Posts Tagged ‘senior health’


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Looking at Long-Term Care Insurance

What is Long-Term Care Insurance?

Long-Term Care insurance pays for or assists in paying for care for someone with a prolonged physical illness, or disability or a cognitive impairment, such as Alzheimer’s disease. Services may include help with activities of daily living, home health care, respite care, hospice care, adult day care, or care in a nursing or assisted living facility.

Why consider Long-Term Care Insurance?

This will depend on your age, health status, overall retirement goals, income and assets. If you already have health problems that are likely to mean you will need long-term care (ex/ Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s), you probably won’t be able to buy a policy. You should consider buying long-term care insurance if: you have significant assets and income, you want to protect some of your assets and income, you can pay premiums, you want to stay independent of the support of others, or you want to have the flexibility of choosing care in the setting you prefer or will be most comfortable in. Medicare, Medicare supplement insurance, and health insurance usually will not pay for long-term care. For some, a policy is affordable and worth the cost. For others, the cost is too great, or the policy they can afford doesn’t offer enough benefits to make it worthwhile. To determine whether you should or should not consider buying long-term care insurance, you may refer to the worksheets found in A Shopper’s Guide to Long-Term Care Insurance. Your free guide can be ordered at: https://eapps.naic.org/forms/ipsd/Consumer_info.jsp.

How do Long-Term Care Insurance Policies Work?

Insurance companies sell policies that combine benefits and coverage in different ways. Generally, benefits are paid using of three different methods, the expense-incurred method, the indemnity method, or the disability method. When the expense-incurred method is used, the insurance company must decide if you are eligible for benefits and if your claim is eligible for services (this is the most common method). When the indemnity method is used, the benefit is a set dollar amount. Once the company decides you are eligible and you are receiving eligible services, the insurance company will pay that set amount directly to you up to the limit of the policy. When the disability method is used, you are only required to meet the benefit eligibility criteria. Once you do, you receive your full daily benefit, even if you are not receiving any long-term care services.

How Much do Policies Cost?

Premiums will vary based on a variety of factors, including your age and health, the level of coverage, benefits and options you select for your policy. It is best to educate yourself with the above-mentioned Shopper’s Guide and then contact your insurance agent. An annual premium for a 50 year old can vary from $409 to $1,087 and for a 65 year of from $1,002 to $$2,130.

What Shopping Tips Should You Keep in Mind?

Ask questions, check with several companies and compare outlines of coverage, and check out the companies’ rate increase histories by contacting the state insurance department. Investigate your insurance company or agent by contacting a rating agency such as:
A.M. Best Company www.ambest.com
Fitch IBCA, Duff & Phelps, Inc. www.fitchrating.com
Moody’s Investor Service, Inc. www.moodys.com

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Great Things to do for a Senior

Start an Indoor Garden
Living plants bring color and add joy to our lives. Many seniors are or had been active and avid gardeners. With the winter upon us, bringing the outdoors inside not only can add color and beauty, it can help to combat hopelessness. The senior is given the opportunity to give as well as receive. They are given the chance to care for and foster the growth of a living thing. In return, they are given a feeling of self-worth and rewarded with beautiful plants or useful herbs they can enjoy year round. Pick out a pretty garden pot and plants or herbs to fill the container to bring to your loved one. Add a big bow and attach a miniwatering can and instructions. Your loved one will welcome the interaction and the planter will serve as a daily reminder of your concern.
In times of good weather, If they are still gardening, ask if you can spend some time in the garden with them. Bring along a picnic lunch or a gift such as gloves, a sunhat or rolling garden stool.

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12 of 16 Great Things to do for a Senior

Introduce Them to Bookmobiles and Books on Tape
Reading is one of the most popular hobbies in America. Library use is at an all-time high and book sales at chain bookstores and websites such as Amazon.com are booming.
Your senior may have a well-filled bookcase or books and paperbacks lying around. Find out what they like to read, and if they are interested in a particular magazine. Ask if they use the library. If they don’t, offer to get them a card and list of library locations. Arrange for a visit to the Bookmobile, a library van that travels to sites throughout the city or county. Exchange new and used books with your client and offer to order or pick up books at a local bookstore or on-line for them. Invite them to join a book club.
If they are losing or have lost their eyesight, tell them how to obtain books on tape. Libraries usually have a wide selection and used bookstores are a good low-cost source. Locally, the Association for the Blind is an excellent resource. The Monroe County Library System has a program that allows you to download free audiobooks to your computer and transfer them to your portable device. Visit www.overdrive.linbraryweb.org for this program.
National Public Radio stations across the nation provide Reading for The Blind programming. Volunteers come into the station and read local and national newspapers, magazines and books. Check your local NPR station for specific programming.

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11 of 16 Great Things You Can do for a Senior

Teach Games and Organize Puzzle ExchangesUse or lose it – at least that’s what they say. Mind-challenging puzzles and games are excellent tools for boosting brainpower and bringing people together.
If your community doesn’t have a game and puzzle exchange, start one. If they have one, add to it. This is not only a great volunteer activity for individuals, its a wonderful thing for business to do. Check around the house and see if you have any games you haven’t played lately. Ask your friends or local businesses to donate. Stop by a Goodwill or Salvation Army outlet. You can usually find all kinds of games on the shelves.
You can also volunteer to teach games at the local recreation or senior center. There are many new games, such as Sudoku, that seniors are unfamiliar with.
The internet provides hundreds of game sites. Seniors who have access to the internet and know how to use it have a world of puzzle and game opportunities at their fingertips. Library shelves are filled with puzzle and game books. Take a few out and loan them to a senior. Buy a puzzle book at your supermarket or drugstore to take as a gift the next time you visit.
Better yet, pick out a puzzle and do it together. Two heads are better than one and a lot more fun too.

