More updates on Long-Term Care Insurance

Typically, every day either myself or one of the other attorneys in my office are consulted as to whether a client should purchase long term care insurance. Many of the individuals requesting this information could be considered “old,” and therefore, they either cannot afford to purchase the insurance, or they are not healthy enough to acquire it, as they are not insurable by standards of insurance companies.

Many people also believe that Medicare will cover chronic care, but this is not the case.

So how do you determine whether you should purchase insurance, and when? It is estimated that the cost of long-term care insurance doubles if you obtains it at the age of sixty-five vs. fifty-five. So is it better to pay an additional ten years for the coverage or risk becoming uninsurable when you want to purchase it? While deciding, here is a list of factors that you should consider:

• The amount of the benefit
• The length of time for coverage
• The period for paying out of pocket (deductible)
• Inflation protection (if so, simple or compounded)
• Provisions to continue to pay for care even if the insured stops paying premiums

You should always consider the implications of not purchasing coverage, such as whether you can afford to self-insure until funds are diminished to the extent that Medicaid will cover your care either at home or in an institution. If you have sufficient income to cover care, such as retirement benefits, pensions, social security, etc., then you don’t need to insure 100% of the cost of care, but merely the difference. However, if you don’t want to pay for any of your own care out of pocket, you may need to purchase coverage to preserve income and assets.

You should also review the homecare benefit to determine whether the policy will cover both licensed and unlicensed caregivers and also pay for community programs such as adult day care if and when necessary.

It is important to review all options before you buy in order to make an intelligent and educated decision.

by: Hyman G. Darling, Esq.