Recently I wrote about how death taxes impact Pennsylvania residents and their heirs. The conclusion was that for most of us, federal death taxes are not an issue. And Pennsylvania’s inheritance tax can take a modest bite from our accumulated wealth. [See my recent article Death Taxes For Pennsylvania Residents]

For many Pennsylvania seniors a much bigger risk to their goals of lifetime financial and personal security and passing along an inheritance is the possibility that their life savings will be used up paying for their care before death. Most seniors require care during an extended period of time prior to their deaths. The cost of that care, whether it is received at home, in assisted living, or in a nursing home, can quickly deplete a modest estate. The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services recently announced that the average cost of a private room in a Pennsylvania nursing home is $330 a day. That’s over $120,000 a year!

Before my father passed away some years ago he spent 2 ½ years in a nursing home. At the current rates his 2 ½ year stay in a nursing home would have cost over a quarter of a million dollars. That is enough to wipe out the savings of most Pennsylvania seniors.

So, for most seniors, it’s the potential cost of long term care rather than death taxes that should be the focus of their estate planning. Expert long-term care planning with the help of an elder law expert can help ensure that seniors will be able to:

* remain financially independent,

* maintain control,

* maintaining privacy,

* involve family members without burdening them,

* maximize available government programs, and

* leave an inheritance.

It is possible to put together a plan that will reduce the risk of long-term care costs.

While last minute planning is possible the most effective planning is accomplished by those who plan well in advance of their need for long-term care. Seniors in their 60s and 70s should be planning now to protect themselves and their families from financial devastation in their 80s and 90s.

As President John Kennedy said: “The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.” John F. Kennedy, Annual Message to the Congress on the State of the Union. January 11, 1962

Pennsylvania seniors and their families can get expert planning guidance at any one of the four offices (Williamsport, Wilkes-Barre, Scranton and Jersey Shore) of my law firm, Marshall, Parker and Weber. Visit our website www.paelderlaw.com or call us toll free at 800-401-4552 for more information.