Long-term Care Consultation

Do you know the answers to these questions?

• Will Medicare or private insurance pay for in-home care for my mother if she becomes ill or disabled?
• What is an advance directive?
• Do I need long-term care insurance?
• Should I get a reverse mortgage?
• What programs are available in my community to help me stay active and healthy?
  

These are important questions that should be answered as part of the long-term care planning process. Whether you're exploring options for yourself or an aging loved one, a free Long-term Care Consultation from Council on Aging will help you get answers to these questions and more.

It's a fact: 70 percent of us will need some type of long-term care in our lifetime. 

What is long-term care?

Long-term care is the help you need when you're not able to perform daily activities by yourself such as preparing food, dressing, bathing, managing medications or handling personal paperwork.

Many people learn about long-term care the hard way: when they or a loved one need care, and quickly. Too often, that's when they discover:

• Long-term care can be expensive
• Medicare doesn't cover it
• There are many complex issues - finances, insurance, legal matters - that can't be dealt with properly in a crisis
• Options may be limited if you haven't planned ahead
  

Contrary to popular belief, long-term care does not mean a one-way trip to the nursing home. In fact, long-term care today is more likely to be delivered in a variety of settings such as home, adult day centers, and assisted living facilities.

COA's comprehensive, personalized Long-term Care Consultations are a must when care is needed right away, but they also equip you with the information you need to plan for your future.

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Eligibility

Anyone can receive a free Long-term Care Consultation from Council on Aging; there are no age or income requirements. Consultations are available in Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Hamilton and Warren counties.

Schedule a Long-term Care Consultation if you:

• Need answers about aging services for yourself or a loved one
• Want information about alternatives to nursing home care
• Want to help your parents or grandparents as they grow older
• Are caring for someone with a long-term illness
  

Cost

Consultations are conducted free of charge in your home by a nurse or licensed social worker.

Call Council on Aging at (513) 721-1025 to get started today.

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What you'll learn

Making decisions about long-term care can be stressful, especially if decisions need to be made quickly following a sudden illness or injury. Planning today for your future needs gives you the luxury of exploring all of the long-term care options available to you or your loved ones.

During a Long-term Care Consultation, a registered nurse or licensed social worker will help you think about important issues:

• What type of assistance will you need?
• Where do you want to receive long-term care? For most people, "at home" is the preferred choice.
• What types of care are you eligible for?
• How will you pay for care? Most people do not realize that Medicare does not pay for long-term care.
  

During the Consultation you'll receive:

• Information about long-term care options and how to apply for services
• Information about estate planning, including financial and legal matters
• A personalized list of factors to consider when thinking about your long-term care options
• Information about programs and services that can help you maintain your independence
• A long-term care plan, including a summary of available options and resources to meet your specific needs
  

Through Council on Aging's Long-term Care Consultations, you may find that you are eligible for these and many other long-term care options:

• Adult day services
• Care management (someone who monitors your care and adjusts services when needed)
  
• Emergency response devices and services
• Home-delivered meals
• Homemaker services (help with housecleaning, laundry, grocery shopping)
  
• Home repairs/modifications (for safety issues)
  
• Hospice care
• Housing options
• Mental health services
• Personal care services (help with bathing, grooming, dressing)
  
• Respite services (relief for family caregivers)
  
• Senior centers
• Transportation 

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Own Your Future

If you're one of 1.7 million Ohioans age 45 to 65, you may be familiar with Ohio's Own Your Future campaign.  The campaign began in the spring of 2008 with a letter mailed to Ohioans in this age group encouraging you to start planning for your long-term care needs by requesting a free Long-Term Care Planning Kit and scheduling a free consultation with your local Area Agency on Aging (in southwestern Ohio, that's Council on Aging). 

• Click here to read a copy of the letter mailed to Ohioans.
  
• Click here to download a copy of Ohio's Long-Term Care Planning Kit.
  

The campaign is a collaboration of federal and state agencies - the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, the federal Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and state level departments of aging and insurance. Ohio is the 18th state to participate in the campaign.

The Own Your Future campaign:

• describes various tools, services and products available to help meet long-term care needs
• encourages legal and estate planning
• helps consumers explore the best ways to pay for the long-term care services they choose
• stresses the importance of healthy lifestyles

In July 2008, Council on Aging hosted an Own Your Future Community Forum at the Mason Community Center.  Similar forums were held across the state as part of the state's Own Your Future campaign.  Barbara Riley, director of the Ohio Department of Aging, spoke at the event and shared a personal story about planning for her own mother's long-term care needs.  Representatives from the Ohio Department of Insurance also spoke about the importance of long-term care planning and changes to the state's long-term care insurance rules.  Following the presentations, participants visited booths to gather information about various aspects of long-term care planning, including long-term care insurance; Medicare and Medicaid; legal and estate planning; advance directives; lifestyle planning (staying active and healthy, preventing falls, exercise, etc.); financial planning and reverse mortgages; COA programs and services; and more. COA's Own Your Future Community Forum was the best attended forum in the state. 

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