LongTerm Care

According to the Administration on Aging, it is estimated by 2030, the older population will more than double to approximately 71.5 million. It is also estimated that between 39 to 49 percent of people will use nursing home services during their lifetime. Unfortunately, there may come a time when your loved one may require assistance with long term care. The following is a list of warning signs one should be aware of when evaluating your loved one’s situation. If the senior exhibits two or more of these signs, assistance is likely required:

? When your loved one or their spouse can no longer provide care due to debilitating health conditions

? When your loved one experiences difficulty with walking, or is unsteady when standing

? When your loved one’s safety is compromised due to hazards in the home such as stairs, poor lighting, cluttered walkways, and dangers in the kitchen or bathroom

? When your loved one needs assistance with daily activities such as bathing, dressing, and meal preparation

? When your loved one becomes confused about taking their medications

? When your loved one is afraid of falling or being alone

? When your loved one exhibits changes in personality or has sudden mood swings

? When your loved one is no longer able to manage their finances and requires assistance with administering their monthly household expenses

If you feel assistance with long term care may be necessary, have a discussion with your loved one and talk to them about their concerns and desires. It’s important to help your loved one maintain their independence for as long as possible. Your loved one should be involved in the decision making process as long as their decisions do not negatively impact their health and safety. Talk with other family members and get their input as well. If necessary, discuss your concerns with your loved one’s physician, attorney or financial advisor, and make sure all aspects of their long term care needs have been met. It’s never too early to be concerned about your loved one’s long term care needs. Being aware of their needs and continually reevaluating their situation will help ensure the long term needs of your loved one will be met.

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You have permission to use this article as long as the author’s full bio is present as well as any hyperlinks to author’s website.

Torey L. Farnsworth, CSA has over 12 years of experience working with seniors. Ms. Farnsworth’s vast expertise encompasses a wide variety of senior issues ranging from adult care to elder law. Most recently, Torey served as Elder Law Director and Paralegal for a Phoenix based law firm where she provided assistance in a variety of areas including long term care planning, estate planning, ALTCS eligibility and Medicaid planning. Ms. Farnsworth is also a certified caregiver with the State of Arizona as well as a Certified Senior Advisor. Ms. Farnsworth has spent her career in senior care as her family owns and operates assisted living homes.

Ms. Farnsworth currently owns her own senior care placement business called Horizon Senior Care Referral. Her placement services are free to seniors and their families in Arizona. For more information, visit http://www.adultcarecentral.com

When Assistance with Long Term Care Becomes Necessary

Myths associated with selecting quality nursing home care suggest quick and easy ways to identify quality care. In fact, relying on these myths can lead to disastrous results. I have identified a few of the most common myths in hopes of helping you avoid some of the problems commonly found in many nursing homes.

1. The Smell Test

You’ve heard it repeatedly: “The best way to determine the quality of care a nursing home provides is to be alert to bad odors when you visit the home.”

It seldom, if ever, works. Why? Nursing home administrators have heard the very same advice. As a result, they are particularly sensitive to unpleasant odors in any area that might receive visitors. Almost all will do their best to remove offensive odors as quickly as possible, even when it means avoiding their primary responsibility to their residents.

2. The Personal Recommendation

Recently, I heard a guest on a radio talk show state that the very best way to find great nursing home care is to get recommendations from a friend. Like other myths, there is a grain of truth here, but you must check whether your friend has had extensive interactions with the nursing home recommended. Often that is not the case.

Last weekend I dealt with an emergency call from Jim, a friend who had placed his mother in a nursing home recommended by a friend. Although she was recuperating from a stroke, no nurse or aide checked on her condition for more than 14 hours. Jim discovered her in the morning with many cuts and bruises, her bedsheets soaked in blood. He was astonished that anyone would recommend such a poor care facility.

“My friend said her grandmother was in this particular nursing home,” he reported. “So, I thought it would be good care.”

“How often does your friend visit her grandmother?” I asked him.

“I didn’t think to ask,” he responded.

“And did you check the latest survey for that nursing home?”

“No,” he answered. “I thought a personal recommendation was all I needed.”

Jim’s mother is now back in an area hospital. No one knows yet how much damage this experience caused to her recovery.

