As your senior loved one ages, you may find yourself in need of long term care services.
Unfortunately, in-home care or assisted living opportunities may seem cost-prohibitive. How can you provide quality care for your senior loved one without breaking your budget? As it turns out, Home Life senior care may be affordable than you think.
In this article, we will cover ways to pay for in-home care for seniors and the care benefits senior citizens are offered.
1. Check Out Your Loved One’s Insurance Policies
One of the most effective ways to cover the cost of a care home worker for your senior loved one is the insurance policies they took out earlier in life. Medicaid, for example, may help cover the cost of an in-home care worker. Other long-term care insurance policies, however, may only cover the cost of a nursing home, so make sure you take the time to look over the policy. When in doubt, call: a company representative will let you know whether your senior’s policy will help cover the cost of assisted living.
2. Talk to Veterans Affairs
Did your loved one serve in the military? If so, the VA may help cover those expenses. Veterans benefits may also cover needed care for the spouse of a service member who now needs help with the activities of daily life in a way that is best provided by a senior care worker. If you’re not sure whether your loved one qualifies–they must, for example, have served at least 90 days of active duty, and at least one of those days must have been during wartime–you can contact the VA to ask any questions you have about the care they can receive.
3. Examine Your Loved One’s Life Insurance Policy
Some live insurance policies offer riders that will help cover the cost of a senior care worker or long term care services. Read through your loved one’s policy. This payout can be the difference between long term care quality and a senior caregiver solution that doesn’t meet your senior’s needs. Keep in mind that a payout to cover the cost of your life home care worker now may prevent you from receiving a payout at the time of your loved one’s death, so take funeral and burial planning into consideration before cashing out the life insurance policy.
4. Put a Reverse Mortgage on the House
Many seniors paid off their homes a long time ago. They want to be able to age in place within those homes–that’s why you’re looking for a care home worker instead of looking into a nursing home or other facility. That doesn’t mean, however, that you can’t use the home as an asset to help pay for the cost of an in home care worker. A reverse mortgage will allow your loved one to continue to live in the house, but remove equity from the home to help pay for the cost of in-home care.
5. Look for Community Support
How much help does your loved one really need in order to be able to live at home effectively? Some seniors may become particularly frail and need considerably more help in order to take care of the activities of daily living. Others, on the other hand, may benefit more from options like meal delivery, in-home nursing care visits, and drivers who will come take them out for activities and other special events. Look into what options are available in your community for seniors. This may help remove some of the burden from current caregivers and reduce the need for your life home care, which in turn means fewer hours that you’ll need to pay for a caregiver.
6. Consider the Advantages of Using an Agency
Hiring a caregiver on your own, without going through an agency, may seem like a cheaper option. Unfortunately, it can also pose its own problems. Consider going through an agency to be sure that you’re getting a reputable caregiver who will provide quality care for your loved one. The agency will take care of details like background checks and screenings as well as ensuring that you have continued care for your loved one even if one caregiver quits, is ill, or has an emergency.
7. Partner with Your Siblings
You and your siblings agree that your parent needs more care than you’re able to provide–so what comes next? Consider coming together to pay for the cost of senior care. In many cases, taking on that expense together will prevent anyone from feeling excessively burdened by it, but will still offer your loved one the high quality of care they need and deserve.
Long term care quality is your top priority when you’re considering options for your senior loved one. You want to be sure they’re taken care of, with a caring in home care worker who will provide them with the support they need to handle daily activities, keep the home clean, and take care of errands and other tasks. Fortunately, there are options available that will help you pay for home life senior care without going into debt in these later years of your loved one’s life. Contact us today to learn more about the care we provide and how it can help make your senior’s last years more pleasant, including allowing them to age at home for as long as possible.
