Long Term Care Chances of Needing Care

Let’s face it, there’s a chance you will never need Long Term Care.  However, a study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services indicates that the Long Term Care chances are:

People 65 years old face at least a 50% lifetime Long Term Care chances of one day needing nursing home care.
-Dept. of Health & Human Services

  • Only about 15% will stay there five years or longer.
  • The American population is growing older because modern medicine is keeping us alive longer increasing the odds you will need Long Term Care services.
  • 71% of Long Term Care Insurance Claims are made by women.
  • America’s elderly population grew 11-fold from 1900 to 1994. (US Census)
  • At any given time, 22% of those 85 years old and older are in nursing homes around the country.

Your odds of entering a nursing home and staying for longer periods increase with age so having a Long Term Care Insurance plan in place can help minimize the Long Term Care chances you face in your retirement.

Long Term Care Chances: Increasingly A Women’s Issue

Since women generally outlive men by about five years, they face a 50% greater likelihood than men of entering a nursing home after age 65.  While older people are more likely to need Long Term Care, the need for Long Term Care can come at any age.  70% of all Long Term Care Insurance claims are for woman.  This make the Long Term Care chances for woman a more important insurance for woman to consider when planning for retirement.

40% of the 13 million people receiving Long Term Care services are between the ages of 18 and 64. -U.S. Government Accounting Office