3. You Get What You Pay For

Nowhere is this statement less applicable than in nursing home care. In fact, I’d replace it with another shibboleth — “Buyer Beware.” Our own research, encompassing more than 6000 nursing homes and more than 100 assisted living facilities shows no relationship between cost and quality of care. You may find quality care in an expensive facility, or you may not! Similarly, the fact that a facility is low-cost does not indicate whether you’ll get poor, average, or quality care. You have to do your homework. Relying on price as the sole indicator of quality care can lead to disastrous results.

4. Adequate Staffing Equals Quality Care

A recent report by the Senate’s Special Committee on Aging indicated that quality care for a single nursing home resident requires more than three hours each day of nursing and nursing aide time. However, statistical analysis of the latest federal database on nursing home deficiencies indicates no relationship between quality of care and staffing levels. This finding is consistent with a number of university studies.

What should you look for, then, in nursing home staffing levels?

There is a level below which nursing homes are so understaffed that quality care can not be provided. I’d suggest that you not consider any home providing a level less than two hours per day per resident. For levels greater than this, I’d focus not on the number of hours available for care but on the motivation of staff available to provide care. Those who are motivated to care for the elderly will do so. Those who are motivated only by a paycheck will probably provide shoddy care regardless of their numbers.

5. A Well-Known Chain Will Provide the Best Care

This is another myth that can lead to tragedy. Sometimes, well- known companies do provide top-quality care. In other instances, however, a quick review of newspapers and magazines will show you other companies with long records of legal troubles stemming from accusations of neglect and abuse. One such company has been sued simultaneously by several states’ attorneys general.

How will you know? The company is not likely to tell you, so you won’t know unless you take the time to look into the company’s historical performance.

There you have it — 5 myths exploded!

What does work? There is no substitute for your own personal investigation. With a little research, with personal visits to nursing homes before you sign anything, you can avoid many of the difficulties that have come to those who relied on such myths.

About The Author

Copyright 2002, Phyllis Staff. Phyllis Staff, Ph.D. – Phyllis Staff is an experimental psychologist and the CEO of The Best Is Yet.Net, and the author of How to Find Great Senior Housing: A Roadmap for Elders and Those Who Love Them (2002).

pando19 @ direcway .com

5 Myths You Should Know Before Choosing Elder Care

Maryland Long Term Care Insurance

From 2000-2004, Maryland’s senior population increased to about 2.32% for 64-74 age bracket, while 25.8% surge in 85 age group. The Maryland Health Care Commission concluded that the population of aged 65 and above will grow up to 710,571 by 2011

Most residents in Maryland rely on nursing homes or institutional care for long term care after getting acute hospital care. Of those who have turned to nursing home care, women receive much care and use nursing home facilities than men. Seniors age 85 and above had the lengthiest period of stay in nursing homes among the other age groups in senior population. According to study, the average age of nursing home residents in 2004 was 82 years old.

Most of these residents in Maryland that need long term care depend on Medicaid program to finance such services. Medicaid or the Maryland Medical Assistance Program is a state-federal financial program that supports low-income earners. Medicaid program, no matter good the mission is, has several disadvantages in terms of asset limit. Medicaid requires people not to exceed the asset limit to qualify for the program.

The Maryland Long Term Care Insurance Partnership is a program created between the state of Maryland and private insurance companies. The partnership program was established on December 15, 2008 under the 2005 Deficit Reduction Act; thus, Maryland’s insurance partnership is recent compared with other states that have already instituted the program for so many years.

The state plan amendment was approved by Medicare and Medicaid services and became effective on January 1, 2009. The state plan amendment authorizes the asset disregard and works under the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.  This program allows residents of Maryland to avail long term care services without exhausting their assets and resources.

Partnership Policies

The Maryland Insurance Administration approves the long term care policies to become partnership policies in line with the Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR) 31.14.03. All partnership polices shall contain Partnership Policy Status Disclosure Notice that expounds the consumer protection features and actions for the disqualification of the partnership policy. The partnership policy may end when the policy holder move to a different state, makes adjustments in the policy, or if there are changes in the federal or state law.

Partnership Policy Features
Medicaid Asset Protection

The asset disregard is one of the competent features of partnership policies. The amount that a policyholder can protect is equivalent to the amount of the benefits received. For example, the policyholder has 0,000 insurance benefits, he or she can maintain assets amounting to 0,000 regardless of the Medicaid eligibility limit. Residents of Maryland will not be pushed to abridge their financial assets to qualify for Medicaid, so people will accumulate assets that they will need in the future. The policyholder may request for a partnership policy summary from the insurance company to check the insurance benefits paid and the total amount of benefits available.

