1. What are the benefits of long-term care insurance?
A. Long-term care insurance is one of the most significant products that people can purchase to protect their assets, to receive the kind of care after a disabling illness or injury, or for the latter days of life. It is critical to plan ahead.
2. Why doesn’t the government-sponsored programs provide for long-term care?
A. For 2006 the federal budget requires a $10 billion dollar cut in Medicaid spending over the next five years. Medicaid eventually will return to its origins as a safety net for the poor.
3. What is the cost of residing in an assisted-living facility?
A. The costs vary widely depending on the room size, level of care, services offered, and several other factors. The average cost falls between $60 and $70 per day. Fees can start at $1000 per month and increase with amenities and additional services provided.
4. How does the cost of residing in an assisted-living facility compare with those costs of a nursing home facility?
A. The cost to reside in a nursing home facility is approximately $75 to $235 per day compared to the approximate cost of $60 to $70 per day for residing in an assisted-living facility.
5. As nursing home costs continue to skyrocket are there resources being developed to assist older people with maintaining their independence in their homes?
A. Yes, most cities and communities have developed community and private services that may include:
• Home health care: temporary or occasional care by a nurse or other medical personnel.
• Personal Care: help with bathing, grooming, and transferring from a chair to a bed.
• Homemaker services: housekeeping, bill paying, cooking and grocery shipping.
• Hospice care: support for people with terminal illnesses.
• Respite care: short-term care that provides temporary relief to caregivers.
• Adult health care: provides some medical care plus physical, occupational and speech therapy, usually as a specialized service requiring transportation to and from the facility.
• Adult day support centers: day care that provides recreation and social stimulation for the person needing care (such as church groups, social groups).
Special day-care services: for people with special needs who are unable to participate in group activities, such as those with ALS (Lou Gehrigs disease).
6. Why are long-term care issues and insurance a major focus today?
A. Long-term care insurance has evolved as care-related services have evolved. The first long-term care insurance plan was developed more than 30 years ago. At that time Medicare was the only other payer for long-term care.
7. Who ensures that the benefits offered through long-term care insurance policies are consistent with all companies?
A. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).
8. How does the National Association of Insurance Commissioners ensure that the benefits offered through long-term care insurance policies are consistent with all companies?
A. In 1993, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners provided model legislation governing long-term care policies. The program was called “Long-term Care Insurance Model Regulation.” It provided a model by which insurance policies could be compared, based on the types of benefits being offered, to ensure that those benefits were consistent from company to company.
9. Is High Deductible Health Plan coverage difficult to find?
A. No. Any company that sells health insurance coverage in your state may offer HDHP (High Deductible Health Plan) policies. You should contact your current insurance company , an agent or broker licensed to sell health insurance in your state, or your state insurance department.
10. There are three major kinds of long-term care insurances, how do they differ?
A. The three kinds of long-term care insurances provided are, nursing home only, home health care only, and a comprehensive plan that covers both. They differ in that current nursing-home policies cover skilled care, intermediate care, custodial care and assisted-living care. There are also policies exclusively for home health care, personal care, hospice, and adult day care and respite care. Comprehensive plans cover both the nursing home and home health-care requirements. The policies structure the benefits so that care is provided where the insured is most comfortable.
11. How has long-term care insurance carriers evolved over the past three decades to meet the needs of individuals today?
A. Today’s long-term care insurance products bear little resemblance to the simple policy that was introduced some three decades ago. Many carriers offering long-term care products have been developing innovative plans with benefits and features unheard of just a few years ago such as, more competitive premiums and allowing clients to have a long-term care insurance policy tailored to fit their individual needs within their budget. Plans now include more inflation-protection alternatives, new rate guarantees 10-pay, 20-pay, and pay-to-65 limited pay options and a benefit that can be shared between spouses. More companies are offering creative home-care features and options such as cash benefits, double benefits for injury prior to age 65 and waiver of elimination for home care.
12. How many sources are there to purchase long-term care insurance?
A. Listed are the many sources from which to purchase long-term care insurance:
• Individual policies purchased from an insurance agent.
• Group policies offered through involvement in a private association.
• Group policies offered to persons living in a retirement complex.
• Pooled Benefit policies that allow the sharing of a Long-Term Care insurance policy by partners.
• Group policies offered by an individual’s employer.
13. Has there been a competitive analysis of tax-qualified long-term care insurance products?
A. Penn Treat Network America offered an evaluation of advantages and disadvantages of long-term care insurance products by twelve selected competitors.
14. Can you provide a list known carriers of long-term care insurance products?
A. The following carriers offer long-term care insurance products:
Penn Treaty
Allianz
American Equity
ING USA
John Hancock
Life Investors
MedAmerica
MetLife
Mutual of Omaha
Pan America Life
Physicians Mutual
Prudential Financial
15. Are the listed carriers providers of long-term care insurance products exclusively for individuals?
A. The listed carriers are known to offer Individual and Group long-term care insurance products, along with Medicare Supplements through Mutual of Omaha, and Life Annuities.
16. What evidence shows that long-term care insurance is beneficial to and for employers and employees?
A. Sixty-eight percent of informal caregivers reported a decrease in stress when the care recipient had long-term care insurance, while 985 of enrollees said they felt more secure about their future.
17. What are the direct benefits to/for employers?
A. Providing individual long-term care insurance policies as part of your overall benefits package helps to convey a commitment to your employees by ensuring that they will be prepared for whatever long-term issues that may arise. Long-term care insurance can also help improve workforce productivity by enabling employees to remain on the job despite a long-term care event in their family.
18. Why is long-term care insurance seen as a savings for employers?
A. Long-term care insurance benefits employers financially by saving:
• Cost of replacing a managerial employee can reach 250% of annual salary.
• Cost of replacing a non-managerial employee can reach 150% of annual salary.
• U.S. businesses lose as much as $29 billion annually in lost productivity due to care giving.
19. Along with financial strength and stability are there other guidelines to follow when selecting a carrier for long-term care insurance?
A. When selecting a carrier for long-term care insurance the financial strength and stability are important, but also the depth of commitment to long-term care insurance, the quality of individual long-term care insurance products for the employer market, and the experience of the long-term care insurance claims professional are important guidelines.
20. Is the information on long-term care and long-term care insurance planning expensive to obtain?
A. No. Individuals are urged to request free information on long-term care and long-term care insurance planning from the federal government.
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