Long-term care · 6 min read
How Can You Prepare for Care Beyond Medicare?
Medicare covers many medical needs. A complete retirement plan also prepares for ongoing help with daily living.
Understand the two kinds of care
Medicare covers many eligible medical services and limited skilled care under specific conditions. Long-term help with daily activities may need a different source of funding when custodial care is the only care needed.
Daily-living help may include
- Bathing and dressing
- Eating and using the bathroom
- Moving safely from a bed or chair
- Meal delivery, transportation, or supervision
- Ongoing personal care without skilled medical care
Create a care-funding plan
Think about where you would prefer to receive care, who might help, and which resources could support the cost. Depending on eligibility and policy terms, those resources may include Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, savings, family support, or insurance-based living benefits.