Month: March 2014

Texas Ranks at Bottom for Long Term Care Quality

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Texas comes in at the bottom when it comes to long term and nursing home care in the United States, according to a recent report released by AARP.

Long Term Care Scorecard

With an increase in both the cost of long term care and the demand for it, some states are struggling to keep an effective long term care system in place. An increase in patients and a declining availability of caregivers has led to greater financial burden on the states and some are doing a better job than others at providing care for the growing demographic. The recent report evaluated the progress of long term services and supports in each state. Texas ranked 30th overall out of 51.

The report, titled “Raising Expectations 2014: A State Scorecard on Long-Term Services and Supports for Older Adults, People with Physical Disabilities, and Family Caregivers”, looks at various influencers of the long term services and support systems within the 50 states. It found that the availability, cost, and quality of care vary greatly depending on where you are in the country. The analysis includes 26 measurable indicators grouped into 5 main categories, which include affordability and access, choice of setting and provider, quality of life and care, support for family caregivers, and effective transitions.

System Measures

Texas ranked at the very bottom of the scorecard for both quality of life and care and transitions; the Lone Star state ranked 49th and 47th, respectively. On the better side, Texas ranked 10th for affordability and access of long term care services.

Included in those measurable factors is the number of people with long term care coverage through private insurance. In Texas, 38 of every 1,000 adults aged 40 and older have long term care coverage. Washington DC has the highest rate of insured with 130 per 1,000 adults owning a private Long Term Care Insurance policy. In terms of the cost, quality, and direction of care, there were both improvements and setbacks. Consider these statistics about Texas’s long term care system:

–       The median nursing home cost as a % of median household income for 65+ was reported to be 181% in 2013, down from 205% in 2010.

–       The nursing home staff turnover rate is the third worst in the country. In 2010, the rate was reported to be 72%, up from 46.2% in 2008.

–       The percentage of nursing home residents with low care need decreased from 16.4% in 2007 to 14.3% in 2010, indicating the system’s transitions are more effective.

–       The percentage of Medicaid and other state funds going towards home and community based services for the elderly and disabled has increased to 53.5% in 2011 from 50% in 2009.

–       The percentage of disabled adults usually or always getting needed support was up to 68.9% in 2010, from 66% in 2009.

Plan for Care

The AARP report was released shortly before the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission meets to assess potential changes for the Department of Aging and Disability Services. The Commission published a report last month detailing violations including weak enforcement of nursing home violations and failure to close inadequate facilities.

Long term care is an important topic that deserves some research on your part, both on the cost of care in your area, the best facilities for care, and the various ways to shield your savings from the cost. Texas has quickly become a retirement hot spot, but making plans for your long term care can help ensure those years are spent without worrying about spending through your nest egg.

You can learn more about the cost of long term care in Texas and how to prepare for the bill. Planning for long term care is an important part of securing your financial future. Request a free quote comparison of the top companies today.

Texans Can Benefit from Long Term Care Partnership Program

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Have you devised a plan to pay for your health care costs in retirement? If you live in Texas, did you know that just one year of nursing home care costs more than $65,000? Are you prepared to cover that kind of cost should you suddenly need care? If not, a program exists in your state to help you plan.

Help Planning for Long Term Care

The Texas Long Term Care Partnership Program helps encourage long term care planning across the state of Texas. Long term care is becoming an especially important issue in our nation as we are living longer than ever and health care is becoming more advanced every year. Couple this changes and we are faced with individuals living with disabilities and chronic diseases that would have essentially been their demise had they been seniors just a few short decades ago. Now, however, people can live longer even with chronic illness. Many times, though, they require some type of extended care for that situation.

The cost of health care in retirement isn’t something to be taken lightly. A Fidelity study conducted last year found that the average 65-year-old couple retiring in 2013 will need $220,000 to cover their combined health care expenses during retirement. The most frightening part about this statistic? It doesn’t include the cost of long term care, which as you may know, can be astronomical.

Avoiding Financial Burden

Nursing home care isn’t the only huge cost that comes with long term care. Assisted living facilities are quite costly, too, averaging more than $42,000 for a year of care in Texas. Home health care costs about the same. If you haven’t developed a plan to cover these costs, you may be stuck on your own when the time comes that you need assistance. Instead of waiting to plan until you actually need care, taking the time to plan in advance can save you money and an emotional headache.

By planning ahead for the cost of care, you can help eliminate the chance that you will be forced to pay for care out of pocket or turn to a loved one to rely on for unpaid care. Instead, you can actually help create a separate pool of money that will cover the cost of care by purchasing Long Term Care Insurance.

Long Term Care Insurance shields your assets from the high (and growing) cost of care by establishing a new reserve of finances that are designated specifically for long term care. In Texas, residents can benefit from the Texas Long Term Care Partnership Program, too.

Long Term Care Partnership Program

The Texas Long Term Care Partnership Program is a joint partnership between private Long Term Care Insurance companies and the state of Texas. By joining together, they have created policies to help people plan on their own, but providing a safety net in case their planning isn’t enough.

If you purchase a Partnership eligible Long Term Care Insurance plan, you can qualify for a Medicaid spend down waiver if you were to use all the benefits of your policy and still need care. The partnership promotes self-responsibility among Texans, which helps reduce some of the financial burden on the state and encourage people to plan for themselves. If your policy doesn’t last long enough, though, the state will allow you to qualify for Medicaid long term care services without having to deplete all your assets.

The Partnership Program provides some intangible benefits that can help you out in a time of need. Because Long Term Care Insurance is a sensible tool for retirement, anyway, it makes sense to buy a plan that qualifies for the Texas Partnership Program. If you have questions about which plans are Partnership eligible, be sure to ask your agent.

If you are in the market for Long Term Care Insurance, we will be glad to help you navigate your different options and send you information on the top rated companies for you to review on your own time. Request a free quote today to learn more about the Partnership Program.