Long Term Care Insurance gets the same roll of the eyes that Disability Insurance gets when I bring it up to clients. Everyone is most concerned about Life Insurance first, then the other types. The statistics I show them make them think otherwise. Indeed, "too many individuals put off planning for LTC until care is actually needed, at which point they face severely constrained financing options."

According to ltciguide.com, the facts are not in your favor:

• One out of every two people over age 65 will require some form of long term care and insurance.
• One in three people will spend up to three months in a nursing home.
• # More than half of woman and one-third of men are expected to spend time in a long term nursing home.
• # In 1997, the average cost of a long term nursing home care was more than $46,000 per year. Most people will need some type of insurance to cover their needs.
• Seventy-percent of all elder care is provided by family members and friends.
• Medicaid is the largest source of public money paying almost half of the nation's nursing home care but you must "spend down" all your assets to qualify for government assistance.

Read those last two points again - your friends and family will most likely take care of you AND you can't get government assistance unless you spend down ALL of your assets.

Add those two up and think about this for a second - without this type of insurance you stand a good chance of putting your family through the ringer financially and spending down all your assets in the process so you have nothing to leave them when it's over. Yes, Life Insurance is a good option for many people. But, it won't help until you are dead. LTC Insurance fills that need.

America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) has more information, as well as the following checklist of important points to consider when purchasing a policy:

• What services are covered? Look for: Nursing home care, Home health care, Assisted living facility, Adult daycare, Alternate care, Respite care.
• How much does the policy pay per day for the various types of long-term care?
• How long will benefits last in a nursing home? At home? In an assisted living facility?
• Does the policy have a maximum lifetime benefit? If so, what is it for each of the types of long-term care?
• Does the policy have a maximum length of coverage for each period of confinement?
• How long must I wait before preexisting conditions are covered?
• How many days must I wait before benefits begin?
• Are Alzheimer's disease and other organic mental and nervous disorders covered?
• Does this policy require: And assessment of activities of daily living? An assessment of cognitive impairment? Physician certification of need? A prior hospital for stay for nursing home care? Home health care? A prior nursing home stay for home health care coverage? Other?
• Is the policy guaranteed renewable?
• What is the age range for enrollment?
• Is there a waiver-of-premium provision for nursing home care? For home health care?
• How long must I be confined before premiums are waived?
• Does the policy have a nonforfeiture benefit?
• Does the policy offer an inflation adjustment feature? If so, what is the rate of increase, how often is it applied and for how long? Is there an additional cost?
• What does the policy cost, with and without inflation and/or nonforfeiture features? Per year? Per month?
• Is there a 30-day free look?

The key is thinking about this now, before you and your family really need it. As always, planning ahead pays.mortgage calculator