End of Life Care Costs
As we try to prepare ourselves for retirement, we have to use many assumptions about expenses, inflation, and investment returns. In this episode of Financial Clarity for Doctors, hosts Rachelle Vanderzanden and Corey Janoff explore one of the least predictable planning variables – end of life care. For some people, there will be almost no costs for end-of-life care. Others may require years of care toward the ends of their lives. How do we prepare for something so unpredictable?
Listen Along!
Things to consider:
- For those over age 65, there is a 70% chance of needing some kind of long-term care in your lifetime and a 20% chance that you will need care for five years or longer.
- The average cost of care for assisted living in 2025 was $74,000, and those costs could be much more or potentially less depending on needs and expectations.
- Most long-term care costs will not be covered by the federal government, although you can potentially qualify for Medicaid if you have spent basically all resources available to you first.
- If your income, investment, and real estate investments are significant, you may be able to self-fund this care, but that would substantially decrease the size of your estate.
- Long-term care insurance can cover some or all of the costs of care, which can protect assets, but you must be able to qualify through a medical review process and premiums can be significant.
When we focus on retirement, one of our goals is to build in buffers through conservative assumptions. If we are not planning to use the equity from our home to fund our retirement, that may be a good resource to cover long-term care costs. As with all financial planning, leave yourself room for error! And that should also help with the unexpected and unplanned expenses.
For more financial planning tips from Corey and Rachelle, find them on social media!
LinkedIn: @CoreyJanoff; Instagram: @CoreyJanoff and @VanderzandenRachelle; and Twitter: @CoreyJanoffCFP
Discussions in this show should not be construed as specific recommendations or investment advice. Always consult with your investment professional before making important investment decisions.
Securities and advisory services offered through LPL Financial, a registered investment advisor, Member FINRA/SIPC. Finity Group, LLC is a separate entity from LPL Financial.
Citations:
Houser, Ari. “Long-Term Care Affordability is Worsening for Middle-Class Americans.” AARP. https://www.aarp.org/pri/topics/ltss/ltss-becoming-even-more-unaffordable/. March 12, 2026.
LongTermCare.gov. “How Much Care Will You Need?” https://acl.gov/ltc/basic-needs/how-much-care-will-you-need. February 18, 2020.
Medicaid.gov. “Institutional Long Term Care.” https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/long-term-services-supports/institutional-long-term-care