Older men and women who are homosexual may face special problems when they need long term care, according to experts with LTC Financial Partners L.L.C.
Those problems include:
- A tendency to have a narrower support network. Because people who identify themselves as gay or lesbian are less likely than people who identify themselves as heterosexuals to have children, they tend to have fewer immediate family members available for providing care or financial assistance.
- Nearly 80% of seniors who identify themselves gay or lesbian are without a partner, while most seniors who identify themselves as straight live with a spouse.
- Surviving same-sex partners get nothing from Social Security, whereas widows and widowers receive Social Security survivor benefits.