Many times a day, we hear the confusion of consumers who are expecting “universal health care” to be passed into law in the United States and who wrongly believe that UHC will pay for long-term care.  While some of these assumptions are true, I think it is fair to look at our neighbor to the north, Canada, to see how a single-payer health care system would play out in the US.

Provincial health care programs and employee benefits may not cover the full costs of a long term illness. That means your choice of care could be limited. LTCI can supplement government-sponsored programs and reduce the worry of protecting your assets and your choices. It can provide the funds to pay for the care you may need, give you options, and keep a long term illness from becoming a financial and physical burden on your family.

- Ang Perodilo Newspaper

So to those considering not getting a long-term care insurance plan, we would urge you to look again, for even under the most liberal of governments, long-term care is still an individual matter in many ways.