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I don't think TuborgP is thinking LTC insurance will cover those costs. He said in concert, which to me means LTC insurance will maintain his quality of life and if some new breakthrough happens, he'll be able to take advantage of it with his other health insurance.
It's kind of what I'm doing now. I have two bad knees, but I'm not looking a knee replacement surgery. I'm just muddling through, taking an occasional pain med, waiting for some of the recent research breakthroughs to reach the market. Without LTC insurance, TuborgP would have to take the mechanical replacement option (which isn't permanent). With LTC insurance he can wait, giving him the opportunity to use one of the new alternatives.
Now you have me really confused. Most people don't go into SNFs (or even need home health care) for bad knees (at least the kind of bad knees most younger people have). Heck - everyone I know who has led an active life has something or other wrong with one or both knees by the time he or she is 50ish or so. And those who don't fall into this group usually have bad knees because their knees are carrying 50-100+ more pounds than they're supposed to carry.
And although you're correct that a total knee isn't a great option for a younger person (because they haven't been shown to last longer than 20 years or so) - there are now some newer less radical knee surgeries that are designed to buy you some time. But again - this has nothing to do with the price of onions - which is LTC insurance.
So what do you think you'll get with LTC insurance as a result of your bad knees that will "buy you time"? Robyn
Now you have me really confused. Most people don't go into SNFs (or even need home health care) for bad knees (at least the kind of bad knees most younger people have). Heck - everyone I know who has led an active life has something or other wrong with one or both knees by the time he or she is 50ish or so. And those who don't fall into this group usually have bad knees because their knees are carrying 50-100+ more pounds than they're supposed to carry.
And although you're correct that a total knee isn't a great option for a younger person (because they haven't been shown to last longer than 20 years or so) - there are now some newer less radical knee surgeries that are designed to buy you some time. But again - this has nothing to do with the price of onions - which is LTC insurance.
So what do you think you'll get with LTC insurance as a result of your bad knees that will "buy you time"? Robyn
Not me and I am 55
And I played rugby for 13 years followed by soccer for another 17 years and I have skied for the last 30+ years. Maybe I am just lucky but I have never had a broken bone, ligament or joint problem (touch wood). One has to be careful about generalizing.
Retirement: 11 questions on long-term care insurance - Apr. 7, 2010
At a minimum, make sure that the policy can be applied not just to nursing homes but also to licensed home care and assisted living, and that it includes an "alternative plan of care" provision. That last item gives you wiggle room in case medical advances change how long-term care is delivered.
nsurance adds an even bigger buffer, which can be emotionally reassuring for people without kids who can help. But for many purchasers the point is less to guarantee care than it is to preserve assets to pass on, or to protect a spouse's lifestyle.
Financial planner Brian Smith echoes many other advisers when he says to look into a policy if you have assets of at least $250,000, not including your home, to protect.
Having more money, from whatever source, means more options. So at the very least you'll need significant savings to act as a buffer between you and the Medicaid safety net. Michigan college professor Paul Freddolino, 63, and his wife Donna, 52, an educational trainer, opted not to buy insurance. Instead they plan to set aside $75,000 of their savings as a "long-term-care account."
The above is all from the link and is provided as general info for readers if interested as food for thought and not discussion with me.
And I played rugby for 13 years followed by soccer for another 17 years and I have skied for the last 30+ years. Maybe I am just lucky but I have never had a broken bone, ligament or joint problem (touch wood). One has to be careful about generalizing.
For the wife and I it is all about a comprehensive approach to future medical needs. As I have posted in other threads that means.
Long Term Health Care
Good Medicare Supplemental
12-15K a year cash flow for medical overage above and beyond your current monthly out of pocket expenses
The recommended Fidelity amount plus even more in reserves.
That is the reserve not instead but on top of LTC
That is moving forward as your base to deal with future needs.
Yes this might not be realistic for all but as I keep saying it is individual in nature.
LTC helps to provide you the base that might make the difference in being able to afford the advanced treatment yet to be developed or to operate under guidelines yet to be administered. Sorta like being 30 and planning for retirement. Yup it was thirty years away but it is here now.
Per the OP and keeping this on topic, one of the shortcomings of calculators is the individual variable and this thread is becoming a discussion about individual variables not related to the OP question of calculators. I apologize for contributing to getting off track.
Now you have me really confused. Most people don't go into SNFs (or even need home health care) for bad knees (at least the kind of bad knees most younger people have). Heck - everyone I know who has led an active life has something or other wrong with one or both knees by the time he or she is 50ish or so. And those who don't fall into this group usually have bad knees because their knees are carrying 50-100+ more pounds than they're supposed to carry.
And although you're correct that a total knee isn't a great option for a younger person (because they haven't been shown to last longer than 20 years or so) - there are now some newer less radical knee surgeries that are designed to buy you some time. But again - this has nothing to do with the price of onions - which is LTC insurance.
So what do you think you'll get with LTC insurance as a result of your bad knees that will "buy you time"? Robyn
What analogy? Best I can figure out what a couple of you are saying is you're buying LTC insurance so if you need custodial or similar care - you won't have to pay for it out of pocket - and can have some extra money to buy something like a zippy bionic knee when it hits the market (assuming Medicare won't cover the cost). Doesn't make sense IMO. Based on my observations - people who need custodial or similar care aren't really good candidates for things like bionic knees.
And if you are in a SNF - why do you need a bionic knee? IOW - I don't have a clue what types of advanced medical technology you'd be interested in if you were living in a SNF - stuff that Medicare doesn't cover. Can you give me some examples? Robyn
P.S. Only thing my 92 year old father has bought recently not covered by Medicare are zippier than normal lens implants when he had cataract surgery - he paid for the extra cost of the zippier lens implants himself. OTOH - he lives in an independent living facility - and still drives. Not sure a SNF resdient would have appreciated the higher end lens implants.
Offhand I think the main limitations on retirement calculators are:
1. You have to guess at your future rate of return. Small errors here lead to big differences in outcome.
2. You don't know how long you will remain alive in retirement
3. You don't know how your health will be, particularly in the "outyears"
4. If you are not single, you don't know who will outlive whom
5. Maybe the biggest problem - tax laws and other conditions will change in unpredictable ways.
You can't use just one free calculator and you need to be able to manipulate the variables. Pensions are until death and beyond for spouse if that was an option and SS is until death with the after death options available. Investments are until they run dry. Many calculators give you the option to pick an age to plan until. I have used a recommended age of 94 and wondered what happened to some people if they lived beyond that. Rate of return is one of the great mysteries of life and some are more comfortable than others feeling how much they understand that mystery.
we can only plan around what was, what is and what stands a good chance of being. odds say if you do that you probley will be okay.
its alot better then doing it by the seat of your pants with no basis or clue of what the numbers could look like in the future
want to just fly in blind? be my guest but id rather fly in at least with a map of what the terrain could look like... if i had a cola adjusted pension that could support us i wouldnt care but since we dont i need to be armed with as much info as possible
we can only plan around what was, what is and what stands a good chance of being. odds say if you do that you probley will be okay.
its alot better then doing it by the seat of your pants with no basis or clue of what the numbers could look like in the future
want to just fly in blind? be my guest but id rather fly in at least with a map of what the terrain could look like... if i had a cola adjusted pension that could support us i wouldnt care but since we dont i need to be armed with as much info as possible
And that my friend is the difference as you so well state. Our situations as individuals are very different, you and I are of the extremes. Yet we have learned to understand those differences and respect the others perspective because it is pertinent to them if not us. However from what I have read from you, even with a pension for both of you rate of return and figuring it out would still be fun for you.
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