's home visiting nurses started reversing this trend of institutionalizing and allowed many care recipients to remain in their homes. Nursing homes or so-called rest homes were also being built with public donations or government funds. With the advent of Social Security in 1936, a nursing home per diem stipend was included in the Social Security retirement income and this government subsidy spurred the construction of nursing homes all across the country.

By the end of the 1950s it was apparent that Social Security beneficiaries were living longer and that the nursing home subsidy could eventually bankrupt Social Security. But in order to protect the thousands and thousands of existing nursing homes Congress had to find a way to provide a subsidy but remove it as an entitlement under Social Security. In 1965 Medicare and Medicaid were created through an amendment to the Social Security Act. Under Medicare, nursing homes were only reimbursed on behalf of Social Security beneficiaries for short-term rehabilitation. Under Medicaid, nursing homes were reimbursed for impoverished disabled Americans and impoverished aged Americans over the age of 65. It has never been the intent of Congress to pay for nursing home care for all Americans. The nursing home entitlement for all aged Americans was now gone.

Over the last 40 years, there has been a gradual change away from the use of nursing homes for long-term care towards the use of home care and community living arrangements that also provide in-house care.

With Proper Planning People Could Remain in Their Homes for the Rest of Their Lives

We are seeing a trend towards working conditions like those in urban America in the early 1900's where both husband and wife are working and putting in longer hours. We are also seeing a return of the trend in the early part of the 20th century where outside visitor caregivers are becoming available to replace working caregiver's and allow the elderly to receive long-term care in their homes. In addition there is a significant trend in the past few years for Medicaid and Medicare to pay for long-term care in the home instead of in nursing homes.

Given enough money for paid providers or government funding for the same, a person would never have to leave his home to receive long-term care. All services could be received in the home. Adequate long-term care planning or having substantial income can allow this to happen.

We only need to look at wealthy celebrities to recognize this fact. Christopher Reeve, the movie star, was totally disabled but he had enough money to buy care services and remain in his home. President Ronald Reagan suffered from Alzheimer's for many years but received care at his California ranch. He was also wealthy enough to pay for care when needed. Or what about Annette Funicello or Richard Pryor? Income from their movie careers allowed them to receive care with their multiple sclerosis at home. We will be willing to bet that Mohammed Ali, who is severely disabled with Parkinson's disease, will probably never see the inside of a care facility, unless he chooses to go there to die. With the proper planning and the money it provides, most of us could remain in our homes to receive long-term care and we would never have to go to an institution or a hospital.

The Popularity of Home Care

Most of those receiving long-term care and most caregivers prefer a home environment. Out of an estimated 8 million older Americans receiving care, about 5.4 million or 67% are in their own home or the home of a family member or friend. Most older people prefer their home over the unfamiliar proposition of living in a care facility. Family or friends attempt to accommodate the wishes of loved ones even though caregiving needs might warrant a different environment. Those needing care feel comfortable and secure in familiar surroundings and a home is usually the best setting for that support.

Often the decision to stay in the home is dictated by funds available. It is much cheaper for a wife to care for her husband at home than to pay out $2,000 to $4,000 a month for care in a facility. Likewise, it's much less costly and more loving for a daughter to have her widowed mother move in to the daughter's home than to liquidate mom's assets and put her in a nursing home. Besides, taking care of our parents or spouses is an obligation most of us feel very strongly about.

For many long-term care recipients the home is an ideal environment. These people may be confined to the home but continue to lead active lives engaging in church service, entertaining grandchildren, writing histories, corresponding, pursuing hobbies or doing handwork activities. Their care needs might not be that demanding and might include occasional help with house cleaning and shopping as well as help with getting out of bed, dressing and bathing. Most of the time these people don't need the supervision of a 24/7 caregiver. There are, however, some care situations that make it difficult to provide long-term care in the home.

Please note from the first graph below that a great amount of home care revolves around providing help with activities of daily living. Note from the second graph below that the average care recipient has need for help with multiple activities of daily living. Finally, it should be noted from the second graph that well over half of home care recipients are cognitively impaired. This typically means they need supervision to make sure they are not a danger to themselves or to others. In many cases, this supervision may be required on a 24-hour basis. (Graphs were derived from the 1999 national caregivers survey, courtesy http://www.longtermcarelink.net.)

