Health Insurance
Long Term Care Insurance
Because of old age, mental or physical illness, or injury, some people find themselves in need of help with eating, bathing, dressing, toileting or continence, and/or transferring (e.g., getting out of a chair or out of bed). These six actions are called Activities of Daily Living–sometimes referred to as ADLs. In general, if you can't do two or more of these activities, or if you have a cognitive impairment, you are said to need "long-term care". Long-term care isn't a very helpful name for this type of situation because, for one thing, it might not last for a long time. Some people who need ADL services might need them only for a few months or less. Many people think that long-term care is provided exclusively in a nursing home. It can be, but it can also be provided in an adult day care center, an assisted living facility, or at home. Assistance with ADLs, called "custodial care" may be provided in the same place as (and therefore is sometimes confused with) "skilled care". Skilled care means medical, nursing, or rehabilitative services, including help taking medicine, undergoing testing (e.g. blood pressure), or other similar services. This distinction is important because Medicare and most private health insurance pays only for skilled care–not custodial care.
Health Insurance
Health insurance plans can vary widely, and coverage will depend on the specific health insurance that you have. Knowing the different types of coverage, what the insurance pays, and what the deductibles are is an important step to saving money on your health insurance policy. The most common plans are. PPO health plans which use a preferred provider network to give you savings on this type of health insurance. The health insurance company negotiates discounts with certain providers in exchange for including these providers in the network. Most PPO health plans have in network doctors and specialists to cover any medical condition or situation. These health insurance plans also offer their patients a choice, because the discounts negotiated with providers also lowers your costs for using these providers. An HSA, or health savings account, commonly has a fairly high deductible but can really give you savings on your health insurance policy. With this plan you self insure with tax deferred money put away into a Health Savings Account. This account can pay for prescriptions, dental and eyeglasses as well.