Should you buy long term care insurance? LTC insurance has been around for decades but the same questions always persist…
Should I buy long term care insurance? Will I ever use long term care insurance? How can I afford long term care insurance? What are the best companies?
You should buy long term care insurance if you can’t self insure (which means you can easily pay the $50,000 to $100,000 yearly costs that run up) or if you want to protect your income. Long term care insurance is really for people inbetween rich and poor. Oh, I guess that means a lot of us. (You might want to check out the consumer guide and videos for more indepth information)
Many people think they’ll never use it. In fact, as an ex-agent and LTC specialist both my parents had long term care insurance. My mother (who is 81 and going strong) has never used it. My father, however, did use it. He suddenly became ill, had a surgery go bad and ran up more than $40,000 in long term care bills in a couple of months. When my parents got the policy I remember hearing my father tell me “I’m never going to use it”. Needless to say my mother thanked me repeatedly.
Long term care costs are so outrageous that if you’re caught unprepared you can literally be wiped out. I remember a guy who had a policy and got tired of paying the premium after about 5 years so he just stopped. About 6 months after that his wife was diagnosed with Alzheimers. He has been writing checks ever since. True story.
Another big issue is affording long term care insurance. In the guide you learn about ways to cut the insurance quite a bit. Companies are in this game to make money so they (and the agents) won’t tell you how to write a sensible plan. Again, for most of us money is something we think about so it pays to really learn how to structure a plan that benefits you first, the agent second and the company third.
As far as find companies a lot of people like to go with big guns, names like John Hancock, Genworth or AARP. I’ll share a tip - the bigger the company the more money the more lawyers the craftier the contracts become. Insurance companies would probably disagree but I can tell you that they are in this business to make money and the money is in the contract (and the underwriting). Profits are tied to underwriting but also to benefits and how you get to access them.
If you’re serious about protecting your lifestyle and income (especially when you retire) then you really should read the consumer guide “Insider Secrets to Long Term Care Insurance” and watch the accompanying videos.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
One good way to cut costs, in my opinion, is for spouses to share benefits. Statistically, one spouse will probably not need any care, but one spouse probably will. When one spouse passes away without using any benefits, the surviving spouse inherits the unused benefits. It is often a superb value.
Caution is a great piece of advice!! The more information folks have PRIOR to getting ’sold’ is always a good practice. There is a site which has some good information for people in the ‘info gathering’ process or even if they are in the decision/buying mode.
The site Senior Health Advocate is ‘non-denominational’ - it provides the details from each of the top 30 most popular long term care insurance policies including John Hancock, Genworth and others. Readers can download the book for comparison purposes or as a reference tool prior to meeting with a representative.