Ask the experts!

Recognized Canadian gerontologist, Rubin Becker, MD, FRCP(c)
Q: Is it true that elderly women face more hardships?

A: It's certainly true in terms of long term care. Women often spend their lives as caregivers, but when they need old age care, there may be no one to turn to. Women tend to outlive their spouses, or their male counterparts feel uncomfortable in the primary caregiver role. Consequently, elderly women often need to seek outside help for long term care. In advanced age, a woman may face retirement savings short-falls, especially if significant dollars were spent years earlier to support their partner's long term care needs. All these factors signal the need for women to be very proactive in planning for their own long term care, as early as possible.

Certified Financial Planner, Mark Halpern
Q: What should I consider in planning for my long term care needs?

A: Long term care insurance is a great solution. It's really part of a defensive asset protection strategy. The choice is simple: you can pay for long term care in the future by drawing down and depleting your investments (and potentially your children's) or you can purchase long term care insurance now and let the insurance company carry the financial risk. As an example, today's cost of private care can easily exceed $5,000 per month. That's more than $60,000 per year after tax. Now imagine the impact of being sick for many years. How many people can shoulder that kind of financial hit? Getting a retirement plan in place that includes long term care insurance simply makes good financial sense.

- News Canada