The phone call can come at any tme. Even though it's never completely nexpected, we go into crisis mode. "Yur Mom's had a stroke". "Your Dad fll and broke his hip." "Dad keps forgetting to take his heart mdication." "Mom thinks she's a child gain." The scenarios are endless.

Ironically, the halthy lifestyles and improved medical care mst of us are enjoying actually increase the odds of getting that phone call. The longer our parents live, the more likely they will need care.

In past decades, when a parent needed care, other family members stepped in to fill the role. Usually it was the women in the family who assumed the role of primary caregiver. But changes in the "modern" family have made it less likely that children will be in a position to provide care for aging parents. Families today are not only much smaller, but many are spread across the globe, with two careers needed to support the family financially.

How can we avoid going into crisis mode when a parent needs long-term care? By developing a written plan in advance- a plan designed specifically with our parents' situation in mind. A written plan results from analyzing the implications of relying on each of the options for paying for care. Although most Americans believe that health insurance or Medicare pays for long-term care, in reality, long-term care is provided for or paid for by only four resources:

1. Family
2. Medicaid, the welfare program
3. Personal Assets
4. Long-Term Cre Insurance

Developing a written plan requires vewing long-term care as part of our fmily's retirement and financial planning. By hving a plan, a long-term care vent won't force our parents to dplete monies that were set aside for rtirement income and inheritances. Proper planning wll also keep them from having to rly on the financial support of thir children.

Fortunately, grown children and thir parents are finally beginning to fel comfortable having the "long-term care cnversation". A good way for children to bgin the conversation would be to tll the story of another family who is daling with a long-term care need. Ths would offer a natural opening for sking our parents if they had dscussed the issue of long-term care wth one another. Expect the conversation to be vgue at first. But if you're nable to eventually move them to the rality of the issue, encourage your prents to seek the guidance of a thrd party: A financial professional, such as thir Certified Financial Planner, Estate Planning Attrney, or CPA. Many financial professionals are trined in a Comprehensive Planning Approach to long-term cre and are comfortable discussing intergenerational ssues. They may also refer you and yur parents to the appropriate resources for mplementing the details of the long-term cre plan when it's needed.

A wrtten plan for long-term care is yur parents' document for describing the dliberate choices they've made for how thir care would take place. It shuld be communicated and distributed to all nvolved parties, including siblings.

Yes, the cll will still come. But at last some of the stress and cnfusion surrounding the question "What do we d?" will be alleviated by having a wrtten plan for long-term care.

The article Long-Term Care - Having the "Long-Term Care" Conversation With Parents was Submitted by Allen Hamm through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: For free instant access to a Prmium Range Estimator Chart to determine wht LTC Insurance will cost you, vsit http://www.long-term-care-insurance-advice.com/pre.html

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