Long-Term Care Insurance Crucial to Retirement Planning

06/20/2010

Americans are paying more attention than ever to the importance of long-term care insurance as they work to meet the needs of aging parents while also contending with ever-rising nursing home costs.

In fact, long-term care insurance is generally seen as being as important as maintaining sufficient savings for retirement, or to guard against the possibility of becoming disabled and unable to work.

With that in mind, a recent column on New Hampshire's WMUR-TV website by Marc Hebert, president of The Harbor Group, Inc., offered some additional perspectives on planning for retirement and ensuring financial stability for those entering their golden years.

According to Hebert, helping older relatives plan for their long-term care insurance needs should start with a look at their current expenses and how they are being paid, as well as whether other details have been attended to, such as wills and power of attorney.

Hebert also notes that Medicare does not cover all long-term care expenses and that in his state, the cost of private nursing home care in 2009 was just over $100,000 per year. With similar costs confronting consumers all over the country, the importance of long-term care insurance should not be overlooked.

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