Given the choice, most seniors who need help with care would prefer to remain at home rather than move to a nursing home. One way to avoid nursing home care is to hire help at home through a home health care agency. But how can you tell which is the best one to choose? This just got a bit easier for Medicare recipients, who can now see the results of surveys of patients who have used various

Prices for long-term care insurance policies jumped between 6 and 17 percent in the past year, according to an industry survey. A 55-year-old couple can expect to pay about $2,700 a year for about $340,000 worth of current-value benefits, according to an annual report from the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.  The same coverage would have cost only about $2,350 just one year ago.

The adult son of a nursing home patient is legally on the hook for her $93,000 in unpaid nursing home bills, an appeals court in Pennsylvania recently decided. It doesn’t matter that the son never signed a contract with the nursing home; he’s still liable for his mother’s debt, the court said. The case in the latest in a series of lawsuits in which nursing homes, assisted living facilities and other institutions have sued the adult

In the MassHealth Appeal decision 1200340, MassHealth determined that the rate of pay to family members under the caretaker contract was excessive but contrary to MassHealth argument, the care provided by the family member did have fair market value.

Social Security doesn’t just pay retirement benefits to retired workers. In some circumstances, it also provides benefits to a worker’s spouse, former spouse, or surviving spouse. Here’s a look at the ins and outs of spousal benefits. (But keep in mind that these are general rules, and how they apply to you could vary based on your specific circumstances.) Once you reach age 62, assuming you’ve been married for at least 10 years, you can qualify

Most seniors want to remain at home as long as possible, but with family often spread out all over the country, it isn’t always easy to do so. “Senior cohousing,” a new concept, allows older Americans to age at home in a supportive community. Senior cohousing consists of a group of houses or condos that are individually owned by seniors and are clustered around a common area. The design usually includes a common house with guest

A power of attorney and a health care proxy are essential parts of a good estate plan. A power of attorney document appoints an agent to make business and financial decisions for you if you become incapacitated. A health care proxy appoints an agent to make medical decisions for you if you can’t make them yourself. The easiest – and in some ways, best – idea is to name one person as your agent for all

Although it’s important to have an updated estate plan, there’s a lot of information your heirs need to know that doesn’t necessarily fit into a will, trust, or other document. For instance: Where can your heirs find your insurance policies? How can they locate your bank accounts, and access your safe deposit box? How can they be sure they’ve accounted for all your assets? The solution is a “letter of instruction,” which can provide your heirs

Medicare is changing how it pays for certain types of medical equipment…and it’s good to be aware of the changes, so you can make sure that what you buy will be covered by insurance. The changes affect “durable” medical equipment, which means items you can use repeatedly as opposed to items meant for one-time use. Examples include wheelchairs, walkers, scooters, oxygen equipment, hospital beds, support mattresses, prostheses, orthotics, enteral nutrition devices, etc. In the past, Medicare