Virginia regulators are encouraging long-term care insurance policyholders to take advantage of changes that strengthen protections against unintentional coverage lapses due to nonpayment. The Bureau of Insurance of the State Corporation Commission says insurers have long been required to provide policyholders with the option to designate a third party to receive notice of an impending policy lapse. But officials say the verification of delivery of such notice has been strengthened with recent regulatory revisions. Starting in 2015, long-term care insurers will be required to retain written receipt evidencing mailing of the notice to the designated individuals for at least three…
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As baby boomers age, families have more options for providing and paying for their care. Much has changed in the past two decades when it comes to long-term care options and how to fund them. Baby boomers and subsequent generations will need to plan for long-term care in a different way than their parents in light of factors such as longer life spans, the uncertain future of entitlement benefits, and rapidly rising medical costs. Choices when it comes to planning for long-term care include earmarking savings for long-term medical expenses, relying on entitlement benefits, or depending on their families. Long-term…
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The costs of long term care are increasing every year, but most families do not understand what they will be confronting when it is their time to start paying for care. Too many people wait until they are in the midst of a crisis situation before they start trying to figure out how the world of long term care works. Long term care is a very expensive proposition. Families can go broke trying to provide for a loved one. New approaches to fund long term care must be encouraged, and converting life insurance policies into a Long Term Care…
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One of the most difficult decisions in long-term care planning is whether to purchase long-term care insurance (LTCI) and which of the wide variety of products to purchase. On the one hand LTCI premiums are high, they may be raised in the future, and if you are purchasing policies in your 50s and 60s, the need is probably many decades in the future. On the other, many are saved by their LTCI, able to choose their own care setting rather than rely on what is covered by Medicaid in their state, more comfortable hiring necessary help if doing so doesn’t…
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Most long-term care services begin at home with the help of family or friends until the burden of caregiving becomes too much of an emotional and financial hardship. The next step is generally to hire a paid caregiver to help with ADLs and IADLs. Unfortunately, many people cannot afford to pay for such care even when it is delivered by the unskilled, unlicensed, or unsupervised. More costly care by paid professionals is simply out of the question for most. Given the extraordinarily high cost of long-term care services, it is not surprising that few people are able to amass these…
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The Boston Globe reports that the average cost for a private long-term care insurance policy has jumped 80 percent in the last 5 years. Insurers say the increases are needed because many policies were priced too low initially. In addition, the industry projections relating to costs and interest rates were inadequate.
A bad faith insurance class action lawsuit has been filed against the Chicago-based insurance company Bankers Life and Casualty, alleging they are denying benefits to those who paid for long-term health care insurance so they would have security in their old age. The class action, alleging elder abuse, was filed in the U.S. District Court in Portland. Attorneys for the putative class that there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, more elderly Oregonians and their families who could join the suit. The Oregon action is similar to other lawsuits against Bankers Life in other states. Grants Pass resident Dennis Fallow, a plaintiff…
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Although long-term care is a substantial financial risk for retired households, only about 10 percent purchase insurance, with many of the remainder relying on Medicaid. Faced with rising Medicaid expenditures on long-term care, states have attempted to encourage the purchase of private long-term care insurance through partnership programs that exempt purchasers of qualifying policies from the Medicaid asset test. Using numerical optimization techniques, and assuming plausible preference parameters, we show that the programs will only increase insurance coverage among single males by 5 percent and single females by 4 percent. Most of the program benefits will go to those who…
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Here are some changes that appear relatively certain regardless of the action Congress takes: • The personal exemption will increase, reportedly to $3,900, in 2013 from $3,800 this year. • The maximum earnings subject to the Social Security tax will increase to $113,700 in 2013 from $110,100 in 2012. • Contributions to defined contribution plans will climb to a maximum $23,000 — $17,500 in regular contributions, up from $17,000 in 2012, plus $5,500 in catch-up contributions for those 50-plus, same as in 2012. • There will be a higher threshold on medical deductions, meaning it will be harder to qualify….
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There is an estimated 78 million boomers that have or will reach the age of retirement in the next few decades. In fact there is one person reaching the age of 65 every 10 seconds, so this begs the question, what do boomers need to do in advance of reaching retirement age? In a society where healthcare costs are rising and the cost of living is increasing, it’s crucial to be prepared long before you may think it is necessary. Below is a list of tips that baby boomers should consider: - Legal documents: We are concerned with “What happens…
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