Managing Elderly Health Care Needs
When faced with the challenge of managing your elderly parent's health care needs, a little planning and preparation never hurts.
Financial Management
Planning ahead for an elderly parent's care is the surest way to achieve financial preparedness. Life insurance policies, for example, can offer life settlements, which allow policyholders to collect on the policy's cash value. This can provide a valuable means for funding the high cost of health care. In addition, long-term-care insurance can help pay for your elderly parent's long-term needs. Your loved one can receive tax incentives to help with these costs, as well. Consult your tax advisor to determine how long-term-care insurance could benefit your specific situation.
Physician Selection
You might also need to select a primary care physician for your elderly parent. The desire to locate a competent and caring physician for your loved one goes without question. It is also important to research your options and find answers to all of your questions beforehand. Some concerns you may want to examine include:
- The Insurance Specifics for Covering Office Visits and Physician Services
- The Physician's Acceptance Rate for Medicare Patients
- The Safety of the Area in which the Physician's Office Is Located
- The Physician's Recommended Hospital and Whether It Is Part of Your Insurance Provider's Network
Managed Care
Depending on your elderly relative's condition, caring for him or her on your own may not be feasible. If you see a need for a long-term facility, be sure to take the following steps to find a facility that meets you and your loved one's needs:
- Consult with your parent's doctor for recommendations. If your parent agrees, the physician can provide you with resources to select a facility that will work with your parent's specific medical needs.
- Determine your parent's facility preferences. Would your parent prefer a small facility, a single room, or eating privately rather than in a cafeteria setting? Be sure to include your parent in the decision-making process to help make the transition easier on all sides.
- Determine how much you can afford. Will the cost of the facility be paid out-of-pocket, through some form of government assistance, or via long-term-care insurance?
- Research nearby facilities. Facilities that are within a 30-minute driving distance from your home may be more favorable. The close proximity will also help make the transition easier for everyone.
- Contact the facilities you find and learn more about them. Find out more about their prices, the services they offer, and if there are any current vacancies. Some facilities charge monthly fees. Others charge extra for some services they provide. Given the high cost of managed care, having an accurate sense of a facility's total cost is a necessity.