10/08/2026
"Medicare will cover it if I need care later."
This is the assumption we run into most, and it's the one that does the most damage to a retirement plan.
Here's the distinction that matters. Medicare covers skilled care, meaning medical treatment and rehab after something like a hospital stay. It does not cover custodial care, which is help with daily things like bathing, dressing, eating, and getting around. Custodial care is what most people actually end up needing as they age.
Even the skilled care Medicare does cover is limited. It generally requires a qualifying inpatient hospital stay first, it's capped at 100 days per benefit period, and there's a daily cost share after the first 20 days. Coverage also stops as soon as the care is no longer considered skilled, even if you haven't used all 100 days. (Source: Medicare.gov)
After that, the bill goes to the family, to a long-term care policy, or to Medicaid after savings are spent down.
This is one of the six pillars we walk through with Bucks County families, because an unplanned care event can undo decades of saving.
Questions? Call our Newtown office at (215) 860-3101.
https://retirepaladin.com/medicare-planning/
