Does long-term care insurance cover hospice care?
Long-term care insurance is an insurance product for Americans worried that they may not be able to cover the cost of all the services they need as they grow older. From nursing homes to at-home care, long-term care insurance can help users get ready for the costs they'll have to cover when they get older, making an already difficult situation at least somewhat less stressful for themselves and their families.
Hospice care – also known as palliative care – is treatment provided to people who are approaching the end of their lives. It is focused on making the patient comfortable and will generally forego any treatment designed to extend life. Hospice care can be very helpful for patients and family alike, and it's worth knowing if your long-term care insurance will cover this before you invest in a policy.
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Does long-term care insurance cover hospice care?
The most important thing to remember when figuring out what is covered by long-term care insurance – or any insurance policy, really – is that each insurance policy is different. You can only know what is covered by looking at the details of your policy. If you can't figure it out, ask your insurance agent or financial advisor to go over the details with you before you sign on the dotted line.
That said, long-term care insurance generally covers hospice care. Hospice is a healthcare service associated with aging and end-of-life, so it makes sense that it would generally be part of the menu of services covered by a long-term care policy. Exactly how much hospice care will be covered will depend on how many other services you've paid for with your policy and how much coverage you elected to buy when you purchased the policy. While most people are only in hospice for a short spell – the decision to call in hospice is normally made when a person is very close to the end of their life – some people do end up using hospice care for longer than planned. Knowing how much money you have to pay for the service is key.
Look into long-term care insurance policies here to find one that works for you.
Long-term care insurance basics
Long-term care insurance works like any other insurance product – you pay premiums now in exchange for money to pay for something later on in life. Long-term care insurance is a customizable product. You can add various riders to get special services, and there is even an option to get a hybrid long-term care insurance policy that doubles as life insurance.
The amount of money you have to pay for long-term care services when you are older will depend on how big of a premium you pay. If you pay a bigger premium, you will have more money available to you. Think hard about your situation when choosing how big of a policy to get, and consider consulting with a financial advisor to figure out how get the best value for you and your family.
Other services covered by long-term care insurance
Hospice is obviously not the only service covered by long-term care insurance. Other things you can expect to be covered by your policy include nursing homes, at-home skilled nursing care, adult day care centers, respite care, occupational therapy and care to help with daily tasks like dressing and bathing.
One common question is whether or not you can pay for informal caregivers – such as family and friends to take time out of their schedule to help care for an aging friend or relative – with long-term care insurance. Again, this is a question you will need to ask your agent as it will depend on your policy. Some insurance companies do offer a rider allowing for cash benefits, which could be used to pay these caregivers, while others will cover these caregivers as part of the overall policy.
The bottom line
While each individual policy is different, long-term care insurance will generally pay for hospice care. How much money you'll have will depend on the size of your policy and how much you use to pay for other services before hospice is needed. But if you're looking for a plan that can cover hospice care - as well as nursing homes, assisted living facilities and even in-home caretaking - long-term care insurance could be for you.
