Another story that confuses "independent living" with long-term careThis was an interesting article about alternative retirement living up until the author started comparing it to assisted living and nursing homes. (Link to full CNBC article at the end of this post.) The only reasonable land-based analogy here is "independent living". Even mentioning assisted living, or worse nursing homes, is completely ridiculous. While a cruise ship is staffed for "medical care" that means, acute, temporary medical conditions, not long-term, custodial care. NO cruise ship will provide help for you to physically get out bed, bathe, dress, etc., the types of basic care services provided in assisted living. And NO cruise ship wants a long-term passenger with safety issues related to Alzheimer's or dementia. And if you're so poor off to be in a skilled nursing home, you probably can't even get on the ship. Here is a quote from today's CNBC article: A study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found that when considered over a 20-year span, "cruises were comparably priced to assisted living centers and offered a better quality of life, "though land-based assisted living can vary greatly by facility, location and needs." And here's a quote from the source article linked in the quote above (published in 2004!), that itself is quoting an article (from 2004!) in a medical journal: "Elderly people often choose assisted living facilities, nursing homes, 24 hours a day home caregivers, or family support. Living on a cruise ship might be a better choice, says Lee Lindquist, instructor of medicine at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, and a geriatrician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital." Dr. Lindquist should lose her (his?) license, hospital privileges, and teaching post. While there are indeed people with canes, walkers, and wheelchairs on cruise ships, NONE of them are living there. And who is it helping them bathe and dress and use the toilet on board? Right, spouses or other family. If someone needs the degree of care provided in assisted living, they cannot "live" on a cruise ship. MAYBE they could take a vacation, but the ship's staff sure as heck is not going to provide any direct care services. BTW, getting "long-term care" in a Holiday Inn is just as ridiculous. Follow this link to the full article on-line:
http://www.cnbc.com/2016/07/26/ahoy-matey-more-folks-retiring-on-a-cruise-ship.html
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Another article on the high cost of health care in retirement, and again, these numbers all exclude the cost of long-term care.The Motley Fool does a good job of examining a couple of different studies on what we should expect to pay out of pocket for health care in retirement, and how even with estimates exceeding $240,000 over a 20-year retirement we may still be UNDER-estimating the cost. MOST of the costs are monthly premiums for Medicare Part B and Medicare Supplement insurance, plus an average of Medicare deductibles and co-payments. None of the studies cited include the cost of long-term care services. The Fool's advice: This is a well-done article that lays out facts and ways to approach the planning issues without relying on scare tactics.
Read the full article on-line by clicking HERE. http://www.fool.com/retirement/2016/07/03/warning-healthcare-costs-in-retirement-may-be-high.aspx |
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Comfort Long Term Care is an independent insurance brokerage agency specializing exclusively in LTC insurance. Agency owner, Bill Comfort, The LTCpro® is a LTC specialist celebrating 30+ years of experience since 1991! We are based in the Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, North Carolina Triangle region, but we serve clients throughout NC and across the country. We also have an office in St. Louis, Missouri.
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