When you go home for Thanksgiving

Just because you know a lot about employee benefits doesn't mean you know a lot about your aging parents' situation.

(Photo: Marjory Collins/Office of War Information)

This article first appeared on Nov. 20, 2012. It will probably still be equally important on Nov. 20, 2032.

The season starting with Thanksgiving and lasting until New Year’s has become America’s unofficial Long-Term Care Need Assessment Period.

Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance (AALTCI), has put out a guide to assessing the well-being of parents and other older relatives that could be useful both to consumers and their retirement and LTCI advisors.

Related: 10 staggering statistics about caregiving

Slome said adult children or other caregiver candidates who live far from their loved ones and go home for the holidays should consider taking the following steps:

Slome noted that LTCI carriers get a 15 percent increase in questions about benefits during the period following the holidays.

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