The Plan for the Risk Most Retirement Plans Ignore.
about 70% of people turning 65 will need some type of long-term care in their lifetimes (ACL.gov) — and Medicare mostly won't pay for it. The question isn't whether to have a plan; it's which structure fits your balance sheet.
Why doesn't Medicare cover this?
Medicare pays for medical care — and most long-term care is custodial: help with bathing, dressing, eating, or supervision for memory conditions. Medicare covers limited skilled care after a qualifying hospital stay, then stops. Medicaid pays only after assets are largely spent down. Everything in between — the years most families actually experience — comes from your savings or your plan.
What are my three main funding structures?
Traditional LTC insurance — the most benefit per premium dollar, with the trade-offs that premiums aren't guaranteed and unused coverage has no residual value. Hybrid life/LTC — a life policy with an LTC rider: guaranteed premiums, benefits if you need care, a death benefit for your family if you don't. Asset-based strategies — repositioning an existing asset (idle cash, an old annuity or life policy) so it multiplies into tax-advantaged care benefits when triggered.
Which one is right for me?
It's a balance-sheet question before it's a product question: your liquidity, your legacy goals, your health today, and who would provide care informally. A CLTC-designated advisor is trained to design for the event — care settings, family impact, claim mechanics — not just quote a policy. That's the difference between owning coverage and having a plan your family can actually execute.
Learn the ground rules first
If you would rather understand this before talking to anyone, our Long-Term Care 101 guides cover it in plain English: what long-term care actually is and what Medicare covers, the five ways to pay for it, and why the timing decides your options. Every figure is sourced.
Why do advisors bring SkyWell into these conversations?
Because an unplanned care event can undo decades of disciplined investing — and because the underwriting, product selection and claim design sit outside most advisory practices. We handle the extended-care layer alongside the advisor's income and investment plan, so the whole structure holds under stress.
Long-Term Care FAQ
Will Medicare pay for long-term care?
Mostly no. Medicare covers short-term skilled care after a qualifying hospital stay — not extended custodial care like help with bathing, dressing or memory care. That gap is exactly what long-term-care planning addresses.
What's the difference between traditional and hybrid LTC insurance?
Traditional LTC is pure insurance: lower initial cost, premiums can rise, and if you never need care there's no payout. Hybrid policies combine life insurance or an annuity with an LTC rider: guaranteed premiums and a death benefit if care is never needed, at a higher upfront cost.
When is the right age to plan for LTC?
Most clients address it in their 50s and early 60s, while health underwriting is still favorable. Waiting until a diagnosis usually means fewer options at higher prices — or no options.
What does 'asset-based' LTC mean?
Repositioning an existing asset — often idle cash or an old annuity or life policy — into a product that multiplies into tax-advantaged LTC benefits if care is needed, and passes to heirs if it isn't.
Does SkyWell handle the care itself?
No — we design the funding strategy. The CLTC designation is specifically about planning for extended care: understanding care settings, costs and the insurance structures that pay for them.
Your options are widest while you're healthy.
A one-hour conversation now beats a crisis decision later.