There was a court case decided in the state of Kentucky recently that is very relevant to the field of elder law, and it provides a heads up with regard to long-term care insurance.
You may not be aware of the fact that most people who reach the age of 65 are going to need living assistance eventually. Some people can stay at home and receive in-home care, but many seniors ultimately reside full-time in nursing homes or assisted living communities.
Residence in one of these facilities is extraordinarily expensive all around the country, and here in New Jersey the costs are higher than the national averages. It could conceivably cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars to spend a significant period of time in a nursing home here in the Garden State.
One thing that you could do to prepare for these potential expenses would be to purchase long-term care insurance. However, if you decide to go this route you would do well to examine the details of your policy very carefully and make sure you are entering a qualified facility.
This case in Kentucky involved a woman named Jeanne Crutchfield. Back in 1992 she obtained long-term care coverage and entered a facility that is designed to meet the needs of Alzheimer’s patients in 2009.
Her insurance company refused to pay for the care contending that the provisions of the policy do not allow for a stay at this specific type of facility. Crutchfield sued but the insurance company won the case.
If you want to be certain that you are taking the appropriate steps the intelligent way to proceed would be to discuss everything with a good Central New Jersey elder law attorney before you take actions that you may regret later on.
Alan Augulis, Estate Planning Attorney
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