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The Special Case for Women and Alzheimer’s

December 19, 2018 by Honey Leveen Leave a Comment

As I reported in October 2015, Alzheimer’s disease has a disproportionate impact on women. As we close out 2018, the statistics have not improved for us. In fact, two-thirds of America’s 6 million Alzheimer’s patients are women. It’s time for us to pay special attention to women and Alzheimer’s disease.

First, some quick facts from the Alzheimer’s Association and the Women and Alzheimers site:

Every 65 seconds, someone in the US develops Alzheimer’s
At age 65, a woman has a 1 in 6 chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Her risk for breast cancer is 1 in 11.
Also by age 65, a woman is twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s than a man. By age 75, she is three times as likely.
More than 60% of unpaid Alzheimer’s caregivers (friends and family of Alzheimer patients) are women.

More Likely In Women

It seems like Alzheimer’s disease can affect any family at any time. So why is it more prevalent among women? Is it because women live longer than men? After all, the disease is more prevalent as we age. But we now know that the early symptoms of Alzheimer’s often begin 20 years before they are ever diagnosed.

Genetic risk factors are now getting more attention and focus. Back in the 1990s, scientists found that the presence of the ApoE4 gene was the primary culprit in the patient’s memory and other mental abilities. Further tests showed that this is more applicable to females.

Heart disease and smoking are also considered contributors to the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. So is depression, which is more common in women than in men. And there is always the deepening discussion around hormonal changes that are so much more intense for women as they age.

Because women usually take on the responsibility of caregiving, there is some research that points to this extra emotional burden as a possible risk factor.

Alzheimer’s patients and their families have a great amount of uncertainty and difficult decisions in their future. If you or someone you love is a woman, extra care should be taken to prepare for this disease.

Don’t get caught by surprise when the statistics are this powerful. You can begin by clicking here to receive your free, no-obligation quote for a long term care insurance policy.

It’s National Long Term Care Awareness Month!

December 12, 2018 by Honey Leveen Leave a Comment

November is officially National Long Term Care Awareness Month (LTCAM). The US Congress created LTCAM in 2001, making this the 17th anniversary! Congress recognized the need to promote LTCAM as a month-long campaign aimed at educating Americans on the importance of owning Long Term Care insurance (LTCi).

Local, state and national governments recognize how unprepared citizens are. When it comes to being able to afford often catastrophically expensive long term care (LTC) costs, many of us are unprepared. Our government will not be able to adequately bear the costs of providing LTC. Long term care insurance costs are often a fraction of actual long term care costs.

How is Your Long Term Care Awareness?

Last year, Genworth Financial conducted a survey to see how informed Americans were on the costs, options and even the need for long term care. They found that only 1 in 5 respondents had taken any action in planning for their future medical needs.

They also found a lot of misunderstanding about who pays for for LTC costs, understanding the difference between Medicare and Medicaid, and a general lack of knowledge about what kind of costs are covered.

2 out of 3 respondents expect government programs to cover the costs of their LTC needs; however, 45% admitted that they didn’t know the difference between Medicare and Medicaid programs.
GenX is most concerned about paying for their medical expenses as they age. And yet, they are least likely to have a financial plan in place.
Millennials are most likely to have made proactive plans for their future. The research suggests that they have the lowest expectations of the government being able to pay, so they have taken action to protect themselves.

Here is a first-hand testimonial of someone who didn’t think she needed Long Term Care insurance, kept an open mind and bought the policy.

Knowledge is Power

The purpose of Long Term Care Awareness Month is to raise your awareness of the need to plan responsibly for LTC, right now! This is the very best way to ensure dignity, options, access and choices if LTC is necessary.

Unfortunately, the odds of needing LTC are high. You protect against other risks, like a car accident or house fire. The need for LTC is more likely than a house fire or car accident. LTC often costs more than a car or a house. If you’re not prepared, a lengthy LTC need puts your savings and retirement, and family at risk.

Just as it is smart to plan ahead for retirement, it’s smart to plan now for long-term care.

Take that first step. Click here to receive your free, no-obligation quote for your own Long Term Care insurance coverage.

Falling Down is no Joke for the Elderly

December 8, 2018 by Honey Leveen Leave a Comment

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced that falls are the second highest cause of injury in seniors. Falls trail just behind traffic-related injuries. In fact, over 37 million of these falls are serious enough to require medical attention, globally.

Here in the U.S., the Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports that one in four seniors, aged 65+, fall each year. Those falls mean more than 2.8 million visits to the emergency room. Tragically, there are over 27,000 deaths each year from falls.

Preventing Falls

The WHO lists multiple fall prevention strategies to help reduce risk, including:

Muscle strengthening and balance retraining
Introduction and use of physical devices to assist those with physical and/or sensory impairments
Thorough assessment of the living environment for potential falling hazards

The rest of the list, along with a discussion of other risk factors can be found here on the WHO website.

The Cost of Falls – not just in dollars

The CDC explains that the total cost of the injuries from falls was about $50 billion in 2015. By 2020, these costs are expected to be over $67 billion.

There has been a lot of work raising awareness around preventing these falls. Unfortunately, many seniors react in fear, so they change their regular activities. They choose to stay home and “play it safe”. However, reducing their social interaction and physical routines creates their own problems. They often experience an increase in alienation and depression.

You don’t have to hide in fear of falls! A thoughtful long term care insurance (LTCi) policy can help you easily prepare to navigate this road. Perhaps you want to hire trained home healthcare professionals. Maybe you’re looking for a facility that is properly equipped with safety features to reduce your risk. These options become available to you, especially when you plan in advance for your future needs.

