An article in Forbes Magazine recently quoted a study performed by AARP that approximately 42.1 million unpaid caregivers are helping family members with their “limitation in daily activities.” “Caregivers can be children, spouses, siblings or even close friends, but the ‘average’ caregiver is a 49-year-old woman who spends nearly 20 hours per week caring for her mother, a task that continues for nearly five years. Using the average wage for home health aides, AARP calculates that Americans provide $450 billion in unpaid care giving each year, almost as much as total annual Medicare spending.”
“Americans provide $450 billion in unpaid care giving each year, almost as much as total annual Medicare spending.”
When you meet with your prospects some of them already know too well how poor or no planning at all has not been a good strategy for their families. For those who may not, how do you convey the importance of planning for Long Term Care which can have a huge impact on their enjoyment of later working and retirement years? If you are not even asking clients how they will deal with Long Term Care while they are still healthy enough to take advantage of the least expensive way to address it, LTCi, perhaps now is a good time to start.
The risk is real; people are living longer lives. Women accounted for 2/3 of all LTCi claims in 2011. Home care claims are becoming more common with cancer, the leading cause of home care claims. Alzheimer’s is the leading cause of assisted living and nursing home claims.
If you are not comfortable with planning for LTC, then work with someone who does this regularly. I’m not ashamed to volunteer my services – I can make you look good – and you will make money that would have gone to someone else.
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