Medicare Doesn’t Cover Most Long-Term Care
Many people assume Medicare or savings will handle care costs. In most cases, they won’t. In one free 30‑minute Family Care Plan Review, a licensed long-term care specialist shows you what Medicare leaves out, then compares traditional, hybrid, and annuity-based coverage side by side for your age, health, and budget.
And you’ll see why a Medicare-covered nursing home stay costs $217 a day after day 20,1 and why Medicare stops paying entirely after day 100.2
Claim my free 30-minute reviewFree. No obligation. A licensed professional responds within 1 business day.
- 45+ years in long-term care insurance
- CLTC® & LTCP designations
- Genworth BGA partner, 2000–2016
- Florida DFS approved CE instructor
A message from [Agent - Advisor Name], CLTC
“Care shouldn’t have to be your family’s second job. Claim your 30-minute Free Family Care Plan Review to determine what care options make sense to your situation. And, my promise to you is no sales pressure, just honest answers you need to decide if long-term care insurance is right for you.”
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What Medicare pays for, and what it doesn’t
Long-term care, also called custodial care, is help with the basic tasks of daily life for people with a chronic illness or disability. Medicare treats it very differently from skilled medical care.3
Medicare may cover skilled nursing facility care after a qualifying inpatient hospital stay, when you need daily skilled nursing or therapy, for up to 100 days per benefit period.2 In 2026, you pay $0 for days 1 to 20 after the Part A deductible, $217 a day for days 21 to 100, and all costs after that.2,1
Medicare doesn’t pay for help with bathing, dressing, or eating when that’s the only care you need.4 That’s most long-term care.
Medicare Supplement (Medigap) policies don’t pay for long-term care either. Medicare.gov points to two other ways to pay: Medicaid, if you meet your state’s eligibility rules, or private long-term care insurance.3
What long-term care costs today
National median costs from the CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey:5
Four assumptions that leave families paying out of pocket
- “Medicare will cover a nursing home.” Only a short skilled stay after a qualifying hospital stay, up to 100 days, and you pay $217 a day after day 20.2,1
- “My Medigap plan fills the gap.” Medigap policies don’t pay for long-term care.3
- “We’ll pay from savings.” At roughly $80,000 to $130,000 a year,5 a few years of care can use up money meant for retirement or for your family.
- “Medicaid is our backup.” Medicaid pays only if you meet your state’s eligibility rules,3 which usually means spending down most of your savings first.
There’s one more trap: talking to someone who sells only one product from one insurer. You get a quote, but you never see whether a different type of coverage, or a different company, would fit you better.
The Three-Path Comparison: every type of coverage, side by side, in one conversation
Instead of one product from one company, your Family Care Plan Review looks at all three ways to pay for care. We compare them across insurers for your age, health, and budget, then show you the trade-offs in plain English.
Path 1: Traditional long-term care insurance
Medically underwritten coverage that pays a daily or monthly benefit once you need help with daily activities.
Often the most coverage for the premium for healthy applicants 45 to 65.
LEARN MOREPath 2: Hybrid (asset-based) coverage
Life insurance with a long-term care benefit. If you never need care, the death benefit still goes to your family.
Popular with couples who want their money to work either way.
LEARN MOREPath 3: Annuity care
A deferred annuity paired with long-term care benefits that can be larger than the deposit, often funded from existing savings.
An option to explore when health makes other coverage harder to get.
LEARN MOREMore than four decades of helping families plan for care
[Agent - Advisor Name] founded Your Brokerage Agency Name in Ft. Myers in 1981. It grew into a national long-term care insurance brokerage, and from 2000 to 2016 it served as a Brokerage General Agent for Genworth, at the time one of the largest long-term care insurers in the country.
- CLTC (Certified in Long-Term Care) and LTCP (Long-Term Care Professional) designations
- Approved continuing-education instructor on the Florida Department of Financial Services registry (Instructor ID #737925), teaching other licensed agents
- Florida licensed insurance agent, License # A175981. Verify the license
“When I first started in the ‘nursing home insurance’ business in 1981, the average age was 74. Today we are down to the mid-50s and early 60s.”
[Agent - Advisor Name] · Read his story
Thirty minutes from now, you could know exactly where you stand
- Peace of mind for your children. A plan that keeps them in the role of family, not full-time caregiver.
- A clear answer to “what would it cost us?” Real numbers for your age and health, not a generic rate sheet.
- Confidence you didn’t overpay. In 2026, the highest price for virtually identical coverage was 56% above the lowest.7 Comparing is how you avoid that gap.
- Your savings and home protected from being drained by years of care costs.
- Choices about where you get care, at home, in assisted living, or in a nursing home.
- A decision made calmly, on your schedule, instead of in a hospital hallway after a diagnosis.
