Long Term Care Fundamentals

The risk of needing long term care—a designation given to a broad range of services designed to meet an individual’s mental, emotional or physical health and personal needs and which are often provided over an extended period of time—is present at all ages. However, as individuals become older the risk of requiring long term care increases significantly.

The U.S. population is expected to increase in size by about 27% by the year 2050. In contrast, the part of the U.S. population most at risk for needing long term care—the segment comprised of individuals 85 years old or older—is expected to grow about 280% during this same period. Not only is the part of the population most at risk for needing long term care growing disproportionately, the cost to provide that care is also increasing. Long term care costs are substantial and, over the last several years, have been increasing at a rate that exceeds the inflation rate.

The growing risk of needing long term care fueled by a rapidly aging population coupled with the high and continually increasing cost of such care can present burdensome financial concerns to many clients and their heirs. This course examines the nature of long term care, the forms in which it may be delivered, the risk of needing such care, the costs of long term care, the sources available to pay long term care costs and the features of long term care insurance.  

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize the types of services that constitute long term care and the settings in which they are provided;
• Compare the benefit triggers associated with qualified and nonqualified long term care;
• Identify the national average cost in the United States of obtaining various types of long term care and the sources available to pay for the care; 
• Recognize the benefits and tax treatment of long term care insurance and the alternatives for funding long term care; and
• Describe the suitability and ethical issues associated with recommending the purchase of long term care insurance.