Avoid Falling Through the Long-Term Care Cracks

In the US, millions of people require long-term care assistance every year. Long-term care is a wide variety of services, both medical and personal in nature, that are provided in skilled nursing facilities, nursing homes, and assisted living facilities to those who are unable to manage these needs independently.

These facilities are usually incredibly expensive. According to a 2015 Genworth Financial Cost of Care survey, the median annual rate for assisted living facilities in Texas was $42,540. The median annual rate for a private room at a nursing home in Texas was $68,620, with some regions having costs for a private room as high as $90,000 per year.

So who do these costs affect the most? The very wealthy generally have the money they need to afford such care. The very poor can relatively easily gain access to government benefits that will pay much of the cost of long-term care such as Medicaid. It is those in the middle who tend to fall through the cracks.

Average, middle-class Americans who have worked hard their entire lives to be able to retire and have enough money to comfortably live out their days—and perhaps leave a little something to their loved ones—are the ones who suffer the most when it comes to long-term care affordability.

Without proper planning, many of these peoples will be forced to pay privately for their long-term care needs, oftentimes spending everything they have on long-term care costs until they are impoverished and can obtain Medicaid benefits, leaving little or nothing to pass on to their loved ones.

This is why it is absolutely essential that you plan ahead for potential future long-term care costs. There are numerous tools available that families can utilize if they only take the time to prepare before they have need of long-term care.

Estate planning tools such as Lady Bird Deeds can help you protect the entire value of your home, beyond the homestead limits that are exempted for Medicaid eligibility. Miller trusts can help you protect qualified income that may be greater than the Medicaid income cap. Irrevocable Life Insurance trusts can provide assets to help pay for numerous needs of a life insurance beneficiary without disqualifying them from eligibility for Medicaid or other government assistance. And there are many more potential options that will help you protect your assets and still be able to afford quality long-term care when the need arises.

If you want to avoid falling through the long-term care cracks, contact Amsberry Law today and start protecting yourself and your loved ones right now.

Attorney Russell Amsberry

Attorney Russell J.G. Amsberry

Attorney Russell J.G. Amsberry founded the Amsberry Law Firm in 1995 with the goal of providing clients with exceptional, focused representation on their issues. His success as a legal advocate has been reflected in the numerous professional honors he has received, such as speaking engagements and inclusion in Scene in SA magazine’s listing of the best lawyers in San Antonio, a Distinguished rating from Martindale-Hubble, and an amazing rating from Avvo. [ Attorney Bio ]

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Amsberry Law Firm

The Amsberry Law Firm, founded in 1995, has helped thousands of clients overcome their unique legal challenges.

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