Baby Boomer

(ARA) - Baby boomers are growing older, and by 2010, 76 million will begin reaching retirement age. As boomers age, it is expected that 42 percent who reach age 70 will need some form of long term care, such as an in-home caregiver or a nursing home, which is expensive. The average annual cost of a nursing home today is $57,000 (1).

Growing older is inevitable, but many Americans are not planning for their long term care needs. According to a survey commissioned by the GE Center for Financial Learning and conducted by Goodmind, LLC, almost half (46 percent) admit they have done nothing to develop a plan for themselves, yet almost the same number (45 percent) of those surveyed have had a personal experience caring for an aging or ill relative.

Dr. Kathleen Gurney, advisor to the GE Center for Financial Learning and chief executive officer of Financial Psychology Corporation, believes one reason people do not adequately plan is because long term care is something that is likely years or decades away and feels more abstract than issues they face today.