According to a study published in U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT, one out of every two people in Oregon over the age of 65 will need some form of long term health care. That same report went on to say that Medicare pays almost nothing toward long term care.When you also factor in that today more and more younger people, through either accident or illness, are finding themselves in need of one form of long term care or another it becomes painfully obvious that the need for discount long term health care in Oregon has never been greater.What exactly do we mean by long term health care? What exactly does it cover?Well, if you become ill or suffer an accident that requires any type of special assistance with your daily living needs, such as dressing, bathing, preparing food, eating, or going to the toilet, then you are in need of long term care. Long term care can last a few days, a few weeks, or it can last for years.The most obvious and perhaps most visible form of long term health care is a nursing home, but many patients requiring long term care live at home and require the services of an in-home health specialist on a daily or less frequent basis.Long term health care can be expensive. Without discount long term health care insurance most families cannot afford the care with only their own resources.The good new is, there are 42 companies in Oregon that provide long term health care insurance. The bad news is, for many people the cost of such insurance is a severe financial strain. What are some things you can do to lessen the cost of the monthly premiums on a long term health care insurance policy.If you are still fairly young (as young as 40) and healthy, then now would be an excellent time to look into a long term health care policy. Why? Because the younger you are when you take out your policy, the less expensive the policy will be. Look at policies which have an inflation adjustment built in, or by the time you need your coverage it could be woefully inadequate.Get on line and find an insurance site that will let you do a side by side comparison of as many of the 42 companies offering long term health care in Oregon as you can. Factor in different deductibles, different lifetime payment caps, and the different types of assistance that are available until you find a plan that you are both happy with and that you can afford.Do not allow yourself to believe that Medicare will take care of your long term health needs once you reach 65, because the sad truth is that Medicare pays virtually nothing toward any form of long term health care.