Episode 221: What Actually Counts as Long-Term Care?

Episode 221: What Actually Counts as Long-Term Care?

From Retire With Style by Wade Pfau & Alex Murguia

March 24, 2026 · 30 min · Season 2 · Episode 21

About this episode

Wade Pfau and Alex Murguia discuss the fundamentals of long-term care planning and its significance in retirement.

In this episode of Retire With Style, Wade Pfau and Alex Murguia introduce the fundamentals of long-term care planning as part of their ongoing walkthrough of the Retirement Planning Guidebook. They clarify what long-term care actually is, how it differs from traditional healthcare, and why it represents one of the largest and most unpredictable financial risks in retirement. The conversation explores how long-term care is defined, the likelihood of needing care, early warning signs to watch for, and the full continuum of care options from informal caregiving to nursing homes. They also outline the four primary ways to fund long-term care and discuss how retirees can begin thinking about planning for this potentially significant expense. Takeaways Long-term care is generally defined as needing help with at least two activities of daily living for more than 100 days. Medicare does not cover long-term care, making it a critical planning gap for many retirees. Long-term care is one of the largest and most unpredictable retirement expenses, potentially exceeding $1 million in extreme cases. While many people will need care, much of it initially comes from unpaid caregivers like…

People in this episode

Hosts: Wade Pfau, Alex Murguia

Topics covered

  • long-term care
  • retirement planning
  • financial risks
  • healthcare
  • care options

Keywords

  • long-term care
  • retirement
  • healthcare
  • financial planning
  • care options
  • Medicare
  • activities of daily living

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Medicare

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