Long-term care policy can affect assets

This year, Alabama became the 30th state to launch a long-term care insurance partnership program, which allows residents to protect personal assets if they need to enroll in Medicaid for their nursing care.

In a typical program, every dollar of private coverage a resident purchases in a long-term care policy, that same amount of personal assets will be protected if they choose to enroll in Medicaid after the policy expires, explains Aaron Skloff, CEO of Skloff Financial Group in Berkeley Heights, New Jersey.

"It's an extremely powerful estate planning tool," Skloff says. To find out if your state has a partnership program go to: http://www.longtermcare.gov/.