It is precisely the ongoing and escalating need for help with activities of daily living or the need for extended supervision that often makes it impossible for a caregiver to provide help in the home. Either the physical demands for help with activities of daily living or the time demand for supervision can overwhelm an informal caregiver. This untenable situation usually leads to finding another care setting for the loved one. On the other hand if there are funds to hire paid providers to come into the home, there would be no need for finding another care setting.

Problems That May Prevent Home Care from Being an Option

Caregivers face many challenges providing care at home. A wife caring for her husband may risk injury trying to move him or help him bathe or use the toilet. Another situation may be the challenge of keeping constant surveillance on a spouse with advanced dementia. Or a son may live 500 miles from his disabled parents and find himself constantly traveling to and from his home, trying to manage a job and his own family as well taking care of the parents. Some caregivers simply don't have the time to watch over loved ones and those needing care are sometimes neglected.

The problems with maintaining home care are mainly due to the inadequacies or lack of resources with informal caregivers, but they may also be caused by incompetent formal caregivers. These problems center on five issues:

1. Inadequate care provided to a loved one
2. Lack of training for caregivers
3. Lack of social stimulation for care recipients
4. Informal caregivers unable to handle the challenge
5. Depression and physical ailments from caregiver burnout

In order to make sure home care is a feasible option and can be sustained for a period of time, caregivers must recognize these problems, deal with them and correct them. The responsibility for recognizing these problems and solving them is another function of the long-term care planning process and the team of specialists and advisers involved.

Adequate Funding Solves Most Problems Associated with Providing Home Care

None of the problems discussed in this article would be an obstacle if there were enough money to pay for professional services in the home. These services would be used to overcome the problems discussed in the previous section. If someone desires to remain in the home the rest of his or her life, adequate preplanning could provide the solution.

This planning must occur prior to retirement. The most obvious way to provide sufficient funds for home care is to buy a long-term care insurance policy when someone is younger, healthy and able to afford the lower premiums. If insurance is not an option, then money must be put aside early in life to pay for care in the future. The only other option is to be rich.

Unfortunately, very few people address the issue of needing long-term care when they are older. This leads to a lack of planning and in turn leads to few options for elder care when the time comes. Lack of planning means most people do not have the luxury of remaining in their homes and must rely on Medicaid support in a nursing home to finish out the rest of their lives.

Tags:   caregiver, home care, insurance, long-term care

Enjoy this post? Share it with others.

Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Should You Use a Licensed Home Health Care Agency?

New Hampshire Home Health Care

The case for using an agency as opposed to hiring someone directly

As anyone who has had to look for home care for a parent, child, or loved one may have discovered, home care rates can be less if you hire help (sometimes referred to as a “private duty nurse”) on your own rather than using an agency like Live Free Home Health Care. This is could be one of the most important decisions you make in regards to looking for in-home care, and if you are contemplating hiring on your own to save a few dollars, it’s important to know what your responsibilities will be. Here are some things you should ask yourself:

1. Are you prepared to place ads, screen responses, conduct interviews, check references, do criminal background checks, and drug screening? Also will you know whether a potential candidate has the right training and skills?

2. Have you calculated the cost of required taxes? You will be responsible for paying social security taxes, unemployment taxes, and workers’ compensation.

3. Do you want the responsibility of supervising workers and resolving misunderstandings when they (and they will) happen?

4. What are you going to do when your caregiver calls in sick? Are you always going to be available to provide back-up? If so, doesn’t that mean you will be on-call around the clock?

5. What about insurance? Does the person you are considering hiring have professional liability insurance?

A quality agency that directly employs its home care associates will assume each of these responsibilities for you. That’s what we do at Live Free Home Health Care. We have carefully screened our caregivers, done criminal background checks and drug screening. We have made sure they have the right training and licenses. We are responsible for paying our caregivers and making sure the appropriate payroll taxes are paid. If one of our caregivers has to miss work at the last minute, we are responsible for finding a replacement. Live Free Home Health Care has the appropriate insurance and we are licensed by the State of New Hampshire as a Home Health Care Provider.

You will have the comfort of knowing we have a Registered Nurse on-call 24 hours a day and are here to handle the unexpected for you. We will anticipate your needs and respond to changes before a potential problem may arise. Let us take the job of employer and care case manager from your shoulders so you can concentrate on relating with your parent, child, or loved one how it matters most: as family.

Jason M. Harvey

Owner, Business and Finance Manager

Live Free Home Health Care, LLC

603.346.4214

Tags:   caregiver, in-home care providers, insurance, Jason Harvey, Live Free Home Health Care

Enjoy this post? Share it with others.

Page 1 of 2 pages  1 2 >