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Index
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Part I: Getting Started with Long-Term Care
Chapter 1: Looking Ahead: The Big Picture
Planning for the Long Term Starts with You
What Is Long-Term Care?
Looking at long-term services and supports
Using Medicare as a starting point
Navigating the Roadblocks
Reasons for resistance
Benefits of planning
How Care for the Long Term Is Changing
Looking at why changes are being made
Keeping up with insider language
Meeting Your Changing Needs
Location, location, location
Timing and flexibility
Getting Professional Advice
Chapter 2: A Personal Inventory of Needs and Preferences
Looking at the Present — and the Future
Healthcare needs
Family, friends, and professionals
Personality characteristics
Attitudes about money
Creating a Long-Term Care Plan Based on Your Profile
Chapter 3: Researching Options for Services
Finding Information and Reading Between the Lines
Organizing your research
Federal government programs
State and local programs
Federal and state regulations
Community-based organizations
Taking Your Research to the Next Level: Site Visits
Chapter 4: Making Decisions: A Family Affair
Holding Family Meetings
Who should be included?
When should you get together?
What should be on the agenda?
Being Considerate of Others
Allocating responsibilities
Bringing in the outer circle
Dealing with Conflict
Mediators and counselors
Consensus and compromise
Part II: Long-Term Care in Different Settings
Chapter 5: Aging in Place
What Is Aging in Place?
Dealing with Two Major Hazards
Preventing falls
Preventing burns
Modifying a Home for an Aging Person
Categorizing types of home modifications
Checking out accessibility
Finding a contractor
Getting help paying for home modifications
Seeking Help at Home
Allocating tasks to family
Searching for services
Finding help for other chores
Putting technology to use
Preparing for an Emergency
Making an emergency plan
Putting together a disaster kit
Chapter 6: Independent and Assisted Living and Other Group Settings
What Is Assisted Living?
Interpreting industry and government language
Getting to know what assisted living offers
Checking out healthcare services
Finding more information on assisted-living facilities
Evaluating the Cost of Assisted Living
Choosing from the menu of cost plans
Asking questions to create a monthly budget
Beyond the Brochure: What To Look For When You Visit
Making notes about the common areas
Checking out the residential units
Investigating continuing care
Pitfalls to Avoid
Unnecessary trips to the ER
Additional costs or discharge from the facility after a hospitalization or change in condition
Exclusion from social activities or dining room seating by other residents
Failing to read the contract
Other Options for Group Living
Independent living for seniors
Affinity or niche communities
Cohousing arrangements
House sharing
Group homes
Chapter 7: Under One Roof: Generations Living Together
Multigenerational Living: Everything Old Is New Again
Why different generations are living together
Defining family households by generation
Considering family reactions beforemaking a decision
Where Should We All Live? Considering the Options
Having a relative move in with you
Preparing to move into your parent's home
Making fair financial arrangements
Making the Move
Getting started
Planning ahead
Sorting and packing
Settling in
Checking In over the Long Haul
Chapter 8: Beyond Your Home: Living in a Community
Understanding Why Community Matters
Defining age-friendly communities
Looking at livable-community initiatives
Taking a Walk Around Your Community
Looking at sidewalks and surrounding areas
Checking for places tostop, shop, and chat
Rating your community
Finding Community Services
Creating Special Communities for Older People
Navigating NORCs
Living in a Village
Chapter 9: Getting Around: Transportation Options
Judging Whether Driving Is Still Safe
Watching for warning signs for older drivers
Starting the conversation and evaluating needs
Adapting a Car for Older Drivers
Increasing safety with new technology
Making adaptations for disabilities
Knowing When It's Time to Give Up the Keys
Finding Alternatives to Driving
Public transportation options
Private options
Part III: Legal and Financial Planning for Long-Term Care
Chapter 10: Unraveling the Rules of Medicare and Medicaid
The Distinction between Medicare and Medicaid
Taking a Look at Medicare Basics
Are you eligible for Medicare?
What's included in original Medicare
What you get with Medicare Advantage plans
Prescription drug coverage
Durable medical equipment coverage
Home healthcare services
Getting Medicaid Ground Rules
Are you eligible for Medicaid?
What services Medicaid offers
How Medicaid works with home- and community-based programs
Medicaid-managed long-term care
Coordinating Benefits
PACE programs
Coordination with other health insurance
Chapter 11: Paying for Care: Long-Term Care Insurance and Other Options
Reviewing the Ups and Downs of Long-Term Care Insurance
Buying long-term care insurance
Continuing to pay rising premiums
Getting your claims paid for
Seeking out hybrid policies
Utilizing Disability Insurance
Selling Your Policy: Life Settlements
Considering a Reverse Mortgage
Receiving Money through Annuities
Chapter 12: Financial Matters: Money Management, Wills, and Trusts
Managing Money
Opening joint bank accounts
Granting financial powers of attorney
Where There's a Will. . .
