As parents age, securing the right insurance policies becomes crucial yet often overlooked. This article sheds light on the most vital insurance policies for aging parents, featuring insights from top experts in the field. Discover essential advice on nursing home, long-term care, and other critical insurance types that can safeguard your family’s future.
- Secure Nursing Home Insurance
- Consider Long-Term Care Insurance
- Obtain Long-Term Care Insurance
- Consider Funeral And Supplemental Care Insurance
- Obtain Dental Insurance
Secure Nursing Home Insurance
Nursing home insurance. It’s often overlooked because when people are middle-aged, they don’t want to envision a future in a nursing home. Additionally, nursing home insurance is expensive and people aren’t excited about making a monthly payment for something they may or may not use. However, if you end up needing to be in a skilled nursing facility, the costs will quickly use up your retirement savings, and you’ll likely have nothing left as an inheritance. Nursing home insurance allows aging parents to maintain the wealth they worked so hard to build and still get the advanced care they need.
Michelle Robbins, Licensed Insurance Agent, USInsuranceAgents.com
Obtain Long-Term Care Insurance
Chad Harmer, Founder, CIO, and Financial Planner, Harmer Wealth Management recommends Long-term care insurance as one of the most critical yet often overlooked policies aging parents should have in place. This type of insurance helps cover the cost of care services that may become necessary due to aging, chronic illness, or disability—expenses that are typically not covered by traditional health insurance or government programs.
Long-term care insurance can provide financial relief for families by covering in-home care, assisted living, or nursing home costs, reducing the burden on loved ones. Without it, families may face difficult financial decisions, depleting savings or assets to afford necessary care. Securing this coverage early ensures access to quality care while preserving financial independence and protecting generational wealth.
Nick Schrader, Founder, Second Western Insurance Services chimes in on why it’s essential:
- Medicare does not cover extended nursing home stays or in-home care.
- The cost of assisted living or home health care can be financially devastating, averaging $4,500-$9,000 per month.
- LTCI helps cover these expenses, preserving retirement savings and reducing the financial burden on family members.
Tip: Purchase LTCI before health issues arise, as premiums increase significantly with age and pre-existing conditions.
Consider Funeral And Supplemental Care Insurance
In my opinion, there are two types of insurance that I can highly recommend: funeral insurance and supplementary care insurance. Funeral insurance provides cover for surviving dependents if the insured person dies. It covers the cost of the funeral and other services. Supplementary care insurance significantly covers the gap in the actual care costs. The financial gap in the corresponding costs can be covered and the pension does not have to be used to cover it.
Stefan Fielow, Insurance broker, Stefan Fielow HanseMerkur
Obtain Dental Insurance
One piece of insurance that I recommend to every client shopping with us for health insurance is dental insurance. According to a 2017 report by the CDC, only roughly a third of older adults have dental insurance, and that number gets lower as ages get higher. However, since 2022, dental insurance enrollments have increased due to the number of enrollments in publicly funded benefits. We still find, though, that many older Americans do not prioritize dental benefits. There are many reasons that dental insurance is vital, the most important among them being:
Poor oral health leads to poor overall health. When you have poor oral health, you create an environment of harmful bacteria. Individuals, especially older individuals, with poor oral health become at great risk of chronic illness. This can lead to conditions such as diabetes, heart problems, and even things like cancer or dementia. Being healthy means keeping your mouth clean.
It impacts daily life. Eating, communicating, even breathing to certain extents can be impacted by loss of teeth and gum disease. Further, many people with poor oral health have less confidence in social interaction and are perceived more poorly by peers. Every day becomes harder if you don’t take care of your oral health, and many adults suffer for it.
It impacts your career & education. A study by the ADA in 2017 said that 28% of millennials claim that the appearance of their teeth hinders their efforts searching for a job. Another study by the CDC showed signs that children with untreated tooth decay performed worse in school than their peers. Most adults continue to work up until or even past retirement age, making it even more important to stay on top of oral health.
Lastly, it can save you money. Poor oral health can lead to costly outcomes. To start, the cost of periodontal maintenance, dentures, and other solutions for gum disease are costly themselves. In the worst-case scenario, should any chronic conditions, such as diabetes or cancer, be caused by poor oral hygiene, that can be significantly costly as well. The key to low healthcare costs in many cases starts with good oral hygiene.
Dan Hardle, Chief Executive Officer, Agent Boost Marketing
