Long-term care costs may rise as a result of COVID-19.

The majority of seniors will require long-term care as they age.

Once you reach age 65, you have a 70 percent chance of needing some form of long-term care sometime thereafter.

The cost of long-term care has been high historically.

According to a recent Motley Fool article titled “Will COVID-19 Drive Up the Cost of Long-Term Care?,” long-term care costs are expected to rise.

You should prepare for rising long-term care costs.

Why?

Nursing homes and assisted living facilities have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.

At least 4,000 long-term care facilities have confirmed cases of COVID-19.

The virus has caused more than 10,000 deaths of staff members and residents of nursing home and assisted living facilities.

To better protect the staff and residents, facilities must adjust.

Updates to training, sanitation standards, and staff rotation will provide better protections.

At the same time, such updates will likely drive up long-term care costs.

The cost of care will be passed on to the care recipients and their families.

Having long-term care insurance certainly would help shoulder this increased financial burden.

It is best to purchase long-term care insurance in your mid-50s when you are still healthy and able to qualify.

What if you are older than your mid-50s?

Have you missed you opportunity?

No.

You should still apply, especially if you are healthy.

Be sure to research the cost of long-term care insurance premiums as well as the coverage provided.

No one can truly predict how much COVID-19 will impact long-term care costs going forward.

Even so, protecting yourself with insurance now can minimize the impact of long-term care costs on you and your loved ones later.

Reference: Motley Fool (May 5, 2020) “Will COVID-19 Drive Up the Cost of Long-Term Care?”