The long-term care insurance industry has seen its share of challenges in recent years, generating no shortage of negative headlines. But while such coverage isn’t for everybody, almost anyone planning for retirement ought to carefully consider whether they might need it—after all, burying our heads in the sand about our future care needs is hardly a good alternative.
If you’re assuming you won’t need help in your later years, you may be miscalculating. Most long-term care is not actually medical in nature, but rather involves assistance with activities of daily living such as bathing and dressing. Some 70% of adults turning 65 will need some help with such “custodial care,” including those with dementia who are otherwise physically healthy.