Four Important Features of Long Term Care Insurance
Four Important Features of Long Term Care Insurance
Many long term care insurance policies offer various bells and whistles and consumers look at them as hindrance when choosing the best features for their individual policies. Nevertheless, there are four important features in LTCi, and these are:
Long Term Care Insurance Benefit Amount
This is the amount the policy will pay for your benefits on daily, weekly, or monthly basis. According to the American Association for Long Term Care Insurance (AALTCI), in 2007, there were 36 percent of Americans who preferred between $100 to $140 daily benefit, while 33 percent selected between $150 and $199.
Deciding on the benefit amount can be very difficult; thus, you need to survey several long term care facilities within your area or state and determine how much they charge on LTC services. Doing this, you have a hint on the overall expenses these services would incur per day or per month. The benefit amount should be on a par with the actual costs of LTC services to prepare for the future expenses and unlikely events in the future.
Jesse Slome, executive director of the AALTCI, recommend using Social Security and other financial resources, along with your LTCi coverage, to manage the expenses and lower the cost of premiums at the same time.
Long Term Care Insurance Elimination Period
This is usually called a "deductible," which comes in number of days not the amount. Few companies provide zero-day elimination period, and the rest offers from 30 to 365 days these periods may vary from one carrier to another. Those with enough savings may consider 180 to 365 days for elimination period. Longer waiting period can make your premiums eventually lower, but you should decide wisely and consider your assets as well. However, shorter waiting period can make premiums more expensive; in short, sometimes you have to take risks for the sake of affordability. Both shorter and longer elimination period have drastic effects on your finances, but you must be always prepared of the consequences.
Inflation Protection
You might be aware that inflation affects the prices of goods and services, and so it does with long term care, that is why inflation protection is the most essential feature in any LTCi policy. Inflation protection increases your daily or monthly benefits over time to help you afford the expenses in the future when prices of LTC services rise. The benefits automatically increase by 4% or 5%, but you may also consider the future purchase option or FPO.
Slome says that inflation protection does not totally safeguard your policy against the future medical costs even if it's the most expensive one. Otherwise, policies with 5% inflation protection are much better than other types.
Benefit Period
Another factor that affects your premiums is the benefit period. The majority of policyholders purchase two-year to three-year of benefit period, and only 20 percent of elders age 65 and older will require five-year plan, while 48 percent will need it for just a year. The benefit period can range from 20 to 100 days, and even longer, depending on the insurance carrier. Life Insurance over 50- is it worth giving a chance? How to Save Over $500 a Year On Your Family Life Insurance Policies - A Micro Finance Focus Lifestyle Insurance coverage Agents Community Action Agencies and the Importance of Care Providers Insurance Stat Life insurance Bring In More Sales With Life Insurance Leads Set Some Goals! YOU Can DO Anything That You Want With Today, And With The Rest Of YOUR Life! Have An Effective Security System At Your Home For A Happy And A Secure Life Life Insurance Expiry – when managing premiums is difficult Consolidation observed in life insurance Longboards and Longboarding Fulfill Your Life With Excitement and Thrill How to buy life insurance online? Seven Ways to Save Money on Life Insurance