In his 2019 industry update, Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, reported that LTC insurance claims paid in 2018 totaled $10.3 billion.
Insurance pays a fraction of LTC costs
Sounds like a lot, doesn’t it? Well, it’s not. It’s barely a fraction of the estimated costs.
According to a report published by the SCAN Foundation, private long-term care insurance accounted for less than 1% of the nearly $725 billion spent annually on long-term care.
State and federal government programs through Medicare, Medicaid and other government agencies fund about 29%.
Families’ out-of-pocket costs and unpaid expenses fund the remaining 70%.
Why family caregivers face significant risks
- 62% spent savings and retirement funds to pay for care needs
- 77% of those employed missed work
- Missed hours equated to seven per week or 18% of a 40-hour work week
- Average lost income was 33% every year of caregiving
We could go on and on. As baby boomers age, it’s only going to get worse without a plan to fund long-term care expense.
For most Americans there are just three funding options: self-fund, private insurance or government assistance. Read more about funding here.