Inflation Protection

The inflation protection feature protects the policyholder against the increasing costs of services in the future. The amount of the protection depends largely on the age of the policyholder when the purchase was made. Policyholders below age 61 should receive either at least 3% compound annual inflation or an interest rate equal to the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Policies to those aged 61 to 75 may include some inflation protection, but an individual aged 76 years and older is not entitled for inflation protection.

Tax Qualified Policy Feature

Under federal law, a percentage of the premiums for tax-qualified insurance policies may be deducted from the income tax.

Should You Consider Buying Long Term Care Insurance or Not?

Should you be concerned with the possibility of needing future nursing care?

We have good news. Insurance companies keep detailed records. Those records demonstrate that we are living longer now. However, this longer life seems to mean that we have an increased chance of needing osme type of care in the future.

This care could come from a nursing home, assisted living facility, or even home health care. It may be provided by professionals, nurses aids, or family members. But either way, there will be some costs involved in it.

How can we plan for nursing care expenses?

Well, just doing nothing and hoping that nursing care will not be a problem for us is probably not the best idea.

Many of us just believe that, somehow, our government benefits will absorb the cost.As you probably know, the US health plan for seniors and disabled peope is called Medicare. It does not pay for long term care, but only provides for short term needs. If we have to sell off all our assets and have a very low income, we may qualify for Medicaid services. This may be the only solution for some people, but is probably not how you would like to lose a lifetime of savings. There may be a fallback plan from the government, but it will come with a price.

Nursing homes can cost ,000 to ,000 a month. Even a part time home health aid will cost a couple of thousand. And if a family member takes care of you, they will still have expenses or lost income to make up for. Any way you think about it, there will be expenses. And most of us would see our savings evaporate fairly quickly if we had to pay for it out of our checking account!

Have you considered LTCi (Long Term Care Inurance)?

So many people consider LTCi (long term care insurance) to cover future care expenses. Some qualified plans can even be deducted from our taxes now. You have to be wary. The plans come in lots of different flavors, and the cover different things. It can be hard to compare. You want to be able to purchase a flexible plan that will help you when you are older, but that will come with a price tag that fits into your budget now. You will not benefit from any policy if you drop it because it costs way too much.

Have you considered alternatives to LTCi?

Some annuities have a clause that covers nursing care. This may be a good way to save for the future. You will also be contributing to your nursing home account, but if you never need to use it, the rest of the money can go to you or to beneficiaries.

You can also find life insurance policies with nursing care riders. If the money is needed, it is taken from the policy value. If not, it still goes the the beneficiaries as a cash benefit.

Do you need to purchase long term care insurance?

This is an individual decision. If your income and assets are very low, you may just choose to rely on government programs. If you have an estate to protect, you may want to make sure you have some plans in place.

Have you thought about planning for long term care in the future?

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Long Term Care in Minnesota

The aging population and the increasing demand long term care are two devastating concerns for the lawmakers of the state of Minnesota and across the United States. The baby boomer generation   will hit retirement years and residents aged 85 and above will most likely need long term care services, and the percentage of those needing LTC is projected to double by 2030. Minnesota is the nation’s second highest expectancy rate than any other state. It ranks second only to Hawaii and one of the country’s highest population of elders aged 85 and above. Nevertheless, it implies a greater demand for long term care and more government funding.

Currently, nursing home and home and community-based services take almost 16.4 percent or .3 billion of the overall Minnesota expenditure and 31 percent of state-sponsored health budgets worth .5 billion.

Aside from getting the pride of the nation’s healthiest people, Minnesota is leader in long term care innovations.  In 2000, a legislative session was conducted for the state government to hear the public protest on long term care. Both consumers and insurance providers appealed on the state government about the shortages of help, declining occupancy rate in nursing homes, and insufficient funds for home care.

The legislative session aimed to strengthen home and community-based services and reduce the dependence on more expensive nursing homes. Officials screened patients and determined what should have been changed in the policies: increased funding for Elderly Waiver and Alternative Care Services, tax credits to policyholders, nursing home incentives to shorten the patients’ stay, higher compensation for home workers with inflation protection.

Otherwise, most of the pending reforms were ripped out by Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s budget cut in 2003. The proposed funding for home care was not achieved and 1,200 adults were forced out of the Alternative care program due to stricter budget cut-offs.

