Paying for Home Care

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One of the first questions prospective clients ask us is about paying for our home care services. CareFirst Home Solutions understands that this a major concern for many families seeking non-medical care services. Most people want to remain in their homes as they get older or when their needs change. The cost of long-term care varies as much as the types of care available and the degree of assistance you or a loved one need. 

Medicare applies to long-term care in limited circumstances, such as immediately following a hospital stay. Medicare was not intended to provide the kind of extensive support required by older people today, Medicare only covers a narrow range of costs. Long-term care is predominantly paid for with private funding, long-term care insurance, and Medicaid for those without other financial resources. 

Even with supplemental insurance, Medicare does not pay for custodial, skilled chronic and supportive care to assist with daily life. Medigap supplemental coverage only addresses Medicare-covered services, not long-term care.

That means most custodial and supportive care that older adults need and want as they cope with the challenges of complex chronic illnesses is paid by long-term care insurance or private funds.

This type of insurance can help pay for many types of care, including care at home. Policies range in coverage, and a CareFirst team member can review your policy.  Many long-term care policies have an elimination period — that is, a waiting time during which the covered individual must pay for his own care.  Policies vary in how they define eligibility for benefits. Some plans, for instance, state that a senior qualifies when she can no longer perform certain defined activities of daily living 

Seniors who live at home and have a low (or no) mortgage balance can use a portion of home equity for in-home care through a federally insured loan program.  The money that is paid to a homeowner through a reverse mortgage is generally tax-free and borrowers may choose between adjustable-rate reverse mortgages and fixed-rate reverse mortgages. 

Veterans and their surviving spouses may qualify for Veterans Administration (VA) benefits to cover some of the cost of in-home care. A veteran or a surviving spouse of a veteran who served at least 90 days on active duty with one day during a period of war may be eligible for the VA’s non-service connected disability pension. 

Private third-party organizations now allow seniors to use a life insurance policy to help pay for home health by converting a portion of the policy’s death benefit into a long-term care benefit paid directly to a care provider.