Essentials for Self-Funding A Long-Term Care Plan.....

When surveys indicate less than 20% of Americans have addressed their Long-Term Care Planning needs, the vast majority of our country's retirees do not have a PLAN.   The default, of course, is self-funding that cost, but that is not a PLAN! However, the choice of Self-Fund future LTC needs is significant, and that decision cannot be considered viable planning until various steps are taken. 

The first step is to ensure your clients understand the risk they’re accepting by quantifying and documenting their projected cost of care with a HALO Assessment. 

The next step when your clients are planning to self-fund their future LTC needs is having the proper legal framework in place to avoid “crisis-planning” when care is needed should they be incapacitated or incapable of making decisions.

1)  The executed legal documents already to support this planning include:

• Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA)
• Advanced Health Care Directives  
• Revocable Trust – Dated: _________ 
• Will – Dated: __________ 
• Asset Protection Trust
• Other:  ________________________

2)  Who is the agent specified in your client's DPOA in the event of their incapacitation? 

3)  Has the DPOA-specified agent formally accepted the role in the event of your incapacitation?    

Finally, in the event of incapacitation, and with a legal framework, your clients' plan for Self-Funding future LTC needs requires an orderly liquidation of specific or allocated accounts to pay for their care when needed, as documented below.  

All that's left is the following acknowledgment and some signatures.....

"We have completed the necessary steps and elect to take on the responsibility of self-funding the

cost of care excluded by Medicare and/or Health Insurance, even though this decision could have significant adverse effects on our comprehensive financial planning.  We acknowledge that our advisor has recommended other options and does not support this decision."

It's actually quite simple....The essentials for Self-Funding a LTC plan MUST be in place

to have a viable plan or an alternative to an insurance-based LTC Planning solution. 

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