Assisted living is one of the most popular types of senior care these days. Residents in an assisted living community can get all the help they need to manage their day-to-day lives. Besides, assisted living facilities also serve as the perfect ground for seniors to socialize, make new friends, and enjoy their golden years to the fullest living as independently as possible.
You can get many types of amenities in assisted living communities too, such as healthy meals, a good level of nursing services, and recreational facilities. That is why assisted living is considered as the best intermediate step to long-term senior care. Generally, the residents or their families pay for the expenses of assisted living. However, you can also get it covered by using personal assets or long-term care (LTC) insurance.
Most of the LTC insurance policies will help you to cover the costs of the assisted living facility. Usually, long-term care insurance policies are quite flexible and can pay for all major types of senior care, such as adult daycare, nursing home, and assisted living. Yet again, the specific amount that will be reimbursed will depend upon the terms and conditions mentioned in the insurance policy.
The premiums for your LTC insurance will vary greatly depending upon the area where you live, as well as how much coverage you need. As per the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), LTC insurance premiums average around $2,500 to $2,700 for a year. Note that some LTC insurance policies may not cover in-home senior care. Some policies may offer to cover 100% of your assisted living costs, but the premiums can be very high for such insurance policies. So check the policy-related documents very carefully when choosing long-term care insurance.
If you are planning to pay for your assisted living expenses through your LTC insurance policy, see to it that you choose the amenities in the assisted living facility wisely. Typically, the monthly insurance benefit will range from $2,000 to $10,000, and average costs for an assisted living go around $4,000 depending upon the location of the facility and the amenities provided. Then there could be additional costs for related services like physical therapy, monthly recreational trips, dog walking, etc.
Therefore, make sure to calculate all the related costs when choosing an assisted living community, and ensure that the monthly expenses will stay within the average benefit offered by the LTC insurance policy. At the same time, make certain the assisted living facility that you have selected is approved by your insurance provider. This will help to ensure that the payments go through smoothly.