Business Innovators Radio - Interview with Ryan Quante, Founder of Care Income Advisors Discussing Aging in Place

Episode Date: January 17, 2024

Ryan is a Certified Long Term-Care Insurance specialist and has helped clients, agents, & attorneys find viable solutions to their LTC needs. For the past 8 years, I’ve made it my mission to help as many people avoid spending down all their assets to pay for care as I can through creative planning strategies. Ryan resides in St. Charles, Missouri, and enjoys hockey, music, and his two dogs.Learn More: https://www.careincomeadvisors.com/https://calendly.com/careincomeadvisors Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-ryan-quante-founder-of-care-income-advisors-discussing-aging-in-place

Welcome to influential entrepreneurs, bringing you interviews with elite business leaders and experts, sharing tips and strategies for elevating your business to the next level. Here's your host, Mike Saunders. Hello and welcome to this episode of influential entrepreneurs. This is Mike Saunders, the authority positioning coach. Today we have back with us Ryan Quante, who's the founder of Care Income Advisors, and we'll be talking about aging in place. Ryan, welcome back to the program. Thanks so much, Mike. Thanks for having me.

You're welcome. So I want to just keep talking through this series of conversations that we've been having. And I know we won't only talk about aging in place, but I think that's such a powerful topic that I think one of the things we talked about last time is just people's self-esteem and peace of mind and comfort. And aging in place is going to be so powerful to make sure that peace is taken care of. But let's kind of start off with health care. You know, we hear every time in the news and online, we hear about changes and the healthcare system is evolving and changing. What are some of the trends that you're foreseeing in the future of healthcare as how it relates to long-term care insurance, dementia, and even how technology can help or even detract from that? Yeah, absolutely.

So, obviously, you mentioned the evolving nature of health care, as with most things in this world today, it's moving more and more towards technological. advancements and whatnot. And I think we're going to see a lot of technological advancements in the long-term care space, as we already have actually started to. So I think they're going to be a positive impact overall for folks. It's just a matter of acceptance of using those sorts of things like artificial intelligence. You know, there's a number of different companies out there who are exploring different ways to provide care in a home without necessarily.

having to have a physical person there, which is, you know, sounds bizarre today here in 2024, but you could imagine in five, ten years from now that that may become commonplace. So it's exciting. There's, you know, lots of articles that online, I'm sure you can, you know, you can read up on, but I'll get into a few of the more specific examples later on in the show. Yeah, you know, so when I hear the word technology, I think that, oh, well, you know, everything's going fine, and then it breaks because technology hiccough. some changes, but just a thought, and it probably doesn't even relate to dementia care and long-term care, but what are your thoughts on integrating technology to health care given the age of people

that need dementia care and long-term care? Because will they be required to keep up for the times and learn technology to be able to access care for themselves, do you think? Yeah, that's a great question. So what I foresee happening is the insurance companies and the care coordination services out there today will be working hand in hand with the clients and the clients family because like you said it is a challenging task you know to keep up with technology even at you know our age younger folks and whatnot but i believe that there will be resources in place whether that's through an insurance company than the policy features or or maybe it's a you know some sort of care coordination service that ends up you know specializing in the integration of the

technological advancements that we'll be seeing here in the future It's a great question. Yeah, and I think a lot of people say, oh, look, this advancement, this improvement, this, and then it is good because they're looking at it through the lens of look at the end result, but some people look at it like, oh, I've got to learn something new, do something new. But what do you think these advancements will do to positively impact, you know, care, both quality and cost? I mean, you know, a lot of times you look at these big companies and they're implementing all this

technology to save money for themselves internally, but does it get passed on to policy? holders. But what are your thoughts on advancements of that for quality as well as cost? So, yeah, I think it will actually ultimately drive costs down in the long term. You may see some increases temporarily as they work through trials and whatnot. But I would foresee it eventually becoming something that is a net positive, right? It's just going to be a matter of adoption or adoption of the technology and getting the right sort of people in the homes to assist us, you know, there's always going to be a human need, right? At least I'd like to think so, right? But I do foresee it going more towards, you know, you know, different devices that are in the

