Long-Term Care Cost Planner for Arizona

Generally no. Medicare covers short stays in a skilled nursing facility after a qualifying hospital stay, but not ongoing help with daily activities such as bathing and dressing.

Ask two or three local home care agencies, assisted living communities or nursing homes for their current monthly rates, then enter that figure in the planner. We can help you gather them.

The daily benefit is the most a policy pays for each day of care. The benefit period is roughly how many years it pays at that level. Together they set the size of the policy’s pool of money.

Care often starts years after you buy. Without inflation protection, a benefit that fits today’s prices can fall well short when you need it.

It can. The Arizona Long Term Care System (ALTCS), part of AHCCCS, covers nursing home and home care for people who meet its medical and financial rules. The financial limits are strict, so many families plan ahead with savings or insurance. Ask AHCCCS for the current rules, or we can walk you through them.

It is the waiting period between when you start needing care and when the policy starts paying, a bit like a deductible measured in days. During it you pay for care yourself. This planner does not model the elimination period, so keep it in mind when you compare the result with a policy.

There is no official rate to plug in. Try a few to see the range: a lower rate, a middle rate and a higher one. Care often starts many years from now, so small differences add up. Local providers can sometimes tell you how much their prices have changed in recent years.

A hybrid policy combines life insurance with long-term care benefits. If you need care, the policy pays toward it; if you never do, a death benefit goes to your family. Traditional long-term care insurance pays only for care. Both are subject to underwriting, and the right fit depends on your health and budget.

Viola Lucero holds the CLTC (Certified in Long-Term Care) designation and helps families in Chandler and across Arizona compare traditional and hybrid options. Bring your planner results to a no-pressure review at our office or call (480) 300-5776. There is no fee for our help.