LONG TERM CARE (LTC) ASSET PRESERVATION STRATEGIES
As the average life span increases, long-term care, whether in-home or in a facility, becomes a higher probability. But the costs can be unmanageable – beginning around $7,000 per month for skilled care facilities in North Carolina. Long-term care insurance is an option, but policies can become unavailable or prohibitively expensive as you age. Some people neglect to plan for long-term care because they mistakenly believe Medicare will cover the costs.
Creating a plan as to how to pay for needed care without totally exhausting your assets is essential. Options include purchasing long-term care insurance, converting whole life policies to LTC vehicles, purchasing annuities, obtaining VA benefits, or qualifying for Medicaid or similar governmental benefits. This planning is especially important to married couples when a spouse is living at home and will need assets to live on.
In order to create the best plan, we spend time identifying a client’s assets, analyzing the relevant family and financial information, reviewing strategies with the client, and then, if the client chooses, preparing custom documents and possible asset transfers tailored to the client’s assets and objectives. In counseling our clients, we must be knowledgeable about several areas of law, including Medicaid and VA benefits eligibility rules, federal and state gift and estate tax law, capital gains income tax and trust and debtor/creditor law.
At Elder Law Carolina, we offer elder law consultations to discuss and analyze your particular situation and then recommend strategies based on the information provided to us. You will get the legal information you need to make the decision as to what approach best suits your circumstances. Call our office for an appointment to help protect your assets from the potentially devastating costs of long-term care.
