COVID-19 Will Change LTC Plans for Clients The pandemic has hit long-term care institutions particularly hard, and the effects are likely to persist, including a shift to more home-based care and changing projections for clients’ retirement costs. Long-term care has long been the biggest hole in the U.S. retirement safety net, and the pandemic is raising the stakes on the risks your clients face. The horrific level of death among residents and staff in care facilities has called into question the model for institutional care. Meanwhile, the costs are jumping, driven by accelerating pressures on care facilities. For planners advising clients on a future that may require a lengthy span of care at some level, the outlook is opaque.