The budgetary cuts worsened the system. The governor increased the surcharges of nursing homes between 0 and ,815 a year. The surcharges went up to .5 million, but seniors did not benefit from it. The governor placed the money in the General Fund to cover the state’s %4.5 billion deficit. The governor’s decision has left grave problems in the state, wherein the costs and qualify of nursing home care were affected and strained families and nursing home workers. There was also labor shortage because the wages for nursing home workers were low.

However, the Minnesota lawmakers distinguished the solutions that must have been developed in the first place. The state recognized the importance of families in providing care to elders and disabled.  The state also came up with much stronger and efficient financial support to its residents. Through this, the Minnesota Long Term Care Partnership Program was established.

Under the partnership policies, Minnesotans will be able to protect their assets even though Medicaid requires a maximum asset limit. This help people take control of their finances without the financial pressures.  As everyone knows, a consumer must reduce his or her personal assets first to be eligible for the Medical Assistance., but with partnership policies a consumer does not need to lose his or her assets because of the asset disregards feature.

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Montana Long Term Care Partnership Program

The population of Montana is aging faster than the rate of any other states, according to the State Plan on Aging. The study also divulged the foreseen problems and challenges in providing long term care services in rural communities, since consumers in these communities have hard time finding affordable LTC services in their area.

The State Plan on Aging recommended an increased in number of beneficiaries of Medicaid Home and Community-Based Waiver Program to about 100 persons per biennium. The state of Montana followed this recommendation and boosted the funding that would accommodate 102 slots for the programs.

There were several programs established to address the lingering problems of long term care. The legislature, on the other hand, created an Older Montanans Trust Fund (Senate Bill 155) in 2007 that will advance the program for home and community-based services (HCBS) and foster new or innovative programs for older people. Meanwhile, in the same year, the Senate Bill 206 was passed that authorized the Department of Public Health and Human Services to research the feasibility of increasing Medicaid payments to personal care providers and employees so employers can provide better health insurance for their workers. Senate Bill 206 authorizes the state department to analyze the effects of the plan.

In 1993, four states—California, New York, Indiana, and Connecticut—started the pilot program for long term care partnership. This program envisioned to help modify the stringent policies for qualifying in Medicaid program and encourage people to secure long term care insurance for themselves. The partnership program encouraged a lot of consumers from low to high income earners, since the program allows consumers to purchase policies even if they have assets greater than the required asset limit of Medicaid.

The state government of Montana acknowledged the benefits of the partnership program, and believed that more and more consumers will purchase policies for they are not required to reach the maximum asset limit of Medicaid or fritter their resources in order to qualify.  After the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 was created, the state of Montana adopted the long term care insurance partnership program. The legislation was approved in 2007 and, as of July 1, 2009, private insurance providers participated in the partnership program. With the asset protection feature, an individual with partnership policy that pays 0,000 policy benefits can retain more of his or her resources, but still qualify for Medicaid coverage. The insured would be able to protect 0,000 assets from Medicaid asset recovery upon death. To sum up, an insured may be able to protect the amount of assets from estate recovery equal to the amount of benefits for long term care insurance.

Do partnership policies save taxpayer dollars? The 2005 Congressional Research Study found out that people are encouraged by the asset disregard protection. Supporters of partnership policies agreed that people can save more dollars to some extent, provided that partnership policies have incorporated inflation protection. When more insurers purchase the partnership policies, the Medicaid expenditures will be lessened and the taxpayers themselves will benefit

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Long Term Care in New Hampshire

The cost of long term care in New Hampshire is increasing every year that puts financial pressure on those in or near retirement. Along with the price hike, New Hampshire’s wobbling economy plus the fast aging population inflict serious outcomes on the value of nursing home facilities and Medicaid expenditures.

New Hampshire’s Medicaid program allocates more of its funding for the care of the state’s elderly population. The state spends ,769 per enrolee for Medicaid program compared to the national average of ,026 per enrolee. One reason why the cost is expensive for each enrolee is due to the demographic profiles of the individuals covered by the program.  Most of these senior enrolees are greatly in need of long term services due to their chronic conditions or disabilities. In 2001, only a small percentage of 8% adults was enrolled in Medicaid program and 55.1 percent of them stayed in nursing homes. Only half of the elderly population in New Hampshire can live in their homes.