Your free Family Care Plan Review
A 30-minute conversation with a licensed long-term care specialist. Even if you never buy a policy, you’ll leave knowing your options, what they cost, and what to ask.
- The review
Your Three-Path Comparison
Traditional, hybrid, and annuity-based coverage compared across insurers for your age, health, and budget, with the trade-offs explained in plain English.
Bonus 1Long-Term Care Insurance Buyer’s Guide
The three coverage types, the riders worth paying for, how underwriting sets your rate, and how to compare quotes side by side.
Bonus 2LTC Policy Checklist & Financial Workbook
Fill it in before your review so you know your budget, your assets, and the questions to ask.
Bonus 3Long-Term Care Tax Guide
How long-term care premiums may be tax-deductible, so you can factor that into the real cost.
No cost and no obligation to buy anything.
Your health today sets your options tomorrow
Long-term care insurance is medically underwritten. Insurers look at your age and health on the day you apply.
That means the best time to compare is while you’re healthy. A new diagnosis, a fall, or a change in medications can raise the price or rule out some options entirely, and every birthday moves you into an older rate band.
If you’re reviewing your Medicare coverage this fall, it’s a good time to plan for the care Medicare won’t cover. The review takes 30 minutes; waiting can cost far more.
Free to compare. Free to say no. Protected if you say yes.
The review costs nothing, and you’re never under any obligation to buy.
If you do choose a policy, Florida law gives individual long-term care insurance policyholders 30 days after delivery to review it and return it for a full premium refund, for any reason.8
Four simple steps, and you’re in control at every one
- Send the short formName, contact details, and a few quick questions. About two minutes.
- We call to scheduleA licensed specialist contacts you within 1 business day to pick a time that works.
- Your 30-minute reviewBy phone. We go over your goals, health, and budget, and compare all three paths.
- You decideTake the side-by-side comparison home, talk it over with family, and choose, or don’t.
Prefer to talk now? Call (xxx)xxx-xxxx.
Before you request your review
Is the review really free? What’s the catch?
Yes, it’s free and there’s no obligation. You’ll get a side-by-side comparison you can keep, whether or not you buy anything.
Will I be pressured to buy?
No. The goal of the review is for you to understand your options. Many people take the comparison home and talk it over with their family first.
Does Medicare cover any long-term care?
Only short-term skilled care: up to 100 days in a skilled nursing facility after a qualifying hospital stay, and part-time skilled home health care.2,4 It doesn’t cover ongoing help with daily activities.
Do Medigap or Medicare Advantage plans cover long-term care?
Medigap policies don’t pay for long-term care,3 and Medicare Advantage plans generally don’t cover ongoing custodial care. Your review shows how private coverage fills that gap.
I already have a chronic condition. Can I still get coverage?
It depends on the condition and how well it’s managed. Each insurer underwrites differently, which is exactly why comparing matters. Some hybrid and annuity-based options use simplified underwriting. Final eligibility is always decided by the insurer.
What does long-term care insurance cost?
It depends on your age, health, and the benefits you choose. As one benchmark, in 2026 a couple both age 55 paid an average of about $5,010 a year combined for $165,000 in initial benefits each.7 Your review shows real numbers for you.
What if I pay premiums for years and never need care?
That’s the main reason people look at hybrid coverage: if care is never needed, a death benefit goes to your beneficiaries. We’ll show you how that trade-off compares with traditional coverage.
Is DRAFT LTC Marketing an insurance company?
No. We’re a marketplace and advisory service operated by Your Brokerage Agency Name. We compare coverage from insurers; the insurer issues the policy and makes the underwriting decision.
Can my adult children join the call?
Yes, and many families find that helpful. Just let us know when we schedule.
P.S.
P.S. Here’s the short version. In one free 30-minute Family Care Plan Review, a licensed specialist compares traditional, hybrid, and annuity-based coverage side by side for you, and you get three free planning guides.
Medicare is a good health plan. It just isn’t a long-term care plan. Put one in place while all three paths are still open to you.
Sources
- CMS: 2026 Medicare Parts A & B premiums and deductibles
- Medicare.gov: Skilled nursing facility care
- Medicare.gov: Long-term care coverage
- Medicare.gov: Nursing home care
- CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey
- Administration for Community Living: How much care will you need?
- AALTCI 2026 Long-Term Care Insurance Price Index
- Florida Department of Financial Services: Long-Term Care Overview (30-day free look)
DRAFT LTC Marketing is operated by Your Brokerage Agency Name, Ft. Myers, FL. [Agent - Advisor Name], CLTC, Florida licensed insurance agent, License # A175981, NPN # 538220. Verify at licenseesearch.fldfs.com/Licensee/211790. This is not an offer of insurance. Coverage, rates, and eligibility are determined by the issuing carrier through underwriting. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Medicare, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, or any government agency. Educational content only, not medical, legal, tax, or financial advice.