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10 of 16 Great Things to do for a Senior

Provide Pet or Vet AssistanceStudies show that people who have pets live longer and healthier lives. Having a Fido or Fluffy to care for keeps seniors active and emotionally fulfilled.
Pets are family too. If you’re pet-friendly pop for a toy, or tag along during walks. Make sure pets are being properly fed and groomed. Offer to pet sit, take pets to the groomer or in for annual vaccinations.
No pet. No problem. Seniors can still enjoy the company of a pet. Numerous non-profit organizations train pets and take them around to nursing homes, senior housing and recreation centers.
There are also inexpensive ways to obtain a pet. Non-profit organizations such as our local Lollipop Farm, the Dumb Friends League, the Max Fund and city and county agencies rescue pets and charge low-fees for adoption.

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8 of 16 Great Things to do for a Senior

Help with a Home Safety AuditIt’s a well-known fact that more accidents occur at home than anywhere else. When it comes to seniors, the numbers are even higher. Statistics show that falls are the cause of 70 percent of accidental deaths to people over the age of 75 and 40 percent of all nursing home admissions. Sadly, some twenty-five percent of seniors who fall and suffer hip fractures die within a year.
These statistics are frightening but it’s not just the falls themselves that impact seniors. It’s the fear of falling itself. When a friend or family member falls and is injured or put into a nursing home, seniors are afraid it will happen to them too. Before long, they give up their daily walks and social activities, making them even less mobile and more isolated.
One way to prevent falls is to arrange for a professional home safety audit. The audit will identify areas of concern and offer recommendations. Happier At Home provides this service for free.
Take a look around the house the next time you visit. Check to see that rugs are wrinkle-free and edges are firmly tacked in place. If there are area rugs, make sure there are no-slip pads beneath them.
Inspect the bathrooms. Do the tubs and showers have no slip-mats, decals and safety bars? Are hand-held electrical appliances located too close to the sinks or tubs? What about lighting around the staircases and porches and in the bathrooms and kitchen? Are the bulbs the correct wattage for the fixtures? If the lighting is poor, help locate a handyman who can take care of the job. There are non-profit home repair organizations in many cities that charge seniors low fees for home improvements. Some home safety solutions are remarkably easy. Pick up clutter. Install new batteries in smoke detectors. Hire neighborhood kids to shovel the walks. Think about safety measures in your own home and you’ll come up with dozens of ways you can help. Just remember, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

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Number 4 of 16 Great Things You Can Do for a Senior

Arrange for Them to Obtain a Home Energy Audit or Energy Bill Assistance.
Healthcare costs aren’t the only things that are skyrocketing. High energy costs are making it increasingly difficult for seniors to pay their utility bills.
And it’s not only their bank accounts that are suffering. Their health is too. In order to keep their bills low, seniors turn their thermostats down in the cold winter months and boost them up in the summer. Every year there are tragic reports of seniors dying from exposure.
This doesn’t have to happen. There are government programs that provide financial assistance. Unfortunately, seniors are often unaware of them or unwilling to ask for help.
If you visit a senior and notice that their home feels especially cold or unusually warm, ask if they are having problems with their furnace or paying their utility bills. If the problem appears to be financial, put them in touch with the utility company. The utility can put them on budget billing to spread the cost out over a year. Depending on income, he/she might also qualify for financial assistance from LEAP, the government’s Low-Income Energy Assistance Program. Every state offers this program and applications can be obtained on-line, by mail or at social service organizations.
If the problem is energy-related, see if your local utility will conduct a free home energy audit. The audit will show where the house is losing or gaining heat and provide practical tips on how to improve the home’s energy efficiency. There are simple things you can do as well. Take a look around the house. You may spot some obvious problems such as lack of weather stripping. Installing weather stripping is easy and inexpensive. All you need is a few tools and minimal technical skills.
Whatever you do, don’t wait for June or November to roll around. The earlier you start, the sooner they can start saving on their energy bills.

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Number 2 of 16 Great Things You Can do for a Senior

Take Them to a Health Fair and Document Their Medical Information.
With health costs spiraling, getting and staying healthy is a must for today’s seniors. While many have health plans that provide for annual check-ups, local Health Fairs are a low-cost, low-stress option for those who have minimal insurance or hate going to the doctor.
Community Health Fairs are often sponsored by hospitals, clinics and non-profit organizations. They offer a series of tests for free or at reduced rates and provide information on healthy lifestyles.
Encourage your senior to attend and offer to accompany them. Before you go, try gathering a family medical history. This will be useful not only for the Health Fair but also for future medical visits.
When you take a medical history, you may discover that there is not documented information about their physicians, medications or medical wishes.
This would be a good time to create a document with their doctors’ names and contact information along with a list of prescriptions, pharmacies, allergies, surgeries and instructions. Printing it in large type and having it laminated would be invaluable daily and even more valuable in an emergency.
Some other options are to invite them to participate in charitable walks or on strolls around town or stop by and present them with a set of hand weights and demonstrate how to use them.

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