When the old way of doing things didn't make sense to them anymore, the Committee of Five approved a resolution of independence from Britain. This event is celebrated on Independence Day.

"The independence-minded thinking of the founding fathers is reflected in growing sales of private long term care insurance. The old ways of providing and paying for long term care insurance simply don't make sense anymore," said Terry Truesdell, President and CEO of The National LTC Network. "Long term care insurance allows people to have the means to make optimal care decisions, frees them from being a burden to their family, having to deplete retirement savings, and/or relying on vulnerable government programs."

Historically, there have been two ways to receive long term care. Many people receive free care from family members and friends. Those caregivers often make extraordinary sacrifices in terms of their own health, career, and family to be able to provide assistance. The only alternative has traditionally been professional care, which more often than not is primarily financed by the government's Medicaid program.

Neither one of these options is optimal. Relying on friends and family can be heartbreaking for someone who prefers to be independent and pay his or her own way. Survey after survey reports people's strong feeling that they "do not want to be a burden." However, the high costs of professional care and the often-draconian reality of the Medicaid program conspire to effectively force those without long term care insurance to rely on friends, family and neighbors.

Relying on the Medicaid program to pay for care can be problematic in other ways as well. One major drawback is its institutional bias, which effectively means that, in many states, relying on Medicaid for long term care is synonymous with living in a nursing home. Many attractive private-pay options, such as non-medical in-home care, assisted living facilities' dementia programs, and continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs), are simply not available to Medicaid beneficiaries.

When one is independent, young and strong, it can be difficult to comprehend that some day, in what seems like a very distant future, help with everyday basic needs such as dressing, eating, bathing and toileting will likely be required. That's one of the reasons why people don't purchase long term care insurance when they are under age 60 -- when it is both more affordable and easier to obtain from a health point of view.

Those Americans who do purchase private long term care insurance are taking a major step toward maintaining independence, no matter what the future may hold.

About The Network

The National LTC Network, Inc has, for 17 years, been a national leader in long term care insurance distribution. The Network counts among its 30 member firms some of the most respected and successful firms in the industry. Members include trailblazers in workplace sales, association sales, and traditional individual sales.