If you're at the age when it's time to get your finances in order for retirement and beyond, one thing you may want to consider is long-term care insurance. It's fairly common to need home health care or nursing home care in your senior years, so you want to think about how you'll pay for it. Buying a long-term insurance policy while you're still fairly young means your premiums are lower since it should be several years before you need to use it. If you wait until you're in your 70s or 80s, the cost of the insurance may be too expensive to afford. Here are a few other things to know about this type of insurance.

What Long-Term Care Insurance Covers

This type of insurance is intended to cover medical expenses when you become disabled or need care due to advanced age. It contributes a daily cost towards medical care in a nursing home or for home health assistance in your own home. It pays for rehab specialists for services such as physical therapy and occupational therapy. The insurance has a cap on daily spending as well as a cap on the total amount of the policy. It may not cover all of your expenses, but it may protect your estate. If you want to pass your home and possessions to your kids or a surviving spouse, long-term coverage may save you from having to sell your house to pay for your final medical care.

Factors That Affect The Price Of Coverage

The premiums for long-term care insurance vary considerably due to several factors. When you buy your policy, you determine how much coverage you'll have. The better your coverage, the higher the premium. An excellent policy may provide coverage for the rest of your life if you're admitted to a nursing home. However, it is more common for there to be a limit on the amount of coverage you have. The limit may be a set dollar amount or it may be a limit on the number of days or years your policy will pay. In addition, the lower the daily allotment, the lower the premium.

Your state of health might also affect the cost of the policy as well as your eligibility for coverage. You don't want to wait until you have a terminal or chronic illness to get long-term coverage. Your age impacts the price of the policy too, just as it does with other types of insurance. To get the lowest price, you want to buy the insurance when you're younger and still in good health.

Long-term care insurance coverage is in addition to your regular health insurance that may pay for a short-term stay in a nursing home and short-term home health care. Be sure you understand the coverage you already have so you can determine the most optimal additional coverage to buy. It's a good idea to work with an insurance agent and a financial planner to determine the right policy to buy based on your age, medical condition, and financial situation. Contact a company like Veltkamp Agency Inc to learn more.