Florida Long Term Care Insurance (LTCI)

Florida Long Term Care Insurance (LTCI)

Due to age, mental or physical illness or injury, people sometimes find themselves in need of help with eating, bathing, dressing, toileting or continence and transferring such as getting out of a chair or out of bed. These six actions are called Activities of Daily Living and are referred to as ADLs. Long term care insurance will be able to help you pay for care in the future, if you are faced with the need of such assistance. If you can not do two or more of these activities, or if you have a cognitive impairment then you are said to need long term care.

Long term care is not a very good name for this type of situation because what caused the need for care may not last for a long time. Some of the people who need ADL services might only need them only for several months or less.

Most people think that long term care is provided exclusively in nursing homes. It could be, but it can also be provided in an adult day care center, an assisted living facility, or at home.

Assistance with ADLs, called custodial care may be provided at the same place as (sometimes confused with) skilled care. Skilled care means medical, nursing, or rehabilitative services, including help taking medicine, undergoing testing such as taking your blood pressure or other similar services. This is a very important distinction because Medicare along with most private health insurance will pay only for skilled care and not custodial care.

The Florida Long Term Care Partnership Program

The Florida Long Term Care Partnership Program is designed to encourage people to purchase private long term care insurance by offering them the option to exempt some or all of their assets from Medicaid spend-down requirements. Partnership policy holders are still required to meet Medicaid income eligibility thresholds before they may receive Medicaid benefits.

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation announced on July 27,2007 the adoption of standards applicable to new and existing long-term care insurance policies under the new Long-Term Care Partnership Program, effective July 29, 2007. The purpose of the plan is to encourage people to plan for the risk of having to need long term care by purchasing a long term care insurance policy as opposed to depending on Medicaid and Medicare.

Don't put off having the protection you need because you thought you couldn't afford the coverage. Stop hesitating, contact Florida Affordable Insurance today, by phone or use the contact form on the left side of the page, we can help you understand workings of LTCI policy and the Florida Long Term Care Partnership Program.