Women can't help but take care of the ones they love - their parents, siblings, husbands, children, friends, and even their pets. Although this special trait is worthy of praise, it's also the very reason more women tend to require long term care (LTC) than men.
In a recent study conducted by the Society of Actuaries, it turns out that more women have purchased long term care insurance policies that amount to $124,000. Men, on the other hand, spend an average of $44,000 on this type of insurance product.
Perhaps, it's true that men in general are more dependent on women who are stronger emotionally wise. Men need to have that feeling of security and unconditional love, which only their better halves and mothers are capable of providing them.
As soon as an event or say sickness triggers a man's disability, he can choose to stay home and receive care here because he knows too well that his wife will shoulder all the responsibilities of a caregiver so she can ensure his welfare instead of hiring a home health aide.
In reference to the records of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, there are about 980,000 women over the age of 65 who are currently providing care to family members at home while only 337,000 men of the same age are performing the same task.
Unfortunately, as soon as a woman's husband or parents pass away there will be nobody to take care of her. This explains why a big percentage of women over the age of 65 have secured LTC insurance policies.
Although there are women who opt to stay home, and many of them have in fact already arranged reciprocity of care giving among friends and trusted neighbors, a bigger percentage of them opt to be placed in a nursing home.
Studies show that 52% of the population of women over the age of 65 will spend some time in a nursing home. According to a nursing home staff, the average stay of a resident is two and a half years but since women are living longer nowadays, many of them prolong their stay till five years.
Although women are caring by nature, they also happen to be thinkers. This is why in spite of being wrapped up in their responsibilities towards their families many of them have not forgotten their responsibilities to themselves. This explains why long term care insurance for women is important.
According to top insurance firms the sales of their life insurance policies integrated with long term care benefits increased up to 79% last year and their data shows that 60% of the new buyers are women. Majority of them range from 65 years old to 74, while a thin slice of the population of new buyers were comprised of 55 to 64-year-olds.
Although the older buyers will no doubt be spending more on premiums in the coming years, they are very fortunate to have secured a long term care insurance policy than not having one at all. Other members of the elderly population who remain skeptical about the importance of this insurance product can just hope that cost of LTC services will drop by the time they would need it.
