Practical Pointers

• Social Security, SSI and Representative Payee

•  Legal and Estate Planning: Power of Attorney

  Advance Directive (Living Will)

Practical Suggestions

• What is Elder Law?

• Financial Caregiving: A Survival Guide

PDF Format

• Long Term Care Insurance Evaluation Checklist

• General Power of Attorney  

 Should You Buy Long Term Insurance?

Excerpted from “Long Term Care Insurance…The Complete Guide.” By Harry Crosby, Master Long Term Care Insurance Specialist and author.

There are four considerations when purchasing long term care insurance:

1.      The Company

• What is the company’s A.M. Best rating?

• How long has the company offered long term care insurance?

• How many long term care policyholders does the company have nationwide?

• Has the company ever had a rate increase on existing long term care policyholders?

• How many company ever had a rate increase on existing long term care policyholders?

• How many complaints have been made against the company in your state and in any published complaint studies available?  Why do people make complaints?

• What is the total amount of long term care claims paid?

• Is the company dedicated to long term care insurance?

• Has the company been endorsed by anyone?

 2.      The Policy

 Policies tend to differ in the ways listed below:

 Benefit Eligibility

• How many Activities of Daily Living does the policy require you to be unable to perform before you can collect benefits?

•  What are the ADL’s listed in the policy?

•  Does the policy include bathing and continence ADLs?

 Elimination Period

Will you be required to satisfy the elimination period more than once in your lifetime?

 Home and Community Care

• Does the policy allow you to use your total daily maximum for home care the same as for nursing home care? 

• Can you collect more than your daily maximum on days when home care is exceedingly high. 

• Does the elimination period apply to home care?

• Does the policy pay for an optional care coordinator who will schedule and monitor your care?

• Will the policy start paying for home care from the day you need it, or will you have to wait several months to get help?

• Does the policy waive the premium if you are receiving home care three days a week?

• Will the policy pay for any equipment that might help you stay home?

• Will the policy count the days you receive home care against the nursing home elimination period, or is there a separate elimination period for home care and nursing home care?

• Do you have to be eligible for nursing home care before the policy will pay for home care?

• Will the company pay for independent care providers and homemaker services?

 Care in Nursing Homes and Assisted Care Facilities

• Does the policy spell out what it will pay in a nursing home?

•  Does the policy spell out what it will pay in an assisted living facility?

 Other Features

• If, after suffering a stroke you recover, but depression causes you to continue needing care, will the policy pay?

•  Does the waiver of premium clause start after so many days of benefits or after days of care, regardless of benefits received?

• Is the policy a federally “tax qualified” policy, or will the benefits you receive be taxable as income?

3.  The Plan

• How much do you expect nursing home care to cost 15 years from now?

• What does the record show that the cost will be?

•  How much will the policy pay 15 years from now?  Twenty years from now?

• Will you have to buy more coverage later at a higher price to account for inflation or is this build into your plan?

• What is the cost of nursing home care in the area in which you expect to live when you are likely to need care?

• What is the maximum your policy will pay per day in a nursing home, assisted living facility or at home?

• What percentage of people who enter nursing homes stay over 5 years?  What is the average stay?

•  Do women have a greater risk than men?

• How long will the policy pay maximum daily benefits?

• How long would the policy pay if you only needed half as much per day as your daily benefit amount?

4.      The Price

•   Can you pay the premiums without affecting your lifestyle or depleting your assets?

•  Based on the past’s performance of the company, can you expect the premiums to stay the same over the next 15 years?

•  Does the company start charging your from the date you applied for the policy or from the time you are approved for coverage?

• Is there a spousal discount and do you lose it if one spouse dies or one spouse does not get approved for the coverage after applying?

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