The other 60 percent may have saved and invested wisely, but in many cases they are finding that they simply will not have enough money to enjoy the type of retirement they had envisioned.
This is particularly true for women, who typically have fewer resources at retirement than men. Often their prime earning years are cut short to raise children or care for aging parents. In 2005, according to the Social Security Administration, retired women received an average of $867 per month from Social Security compared to the $1,101 per month for men; and yet women outlive men, on average, by more than five years.

Currently, Medicare has a $75 trillion un-funded liability, and it will no longer help support Medicaid providers. Social Security has a $16 trillion un-funded liability, and it will no longer supplement Medicaid's cost of Long-Term Care. The time has come to confront this major retirement crisis, and women in particular must plan aggressively for retirement and for the possibility of chronic illness and frailty.

Whether a woman is young and just starting out in a career or approaching retirement, single or married, her income and longevity will directly determine her standard of living. Women today must plan for a long life, maximizing contributions to qualified retirement plans and making small sacrifices in order to enjoy retirement and lifestyle security in the future. Retirement should be safe, secure and free of financial worry.

I have devoted many years to helping my clients, both male and female, protect the assets that they have accumulated through a lifetime of work. It doesn't matter if they are 50 or 75. What does matter is if their health changes between the ages of 45 and 85 and whether they have purchased Long-Term Care insurance. Without Long-Term Care insurance, they could be forced to deplete their assets.

For those of you who think you can't afford Long-Term Care insurance, let me put this is perspective.

The cost of care in Michigan today is $74,000 per year. But the annual premium for a 65-year-old female client of mine has been $910 per year for each of the 10 years since she bought her policy in 1997. At that time, we decided if she needed care, her policy would pay $170 per day. She would then be able to receive care in her home, an assisted living facility or adult day care, as she chose, or in a nursing home if necessary. The policy would pay for four years of care, totaling $248,200.00.

We then built in to the policy a benefit that would automatically increase her $170 daily benefit by a compound 5% per day each year on the anniversary date of her policy. The total of her premiums paid to date is $9,103.50. If she needed care today, this policy would pay $277 per day for her care and would pay out a maximum of $404,420. This policy now offers her an exceptional daily benefit with the option of extending her lifetime maximum benefit. Could she have saved $404,420 in ten years? Could you? And for skeptics who say, "I may never need care," where you can you possibly get a better return on $910.35 per year?

If a client needs care, she has the funds to pay for it and the assets she has accumulated over those 10 years stay perfectly in tact. And she will never pay a premium while she is receiving a benefit from the company.

Today 43% of people receiving Long-Term health care are under age 65 and 75% of them are women. As we age, our chances of needing care increase. Who will care for us? And where will the money come from? These are questions that need to be asked and answered.

Long-Term Care doesn't have to be a complicated and unpleasant subject. In fact, taking responsibility for your own health and welfare can help you avoid years of poverty or substandard care. Every woman must have a Long-Term Care plan in place that will fit her lifestyle and budget.

Call Dorothy for your free no obligation consultation at 248-844-9787 or email Dorothy at LTCINSUSA@AOL.COM.