Long Term Care Insurance covers what all the other health insurances don’t cover, such as care in your home, assisted living and nursing home facilities.

 

Daughter taking care of senior mother who needs long term careWhat is Long Term Care: Long Term Care insurance is used when a patient needs care for more than 90 days. Long term care can be a result from an accident, physical illness or cognitive impairment.

Long-Term Care Coverage:

Policies provide comprehensive long term care coverage for home care, assisted living and nursing facilities. Benefits are paid using one of three different methods:

  • Expense-incurred method
  • Indemnity method
  • Disability method (cash)

 

Daily or Monthly Benefits: $100-$500 day or $3000-$15,000 monthly

 

Benefit Periods: Insured person may choose from 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10 years or lifetime benefits. This period determines your pool of benefits.

Examples:

  • For a 4 year plan at $6000/month = $288,000
  • For a 4 year plan at $200/day = $292,000

 

Elimination Periods (sometimes called a deductible or a waiting period): This means benefits can start 0, 20, 30, 60, 90 or 100 days after you start using long-term care or become disabled.

Inflation Protection:

  • 5% simple
  • 5% compound
  • no inflation

Inflation increases the pool of money each year. This is to keep up with the rising costs of long-term care.

Options for Funding Long Term Care Insurance

  • Continuous Pay for Lifetime
  • 10-pay: Pay 10 years and then paid up for life
  • Return or Premium: at death, premiums paid for the long term care policy can be fully or partially refunded)
  • Pay to age 65

What Triggers Long Term Care Insurance Benefits

2 out of 6 Activities of Daily Living

  • Bathing
  • Eating
  • Dressing
  • Toileting/Continence
  • Transferring
  • Cognitive Impairment

 

About the Author:

Shelly Kapfhammer,  is a Long Term Care Specialist for the Tax & Financial Group in Newport Beach, California. Shelly provides training and education to Financial Advisors, Life Insurance Professionals, Property and Casualty Agents, CPA's and Attorneys on the importance of Long Term Care in their portfolio. She works closely with the group health market on the need for Long Term Care as a health benefit in the workplace, as well as, affinity groups and associations. Shelly also personally sells Long Term Care Insurance to the indivual and group market. Shelly has been a guest speaker on the Los Angeles radio station 99.3 KCLA.

 

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