home that can, you know, detect a fall. For instance, an Apple Watch. I'm sure we've all heard of the story of a, you know, a person collapsing and, you know, the Apple Watch literally will call 911. There's going to be many, many things like that and be more credible than that. That'll, that'll begin to take place. And I think that's, again, a net positive for the future, although it will be, you know, a period of adaption. It's kind of the evolution of health care, I believe. It's the way that we're going. And I'm excited for it. And I'm excited to help my clients through those changes. And, you know, not to scare anybody. I don't think that's coming tomorrow. But they're, you know, they're certainly talking about, you know, putting, you know, robots in the homes and things of that nature,

which sounds really far out there today in 2024, but it is currently being tested. And there's a lot of evidence that points to that being a very viable solution for folks. Because you never know if the caregiver is paying attention at times, unfortunately. You know, whereas, you know, a robot's going to be right there next to the whole time of time. Yeah, or is it 24-7 care or is, you know, all of those things that go into place? And you don't think it's going to happen to you until it does, you know, that whole. whole concept. So I think that's that huge. I look at it as exciting. And, you know, I know that for every person that says, I'm 70 and I don't, I don't use technology, there's 80 year olds that are just

wizards. So, I mean, it's just a little learning curve. And I think that's something to look forward to. You know, one thing that I know that we see in, in the news and in the trends is people not wanting to go and go out to those external care facilities and aging in place. That's kind of like what we talked about at the beginning. So I'm going to talk about the concept of aging in place. So what actually is that? What are the ramifications? What does that look like? And then let's get into, you know, how does aging in place look for dementia patients, for long-term care and kind of what some of those considerations are. But first, what actually is aging in place? Yeah, exactly. Aging is place. The best definition I can think of this.

the ability to remain in your own home while receiving the quality care that you so desperately need when you're faced with such a challenging disease like dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, those sorts of things. Because I mentioned earlier in the previous podcast, ever since COVID, we all saw the horror stories what happened with the nursing homes and, you know, loved ones not being able to see their family members. And I believe, you know, at the deepest level, compassion and love from family members is huge. and not being able to have that, you know, in a nursing home setting, God forbid, we have another pandemic or what have you. I see a lot of folks are really wanting to make sure they have a plan in place to be able to age in place. And luckily, there are many solutions available today that'll accomplish just that. Yeah, you know, you've mentioned a few times about, you know, the emotional connection and empathy. And if it's possible, now, I'm sure that there's some cases where it's just

not feasible to stay in your own home for whatever the reason might be. But where it's possible, wouldn't that give a boost to that retirees, you know, self-esteem, even their family to feel like they're not coming into an external place that maybe they don't feel as comfortable or welcoming. So there's so many things that go into, you know, aging a place is convenient. But I think that even from the internal aspect, the family and the retiree is going to just feel that boost emotionally. I would suspect. Absolutely. You know, you take somebody out of their environment that they've been in for 20, 30, 40, 50 years sometimes and things can go downhill rather quickly just due to the sheer fact that everything's new, especially in cases with cognitive impairment like dementia or Alzheimer's. You know, you're shaking up somebody's routine who doesn't really necessarily always remember their routine. So that can be challenging to present a lot of difficulties for caregivers. And by being able to, you know, have plans in place to,

to ensure that you're able to stay where you are. I think that that goes a long way in terms of the overall outcome and care. Yeah, 100%. And that goes beyond just the nuts and bolts or the facts and figures on paper. That gets down into the psyche, the emotion and all of that. So I think that's huge. So let's talk a little bit about the types of plans, coverage, insurance, what type of policies kind of a thing?

