Age plays a huge role in the need for long-term care planning

by | Jan 19, 2016 | Long-Term Care Planning |

When trying to decide what to do about long-term care planning, one of the most important factors to look at is simply your age. The statistics show that risks for many diseases and ailments–such as cancer–go up quickly as you grow older.

Here’s one key statistic to keep in mind: 70 percent of those who are at least 65–or older–are going to require services relating to long-term care. If you don’t know when to start planning, you definitely want to keep this age in mind and plan accordingly once you hit it.

Your gender can also matter, at least when looking at how long you’ll be likely to live. Stats have shown that women do tend to live longer, and the usual amount is five years. Therefore, it stands to reason that women are more likely to need long-term care than men–though that by no means indicates that men should not consider it.

Disabilities also play a big role, and they can be tied to different age levels. For those who are between 40 and 50 years old, there is an eight percent chance that they will have a disability that is going to lead to long-term care. By age 90, though, a full 69 percent of people are disabled to the point that this care is necessary.

As these stats show, there are people at every age who get along well without care, but general trends must be respected. As you grow older, look into all of the legal steps that you need to take to set up proper care for yourself and your loved ones in New York.

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “Who Needs Care?,” accessed Jan. 18, 2016