Monday, April 15, 2019

Under the Radar Long Term Care issue

We blog pretty regularly about Long Term Care (LTC), and more specifically about Long Term Care insurance (LTCi). But we haven't really spent much time discussing the impact of caring for a loved one can have on one's own finances. The last time we addressed the issue was almost a decade ago:

"About 73% of the primary caregivers – and 40% of the secondary caregivers – said they had reduced contributions to savings accounts as a result of caregiving responsibilities, and 80% of the primary caregivers and 55% of the secondary caregivers said they had reduced retirement contributions."

So we see that immediate and long term consequence in terms of savings. But what about earnings?

Recently, colleague Ian Kremer alerted us to this article that addresses the question of re-entering the workforce after an extended absence to care for a loved one:

"For the individuals that had to take a long break from their career to become a full-time caregiver the prospect of re-entering the workforce can be intimidating. Most likely you will find unique challenges that may make it difficult to land the job that you want. There are some ways that you can prepare for success."

As I replied on Twitter:

"This is an important issue, and one that very few people (especially those caregivers) have thought out beforehand."

Really recommended.
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