that would support individuals that need long-term care and want to age in place, but also the added layer that dementia that we've talked about before, you know, there's such a high prevalence now of dementia and what 70, you know, types of dementia out there. How does the types of coverages and policies support individuals that have dementia that want to age in place? Yes, great question. Thankfully today, and this has not always been the case, and this is like goes back to the top podcast, the previous podcast, where I mentioned a lot of people have the misconception or myth that long-term care has to be in a nursing room. That is obviously not the case anymore. It once was,

but it is not anymore. I'd say most policies today allow for folks to age in place, whether that is a home health care agency who comes in and provides the care, where there's also even some really spectacular clans out there that allow for what they call cash indemnity benefit, which what that means is the client just receives a check every month for the amount of care that they selected when they purchased the policy. They can spend that money how they see fit, whether they pay a neighbor to come over and hang out and talk just if they need some emotional support or if it's a little bit more in depth. Maybe they have a niece or a nephew who's a nurse and they could certainly hire that person to come in and become their caregiver. So rather than, you know,

calling a, you know, going on Google and searching for a home care agency, it allows, you know, folks to remain in their home, one and two, to choose their caregiver. So the cash indemnity plans have really picked up a lot of steam, I'd say, in the last five or six years. And we're seeing more and more companies explore that option for folks. And it makes me wonder a question that maybe other people would too, and you're in the business, so you just, you know, you know it. But when you have that cash indemnity and you want to use, let's say, a friend or family member, are there restrictions or stipulations on, well, they have to be certified, they have to be trained, or can it just be a friend or a family member?

Great question, yes. So traditionally it has always had to be a licensed provider up until the implementation of these cash indemnity policies, which state that the caregiver can be what they call an informal caregiver. So it could be the spouse who's taking care of because a lot of times that's how things start out, right? The husband's starting to not remember, you know, he's confusing the toaster with the microwave and, you know, that sort of the thing. And the wife is picking up the majority of those care needs early on in the process. So, you know, that is definitely a big, big thing to be able to pay an informal caregiver, right? You don't have to have a license.

And I think that just adds more flexibility and peace of mind to the client, ultimately. You know, they know their caregiver and they know that they don't have to, you know, go searching for a stranger and invite a stranger into their home if they don't necessarily have to. Yeah. You know, it also makes me think of this. When we think of the trigger that would me say, oh, this person needs long-term care, whatever condition that that might mean, doesn't dementia add such a powerful layer to that where maybe if it's external care or aging in place care that now you need maybe multiple? You can't just have the friend or family member come in. Maybe they can come in for some of the time, but you might need some really specialized

care because there's that dementia aspect. It's, it's way different than just typical long-term care where you need someone to help you get from one room to the next. Am I thinking correctly that way? You were thinking exactly correctly. It is, yeah, the ability to to have not only the informal caregiver and then, you know, also a licensed caregiver is huge. You can, you know, you can mix and match however you'd like, say your benefits $10,000 a month. You spend $5,000 on a formal caregiver who comes in and does the heavy lifting, and then you keep the $5,000, then you pay your daughter or your wife or whoever it may be in that situation, which again just provides maximum flexibility and, again, peace of mind knowing that they have options

and that they don't have to rely on somebody that they don't know. But if, God forbid, the disease progresses to the point where the wife or the, the daughter, whoever, it just becomes too much, well, then they're also going to be able to pay for those more professional care services. Yeah. Yeah, that makes a whole lot of sense. And everybody's situation is different. I think when we talk about, you know, oh, this type of a product or solution or policy or

insured, it's not a cookie cutter. So when you're thinking about these kind of solutions, what are the things that someone should be thinking about to take into account to make sure that all of these. these aspects are in place. So for instance, you know, oh, I want that in cash indemnity. I want the aging in place. Are those things that you need to remember to make sure that they're included? Because I'm certain you can just set up some Google search long-term care policy that, oops, I found out later when it's too late. It didn't have these things that I actually need. So what are some considerations that way? Absolutely. Those are all very good points. Spike.

I think it is it is something where like, again, you need a specialist. You need somebody who's around the policies who understands the inner workings of them, who understands all the features, all the benefits across the board, because most policies appear the same on the surface. However, once you dig into them, you start reading the contract language, they do differ quite dramatically, specifically when it comes to, you know, cash-indentity benefits versus what they like to call reimbursement benefits. So, you know, it's almost, again, you know, next to impossible to decipher without the help of an expert and somebody who is, you know, dealing with these products and these companies day in

and day out and can ultimately be sure that all your stated goals are accomplished through whichever plan that you, you know, decide works for you. Yeah. I mean, that's, I'm certain that we could spend about six and a half hours telling horror stories of times that that wasn't done the right way. So let's learn from other people's mistakes and go, look, get with someone that knows what the climate is out there. there, what you need and puts in a great plan in place.

