Long Term Care Planning
Paying for the cost of care
Long-term care may be required if you become ill or suffer a disability that makes you unable to carry out your usual activities of daily living, with the probability that this disability will continue over a long period. More often than not, it is the elderly who require care over the longer term and it is typically occasioned by either increasing frailty due to ageing or the chronic aftermath of acute conditions such as a stroke or a fall.
Long-term care may also be required if a person is mentally impaired.
Common form of illness
The most common form of impairment for elderly people is dementia, and a common form of dementia is Alzheimer's Disease. A person suffering from dementia will need personal supervision and assistance to carry out their normal daily activities.
The care required can take many forms, from simple domestic assistance to medical interventions and may be provided in a care home or in the person's own home. Many people would have hoped the National Health Service (NHS) would look after them. But the NHS no longer covers all the costs associated with the care of incurable conditions in old age. Instead you may be forced to buy "insurance" to pay out if nursing or residential care is needed.
Previously it was possible to purchase a "pre-funded" long term care insurance policy to insure against the possibilty of needing care at a later date. However, this type of insurance policy is no longer available on the market. It is now only possible to purchase long term care insurance at the point that that care is needed.
Since the Community Care Act, which was passed in 1990 and took effect in 1993, that task has been transferred to Local Authorities. The NHS will only provide and/or pay for the Nursing Care Service Component of a person's long term care service needs. All other costs and services associated with long-term care are the care recipient's responsibility unless they qualify for Local Authority assistance. Although in Scotland from July 2002 Free Personal Care has been available.
A property will automatically be ignored if a surviving spouse or partner lives there. This rule extends to other relatives aged 60 or over who live in the property. So if a daughter, niece or brother has moved in as a carer, this could help reduce future care costs. More importantly, many couples don't realise that they may be able to take the home out of the care equation altogether by altering the way in which it is owned.
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