The first “step” is beginning your research. Click here to receive your free, no-obligation quote for your own LTCi policy.

Why We Avoid the Hard Stuff: The Ostrich Paradox

October 17, 2018 by Honey Leveen Leave a Comment

ostrich burying head in sand ignoring problems

We fail to evacuate when advised and then we rebuild in flood zones. Helmets aren’t worn. We avoid the risk of “crying wolf” instead of sounding the alarm. In the face of certain disaster, many of us avoid the hard choices and bury our heads in the sand like the fabled ostrich. [BTW, that’s totally a myth.]

We also go to great lengths to avoid talking about long term care planning. Of the millions of Americans who qualify (by age and income criteria), only about 10% actually own long term care insurance (LTCi).

In his recent Forbes column (Sept 2018), Howard Gleckman reported on this avoidance behavior. He wrote,

“Americans are unable to plan for a catastrophe, even one we know is coming. Our brains cannot, for some reason, process this. Thus, in the face of an approaching calamity many of us…do nothing.”

There’s a Storm Coming

The residents along the Carolina coastline, for example, were given multiple warnings to evacuate before the arrival of Hurricane Florence. Despite the mandatory evacuation orders, many people chose to ignore the oncoming danger and stayed in their homes.

The Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, suffered from pancreatic cancer for years. Despite her worsening condition, she never made a will, leaving her $80 million estate vulnerable to hefty taxes before her children receive any inheritance. All because she never faced the need for advanced planning.

When We Avoid Information

“A person should never avoid information, because information can never hurt a decision”, states economist Joshua Tasoff. And yet, we go to great lengths to do just this. Listen to why in this wonderful Hidden Brain podcast.

Denial defies logic. Because it’s strictly emotional.

Mr. Gleckman refers to a book called “The Ostrich Paradox: Why We Underprepare for Disasters“, by Robert J Meyer.

From this book and Mr. Gleckman’s column, here are some reasonable explanations of why we often behave irrationally in the face of coming disaster:

Excessive optimism: They know the storm is coming and still believe that, magically, they will be unharmed. They see an aging population getting older and more frail and still believe that their own experience will somehow be different.

Herd thinking: Nobody else is preparing, so why should I? Saving isn’t sexy. Let’s plan our next exotic vacation!

Myopia: It’s easier to focus on our short term needs and desires. Planning for the long term might require sacrificing our current wants and channeling that money into some prudent investments. That’s inconvenient. (Oh, the stories I could tell you about this one.)

Amnesia: Our minds can block bad memories. We downplay how bad that last storm was. And we forget how hard it was watching our parents get all the care they needed in their later years.

Inertia and simplification: We’ve all experienced “Analysis Paralysis”. Faced with complicated matters, we freeze up and end up making no choice. Unfortunately, the long term care industry is also part of this problems. Policies can be difficult to understand. It’s easier to shove them into the desk drawer, unread and unsigned.

Not even the ostrich buries its head in the sand. Why should you? When you are ready to start taking some proactive steps for your future, click here. You will receive a no-obligation quote on your own Long Term Care insurance plan.

Denial of the Facts Does Not Make Them Less True

October 10, 2018 by Honey Leveen Leave a Comment

Resistance to planning for long term care and doubting that human activities have created global warming share some very interesting roots. What a revelation to me! Author Karie Marie Norgaard connected these dots in her book, Living in Denial.

In the book, Norgaard examines the thought processes behind those who choose to deny the existence of climate change. I read an essay by Andy Skuce in which he takes a deep dive into Norgaard’s research and understanding about Denial.

Types of Denial

The book divides denial into 3 categories:

Literal denial. This happens when people don’t trust the facts, even when overwhelmingly supported by objective and thorough scientific data. We often see this from “Climate Skeptics”.
Interpretive denial. This one gets slippery. It accepts the facts (climate change is real), but reinterprets the meaning so it doesn’t sound like a real threat. That removes their responsibility to make proactive changes, since it’s not a real problem.
Implicatory denial. In this case, the facts and the interpretations are generally accepted. But then, “the psychological, political or moral implications that conventionally follow” are discounted and ignored. Climate change is already too advanced for anyone to do anything about it, so I’m off the hook and don’t have to make hard choices.

Denying the Need for Long Term Care

If these thought processes sound familiar, these are exactly the same behaviors I’ve been writing about throughout my career as a Long Term Care Insurance Specialist. Let’s run through these again:

Literal denial. Not trusting the facts — No matter how many studies get funded, no matter how may reports get written. There are always going to be people who refuse to accept that they are probably going to need financial help to cover their future medical care.
Interpretive denial. Accepting the facts: Yes, we’re living longer. Yes, we’ll probably need help in our later years. BUT… we’ve always taken care of each other. Or our family is ready to step in to help. We’ll be fine.
Implicatory denial. I know, we’ve got some uncertain times ahead of us. BUT… ‘they’ say that there’s no real reliable coverage. Or it costs too much. What can I do at this point?

For almost 30 years I’ve had well-educated, affluent friends and acquaintances make excuses to avoid the conversation about reasonable, responsible long term care planning. Intellectually, these people know better. They are making sound decisions in other areas of their lives, but they refuse to accept the fact that after age 65, they might be one of the 70% of us are going to need some sort of long-term care.

Denial is not a river in Egypt and the first step is easy. Click here to receive your no-obligation quote on your own Long Term Care insurance plan.

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