Phyllis Shelton Responds to Jonathan Clements, WSJ, 3/13/05

"Between your retirement savings, your pension and Social Security, could you afford annual long-term-care costs of $70,000, or $140,000 if both you and your spouse needed care at the same time? If the answer is "yes," you don't objectively need long-term-care insurance -- and that's another sign that you are indeed rich." - Jonathan Clements, You Know You're Rich When... WSJ, 3/13/05

Hello Jonathan - I have written you before about this same topic - your articles sound like you are frozen in time for long-term care costs. That $70,000 or $140,000 for a couple you mention is tripling in 20 years (5.8% growth rate - CMS, 4/05) - however, that isn't realistic. Affluent people want around the clock care which at $300 per day is really $110,000 per year...tripling in 20 years to $330,000 per year...so the baby boomers who read your column faithfully just need to know what they are signing on for when they say they're rich enough to self-insure. An Alzheimer's claim of eight years (the average caregiving time per the Alzheimer's Association) will approach $3 million if it starts 20 years from now....and that doesn't even count the lost investment opportunity...so let's do full disclosure for your readers. They expect that of you.