What Is a Life Care Contract?

What Is Life Care?

You’ve spent most of your adult life working, living and preparing for the time when you’ll be able to enjoy life exactly as you like. You deserve to live confidently about the future you’ve created for yourself. You deserve to live with all the benefits of Life Care, the most comprehensive financial retirement plan available.

So what is Life Care, anyway?

Before we dive too deeply into this robust, benefit-laden plan, let’s address a few terms you may have heard during your search for the next step in life.

• Life Plan Community — At a Life Plan Community in Florida like John Knox Village, residents can move into an apartment or cottage-style residence when they’re able-bodied and independent. The lifestyle is expansive, with an array of activities, amenities and social opportunities among neighbors. Then, if ever needed, the resident has access to an on-site continuum of care, which typically includes assisted living, memory support, skilled nursing and senior rehabilitation services. The benefit is that if needed, you know where you’ll get care, and there will be no major move to a different location.At some Life Plan Communities, there’s a predetermined discount for care, compared to the open market. And usually, there’s a limit on how many days a resident can take advantage of this discount. At top-of-the-line Life Plan Communities, you’ll have the option of a Life Care contract.
• CCRC — It stands for “continuing care retirement community.” This term is synonymous with Life Plan Community. The two terms can be used interchangeably.
• Life Care — Life Care is a financial contract, explained in the next section. You may hear the term “Life Care community,” but Life Care isn’t a community or even a type of community; it’s a financial contract of tremendous value for residents of a community.

In short, comparing CCRC vs. Life Care is like comparing apples to oranges. CCRC = community. Life Care = contract.

The comprehensive benefits of Life Care

Life Care has profound advantages and guarantees, but it can seem complex. Here’s a high-level explanation of how Life Care works:

• Under a Life Care contract, you pay a one-time entrance fee and a monthly service fee.
• In exchange, you’re entitled to a residence at the community for life — even if you outlive your financial resources through no fault of your own.
• Financial benefits include access to the community’s continuum of care at stable, predictable rates for as long as you need it, thereby protecting you from the ever-rising costs of long-term care on the open market.
• Your estate will be protected by predictable costs of care as well as a partial refund of your entrance fee if you ever move out.
• There are potential tax benefits inherent with Life Care, as several rulings have determined your entrance fee is deductible as a prepaid health cost. You should check with your financial adviser about this.
• Imagine the peace of mind: You know you’ll have a place to live for the rest of your life where you’ll receive care if you need it, how much it will cost, and that your legacy is safe.

It all adds up to a tremendous value, confident lifestyle and a solid plan for the future.

If you’d like to know more about Life Care at John Knox Village of Central Florida, the full-service nonprofit Life Plan Community, contact us here.