Taking inventory of your assets
Considering types of wills
Choosing the executor
Taking the final steps
Settling the Estate with Probate
Reviewing the Rules on Estate Taxes
Establishing a Trust
Pros and cons of living trusts
Special-needs trusts
Looking into Guardianship
Part IV: Managing Your Health for the Long Term
Chapter 13: Choosing Good Geriatric Care
Checking on the Special Medical Needs of Older Adults
Identifying common chronic conditions
Dealing with multiple ailments
Finding the Right Specialist to Manage Care
Considering the need for a geriatrician
Finding a geriatrician
Navigating Hospitals
Where to go for emergencies and non-emergencies
Being admitted to the hospital
Planning for a hospital stay
Polypharmacy: Too Many Drugs?
Using caution with certain drugs
Getting medications right
Other risks and questions
Chapter 14: Demystifying Home Care
Examining the Many Varieties of Home Care
Services from a Home Care Agency
Different kinds of home care agencies
Choosing a home care agency
Paying for Home Care
Looking at Medicare's rules for eligibility for home healthcare services
Understanding Medicaid home care
Other kinds of insurance
Hiring home care workers on your own dime
Working with Home Care Aides
Paying Family or Friends to Provide Care
Is There a Doctor in the House?
Chapter 15: Understanding the Role of Nursing Homes in Long-Term Care
Nursing Home Basics
Defining nursing homes
Moving from hospital to short-term rehab
Comparing nursing homes for a long stay
Visiting Nursing Homes for a Long Stay
Checking off important points
Noting policy details
Checking Out New Models of Nursing-Home Care
Eden Alternative
Green House Project
Beatitudes
Culture change
Responding to Residents’ Problems in Nursing Homes
Chapter 16: Moving Toward Advance Care Planning
Thinking about Advance Care Planning
Realizing the importance of advance planning
Making wishes known with advance directives and living wills
Dealing with the Rules of Advance Directives
Finding the forms for advance directives and living wills
Putting your wishes down on paper
Choosing a healthcare proxy
Adding do not resuscitate (DNR) orders
Keeping your advance directive accessible
Choosing Physician’ Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST)
Understanding Care Options for Serious Illness: Palliative Care and Hospice
Palliative care
Hospice
Part V: Special Populations
Chapter 17: Services for LGBT Older Adults
Recognizing LGBT Aging and Health Issues
Physical conditions
Mental health risks
Knowing Legal Protections and Their Limits
U.S. Supreme Court and DOMA
Presidential memorandum on hospital visitation
Keeping Legal Documents at the Ready
Finding LGBT-Friendly Providers and Facilities
Finding healthcare providers
Considering independent- or assisted-living and nursing homes
Looking at LGBT-specific options
Chapter 18: Planning for Veterans
Getting into the VA System
Comparing VA to other healthcare systems
Eligibility for VA healthcare
Supporting Veterans and Their Families
Shared decision making
Caregiver support
Noting VA Options for Older Veterans
Receiving pensions
Using Aid and Attendance and Homebound programs
Finding the Right Residential Setting or Nursing Home for Veterans
Veterans’ medical foster homes
Community living facilities (Nursing homes)
State-operated veteran homes
Domiciliary program
TRICARE For Life
Using Other Resources to Navigate the VA System
Chapter 19: Services for Family Caregivers
Defining Family Caregivers
Family caregivers by the numbers
What family caregivers do
Family caregivers’ rights and obligations
Becoming a Family Caregiver
Identifying yourself as a family caregiver
Readying yourself for negotiation
Checking Out Different Types of Family Caregivers
Family caregivers who are employed
Long-distance family caregivers
Multicultural caregivers
Looking for Help
Family and friends
Federal programs
State programs
Community-based organizations
Internet resources
Part VI: The Part of Tens
Chapter 20: Ten Myths about Aging and Long-Term Care
Serious Memory Lapses Are Normal in Older Adults
Older People Fall: Not Much You Can Do about It
All Over-the-Counter Drugs Are Safe
Americans Dump Their Older Relatives in Nursing Homes
Medicare Pays for All Long-Term Care
Hospice Is Just a Place Where People Go to Die
Millionaires Take Advantage of Medicaid
Long-Term Care Means a Nursing Home
Assisted-Living Facilities Are Regulated Like Nursing Homes
Long-Term Care Insurance Covers All Your Needs
Chapter 21: Ten Resources with State-by-State Information
Identifying Local Services through Area Agencies on Aging
Assessing Assisted-Living and Rehabilitation Facilities
Finding Community Services and Housing Options through Eldercare Locator
Getting Support for Family Caregivers
Modifying Your Home with Rebuilding Together
Getting Information on Medicaid in Your State
Calculating Costs
Finding Your State's Advance Directives
Solving Problems through an Ombudsman
Resolving Complaints through Quality Improvement Organizations
Part VII: Appendixes
Appendix A: Glossary
Appendix B: Resources
AARP
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
Administration for Community Living
Other Resources
About the Author
Cheat Sheet
More Dummies Products
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