The state of New Hampshire wanted to shape up the spending for home and community-based services (HABS), but, obviously, this remained idealistic to implement since most of Medicaid budget are allocated for institutionalized care. Thirteen percent of Medicaid budget are spent for adults and people with disabilities on HABS. New Hampshire ranks 38th for the state with highest spending on home care services.

Over 141,000 Granite Staters depend on Medicaid, and 12 percent of this population are age 65 and above. In New Hampshire, Medicaid allows the person to choose either home-based care or nursing care. However, Medicaid program can only provide home and community care for three people for the cost of serving one person in a nursing home.

New Hampshire is the 7th highest pay for private nursing homes at 9 per day. In 2007, the average occupancy rate in the state’s nursing homes was 90 percent. In 2008, the average rate for a nursing home was 0. The same year also the when the state recorded the highest rate for home health aides of /hour private pay, while /hour on Medicare-certified home health aides and per day for adult day care. In 2003, 53 percent of New Hampshire’s nursing homes were for profit, 33 percent non-profit, and 14 percent were government owned.

New Hampshire Long Term Care Partnership

The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (“DRA”) made several changes on the existing Medicaid regulations on long term care. Four states had used this pilot program as test, but the DFA expanded this to the rest of the states.

The New Hampshire’s Insurance Department proposed this program together with the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. The partnership program was created in August 2007. With the Long Term Care Partnership Program, there is no minimum coverage requirement and asset limit set by Medicaid. The partnership policy will offer dollar-for-dollar Medicaid eligibility enhancements. Based on the regulation, the policyholder will be able to protect of resources for every received in reimbursement from a long-term care insurance policy.

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Long Term Care Health Insurance – Pros and Cons

Have you thought about purchasing long term care insurance (LTCi)?

If you have not thought about it, and especially if you are making some retirement plans, you should consider it or an alternative. The latest statistics tell us that half of us may need long term nursing care at some time in our lives. This care is not cheap, and can cost thousands of dollars every month. A LTCi policy can provide you, and you family, with some peace of mind in the future.

It is free to find out the cost of long term care insurance, so it won’t hurt to compare the prices and policies that are on the market in your area. Some policies are even tax qualified, and these means the premium ca be deducted from your taxes now. This may make the price more affordable and attractive.

What alternatives have you considered?

Medicare, the federal health insurance plan for seniors and disabled people, only pays for short term nursing care. You cannot rely on it to pay for long term nursing care.
Your savings could be quickly depleted by a long stay in a nursing care facility, or even by an extended need for at-home nursing cae. It is not unusual to see that these facilities can cost thousands of dollars a month.
Medicaid, the federal health program for the poor, will only kick in after you have depleted most of your assets. You may have to run through a lifetime of savings before you can rely on this program for help.

The biggest problem that most peope have is that the need seems far in the future, and it is something they may not need at all. Of course, we all do pay for auto insurance and hope we never need to use it. But the thought is something to consider, and that is why there are some alternatives.

Alternatives to Long Term Care Insurance

There are, for example, annuities, with a clause that allows the cash account to be used for severe illness. You could use this as a backup plan in case you need nursing care. If you never need it, you can still have your cash! Another option is a life insurance policy with an option to take some of the death benefit out, even if you are still allive, in the case of a severe illness. These are some other ways to plan for the possibility of needing to pay for nursing care that you should probably consider.

Should You Buy Long Term Care Insurance?

Nobody is telling you that you have to do anything. However, it will be prudent to find out more about LTCi and its alternatives a long time before you need to use it!

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Rhode Island Long Term Care

The 2007 US Census shows the current population of Rhode Island that hit 1,045,570. Around 130,730  or 13 percent of the population are comprised of elders aged 65 and above. The population of seniors rise incessantly each year; thus, the state government is alarmed  of the possible effects on health and welfare. Many private and public communities have come up with several programs that will bolster education for seniors about aging and health. The state government also devised programs for the elderly to help them achieve decent and worry-free retirement years.

Programs for Elderly in Rhode Island
One of the well-known programs that aims to further long term care in the state is the Rhode Island Fall Prevention Partnership. Its name addresses the common problem: fall is the most susceptible season for the occurrence of medical disabilities. This program educates seniors how fall can seriously affect their health and ruin their lives. It is sponsored by the Long Term Care Coordinating Council and has expanded to different foundations, associations and councils whose main objective is the care of the elderly in the state of Rhode Island. The state government also support this program, including the Rhode Island Department of Elderly Affairs and the RI Department if Health.

