What do all mothers have in common? They worry. They spend their lives worrying about you -- and they never stop. But as mothers grow older, they have another worry: Not becoming a burden to their children.

There's a way to lift that burden from your mother. If you were fortunate to celebrate Mother's Day with your mom, here's an idea you can implement now and update every year at Mother's Day. You and your siblings should look into chipping in for a Long Term Care Insurance policy for your mom -- and one for your dad, which you can present on Father's Day next month.

Over the years, I've written many columns about Long Term Care Insurance. As always, I put my money where my mouth is. So when my own mother was hospitalized earlier this year, and subsequently required several weeks of nursing care, I came face to face with the situation I had written about. Actually, Mom has recovered quite nicely -- and didn't need to tap into her LTC insurance policy. But if things had gone differently, she and our family still would have had priceless peace of mind.

That's why I'm encouraging everyone -- starting at age 50, and into your mid-70s -- to consider the purchase of a Long Term Care Insurance policy. And I'm going to take on all the objections you might raise:

I might not need it. The odds are against you! According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, at least 70 percent of people over age 65 will require some long-term care services at some point in their lives.

LTC insurance expert Claude Thau reports, "unpaid lifetime hours of informal caregiving averaged 3,200 for males and 4,000 for females."

Will your children provide that care? Just think of how hard it is to get everyone together for brunch or dinner on Mother's Day. Who will take shifts watching over an infirm parent?

It's expensive! Yes, a Long Term Care policy with the minimum recommended coverage ($200/day of coverage for three years, with simple inflation protection) would cost:

-- $1,438 per year for a 50-year-old healthy woman.

-- $2,253 a year if purchased at age 60.

-- $4,794 a year if purchased at age 70.

A reminder that you might not qualify if you wait until you're older. (Typical premium quotes from MAGA, specialists in Long Term Care Insurance, 847-940-8866. Quotes are free.)

If you think annual premiums are expensive, that's nothing compared with the cost of care itself! A just-released Genworth study shows that the median annual cost for a private room in a nursing facility in Chicago is $77,198. The survey notes that Chicago's costs have increased 4 percent annually over the last five years. On an ongoing basis, that would quickly swallow up your assets, leaving little for your spouse.

My own assets will cover the cost. Aside from the fact that your savings have shrunk in the bear market, long-term care costs are soaring. And if you do need to use your policy, odds are you'll get a windfall.

A recent study by the American Association for Long Term Care Insurance shows that more than 180,000 people received claim benefits last year from their LTC insurance policies. Continued...