What High Nursing Home Costs Mean for Your Estate Plan
Nobody is eager to think about the possibility of needing nursing home or other long-term care in older age, yet there is a high likelihood that you or your partner will need this type of care. Data from Health and Human Services (HHS) suggests that about 70 percent of people aged 65 and older will need long-term care services at some point during their older age. Some populations are also more likely than others to need long-term care. According to HHS, needing long-term care “is perhaps the most significant risk facing older Americans.” Recognizing that you or a spouse certainly may require long-term care in the future, how should you be accounting for this possibility in your estate plan?
Whether you are now in your 40s or 50s, have already reached retirement age, or are thinking about how to help your elderly parents, it is critical to understand what long-term care risks — and the high costs of nursing home care — mean for your estate plan. In short, you should be working with your estate planning lawyer on Medicaid and long-term care planning, as well as other asset protection strategies.
Nursing Home Care is Extremely Expensive
Nursing home care is extremely expensive — it is likely more expensive than you are imagining. According to data from Genworth from 2024, the median costs for in-home care were more than $6,500 per month. For assisted living, the median cost was $9,560 per month. Those figures were significantly higher for nursing home care, which had a median cost of $16,045 per month for a private room. For a semi-private room, the monthly median cost was still nearly $15,000. For one year in a nursing home private room, the total would be more than $192,000. That cost will only continue to increase in the years to come.
You Will Probably Want Medicaid to Cover the Costs of Long-Term Care
You will not want to spend down your lifetime savings in order to pay for long-term care in a nursing home. Instead, you will likely want Medicaid to cover these costs since Medicare does not pay for nursing home care. To become eligible to have Medicaid pay for nursing home care, you will need to have limited countable assets and income.
You Can Plan Ahead to Protect Your Assets and Qualify for Medicaid Coverage for Long-Term Care
There are various ways to protect your assets while still becoming eligible for Medicaid. A Connecticut elder law and estate planning lawyer can discuss Medicaid asset protection trusts and other types of trusts with you, as well as long-term care insurance and other options.
Contact a Canton Elder Law Attorney Today for Help with Asset Protection and Long-Term Care Planning
Long-term care planning is important for Connecticut residents, whether you are thinking ahead into the future or considering what your needs may be within the following five to ten years. An experienced Canton elder and asset protection lawyer at the Law Office of Brian S. Karpe can speak with you today about Medicaid and long-term care planning, and how you can incorporate these processes into your broader estate plan. Contact our firm for additional information.
Sources:
genworth.com/aging-and-you/finances/cost-of-care
aspe.hhs.gov/reports/what-lifetime-risk-needing-receiving-long-term-services-supports-0