So this last question, we'll kind of wrap up with this. It kind of reminds me of like, if you had a magic wand, you could fix everything. You know, it can fix the whatever, the economy, the healthcare system. But looking at the global nature of health care systems, what have you seen other countries do with, you know, dementia in long-term care that they're doing right that maybe could be adopted here in the U.S.? Right. Yes.

So it's interesting because a lot of other countries, the long-term care, care problem is a big deal. Obviously, it's a big deal pretty much everywhere where you have folks who are aging. For example, in the United Kingdom, there's, I believe it's something like 80% of the long-term care services rendered in a home setting are funded through government programs. Much like Medicaid here, I don't, you know, I don't suspect that it's much different. However, I believe the market, like, for example, across the pond in the UK when it comes to long-term care insurance is not nearly as robust and strong. as it is here. There aren't a lot of options over there. However, I'm glad you brought that up because

one of the most popular ways that people have been funding their long-term care issues and the United Kingdom has been through a, you know, kind of a new product here in the U.S., at least new, called medically underwritten income annuity. So those products have been shown to stand the test of time, you know, over there in the United Kingdom and now they're here in the United States. And that is a big deal because they allow for great leverage even when somebody's already sick or diagnosed with dementia. Again, going back to what we talked about yesterday. A lot of people think, oh, I've got dementia,

but there's no way any insurance company will ensure that risk. Well, up until a couple of years ago, they were right. But now today, with the advancements of that policy over the United Kingdom that they've been doing, they've been doing it over there for 25 years, and it's worked beautifully to help take a lot of stress and pressure off the state or the, you know, the government-based programs. And I would suspect that more and more companies, will start diving into that arena here shortly in the United States.

Currently, there's only one or maybe two. But I believe, like I said, over the next few years, this type of planning will become commonplace for folks who already have a diagnosis of, say, dementia, Parkinson's, what have you. Because so many times people think, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, it's not going to happen to me. And so they don't take care of it well ahead of time. And the way that you explain that, so let me just use an analogy that was running through my mind to see if I'm thinking the right way. Isn't that similar to like driving your car

insurance, getting in a wreck and then calling up an agent and going, hey, give me some car insurance that just wrecked. And they go, oh, okay, that's fine. You know, so in other words, it used to be, I don't have any need for long-term care. Let's set up this policy. But if you didn't set it up and you have that need, it's sorry, it's not set up. But now you're saying some proven models from the UK and different countries that have now been out there for, you you know, many, many years now are coming to the United States where we can set up a policy, a investment tool that can then take care of that even if it's too late, quote unquote.

That's exactly right, Mike. You hit the nail right on the head and I couldn't have said it better myself. I'm super excited about this particular line of products or line of strategy because it allows folks who, you know, historically have not had any options, an option, you know, to stop the waiting to stop the pain of seeing their assets being drawn down through a long-term care spending on. It's huge. I'm extremely excited to be able to help clients with this. I would almost, you ever seen those pictures of the iceberg? Like, you know, it's like, you see the tip of the iceberg and then you see the picture like way underneath this.

Like, you're only seeing the tip of the iceberg. I would suspect that it's a huge percentage of people that don't get long-term care solutions set up ahead of time. And then now when they need it, they assume it's too late, but they don't even know that there are some things on the horizon or here now. So I think that is such a huge opportunity. And that is, like you said, super exciting. And by the way, you can use my car wreck example. I think that's a perfect way for the lay person to think about it. So it's been so neat to be thinking through these concepts here again with you today, Ryan. If someone is interested in learning more about what you do and how you do it, what's the best way they can reach out and connect with you.

Absolutely. I would encourage anybody who, who enjoyed the show today or has questions or just wants to chat to go to www. meetwithryankew.com. Again, that's www. meetwithryankew.com. If you're not ready to talk, you set, just go to my website.

You can learn a little bit more about me and what I do. And that is www. www. care income advisors.com. Awesome, Ryan. Thank you so much for coming back on. It's been a real pleasure talking with you. Absolutely, Mike. Thanks again. Have a good one.

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