Asking Questions re What It Means to Have “The Talk” about Long-Term Care Planning

There is an interesting new YouTube video available, with charismatic, high-profile actors encouraging all of us to initiate “The Talk” about how we — or our loved ones — want to handle the possibility, indeed probability, that someday we will need long-term care.  Rob Lowe, Maria Shriver, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Angela Bassett, Zachary Quinto and Jim Nantz admit the difficulties of talking about growing old, often using vivid tidbits from their own lives or families to emphasize the importance of breaking past the barriers of denial. 

I like the video. It is simple, direct.  But, at the same time, I find the initial video, while interesting, to be a lacking in specifics about what it means to “talk” about long-term-care planning. The 2-minute video is actually part of a series created by Genworth, the major seller of long-term care insurance, and if you hit the right (wrong?) buttons you are directed to Genworth websites that offer more details, especially about  — surprise, surprise — buying long-term care insurance. 

I suspect that many people will panic if they hear “pay some money now” in order to buy LTC insurance, as even a part of the  “solution.”  See what you think: