At a glance
- Some 55% of adult children believe a healthcare cost plan is in place, while only 38% of parents say one exists.
- The number that makes the omission expensive comes from Fidelity Investments.
- Concern is not the missing ingredient: 82% of respondents say they are worried about paying for long-term care for themselves or a family member, according to Lincoln's Consumer Sentiment Tracker.
Eighty percent of families have not had an in-depth conversation about age-related healthcare costs, according to Lincoln Financial research reported by InvestmentNews on Nov. 10.
Some 55% of adult children believe a healthcare cost plan is in place, while only 38% of parents say one exists. The 17-point gap is what the research calls a planning blind spot.
For advisors, that spread is a family-meeting question, and the survey suggests clients rarely raise it themselves: among respondents who work with a financial professional, only 21% have discussed long-term care planning, 14% long-term care insurance and 7% elder care planning.
The number that makes the omission expensive comes from Fidelity Investments. Its latest Retiree Health Care Cost Estimate puts the average lifetime healthcare bill for a 65-year-old retiring in 2026 at $185,500, up 7.5% from the prior year and excluding long-term care costs.
Concern is not the missing ingredient: 82% of respondents say they are worried about paying for long-term care for themselves or a family member, according to Lincoln's Consumer Sentiment Tracker.
Among clients 55 and older, only 10% have had an in-depth conversation about preparing for medical expenses in retirement.
Reported by the Tax & estate planning desk from InvestmentNews and Lincoln Financial Consumer Sentiment Tracker. Published . Corrections