Another program that is better known yet is the government funded Annual Medicare Enrollment Event. It is an annual event that gathers all agents and seniors to meet at a plaza. This is considered as a group therapy for people rather than the promotion of Medicare Prescription Drug Plan, since many people do not want to get the latter’s program  either for themselves or for their loved one. Participants in this program are also looking for insurance plans as they mingle and speak with some group of agents and policyholders as well.

The two above-mentioned programs are only part of the many programs plotted by the Rhode Island government for the elderly. Although both programs appear as self-serving, they still enlighten the minds of many Rhode Island residents about the benefits of planning for their future and getting long term care insurance. These programs have attracted so many residents who are decisive in purchasing LTC plans, in fact, the number of residents with LTC plans have increased since these programs were promoted. When more and more residents purchase LTCs, the costs of these plans became suitable to all the residents of Rhode Island regardless of the state where they come from.

Rhode Island Long Term Care Insurance Partnership Program

May 15, 2007 is official approval of  the Rhode Island Long Term Care Insurance Partnership Program.  This program serves as benchmark of effective long term care plans that aims to prevent residents from squandering half or more than half of their assets to avail Medicaid coverage. Applicants need not be “impoverished” or “poor” to qualify for Medicaid benefits, since the funds allocated for Medicare directly come from the blood and sweat of many American tax payers. This will benefit both existing and potential policyholders from becoming eligible for Medicaid benefits although they have used up all the benefits. Through this, Rhode Islanders will save their lifetime savings and lead a happy and sound retirement years.

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Preparing for Long Term Care Insurance

Most of us are counting on Medicaid, disability insurance, personal savings and other resources in battling with the challenges of old age. We rarely–or not at all– think about the possibility of staying in nursing homes some time in the future, as it only makes us vulnerable to suffering and distress,

Everything in your home–car, house, appliance–is insured, and you never complain even if those dwindle your money. Why not insure yourself, too? Not buying long term care can be the worst mistake you’ll ever make in your life.

Misconceptions

Myth # 1: Disability insurance will pay for my long term care needs

.False. Disability insurance and long term care insurance have strong differences. Disability insurance pays you if you can no longer work due to disability; long term care insurance covers your care in a nursing home or an assisted living facility. Also, most disability insurance ends when you reach the age 65, but typical LTC insurance takes effect after the age 65.

Myth #2: Medicare/Medicaid will cover all the expenses for long term care

Medicare and Medicaid do not shoulder all your entire LTC expenses, unless you are impoverished. You must meet the poverty level in order to receive help from Medicare, but you don’t want to become poor, do you? Also, the quality of care provided in Medicaid homes are not the same as the care administered in private nursing homes.

Myth #3: My children will take care of me when I become old

If you are a parent, you would think that you no longer need LTC insurance because you have children to look after you. They might or they might not. Open your eyes in the reality that your children will someday raise a family, and all of their attention will focus on their own family and you’ll come second in their priorities. Soon, your youngest daughter will have to leave home to pursue her career and the eldest will have to move in with his/her spouse. 
With LTC insurance, you may stay independent despite of your old age and frail body. You won’t pester your children with such expensive bills or exhaust the family’s savings, because you have already paid everything for yourself.

When Should you Buy LTC Policy?

Financial planners and experts recommend the best age for buying long term care is between ages 40 and 50. The premiums or rates are much lower on that age group, and the benefits are locked in even though you develop medical condition in the succeeding years.

LTC insurance is expensive to those who wait at the closest time they will likely need it, while, in fact, the cheaper ones are offered at younger age. Married couples receive discounts than single individuals do because they need to provide care of each other longer.

Standard Provisions of LTCi

30-day free trial. You are entitled to cancel your policy for the first 30 days, with money back guarantee.

Guaranteed renewability. A company cannot cancel your policy as long as you continuously pay for the premiums

Unintentional missed payments.  A person may miss payments due to physical impairment or other medical condition. If this happense, the insured has up to six months to pay and redeem the policy.

Home modification – You can get a lump sum to make your home more comfortable for your condition. For example, installing wheelchair ramps or grab bars will help you perform activities better.

Respite care – You receive this when a home caregiver is away or on a vacation

Waiver of premium – After you become disabled, your premium is waived