Some Long Term Care Insurance Information That One Should Know

The government's quest in encouraging the public to get their own LTC plans has not yet fully ended even if the public has become more aware of the various benefits that they can get from acquiring their own LTC policy. As a way of promoting rightful and correct long term care insurance information to the public, the government has supported different information drive that support and campaign for the necessity of such insurance plans in an individual's life.

To date, the number of uninsured individuals is still greater than those who have already secured themselves of an LTC insurance policy. This worries the government because of two major points: 1. because of the rising Medicaid expenses that cover LTC-related cases, and 2. because the rates of LTC services and other facilities are also increasing incessantly, making it harder for some United States citizens to purchase their own LTC policy.

It was found out that the Medicaid spends an approximate of $1 billion every year just to compensate and satisfy the expenses related to the LTC services and facilities that its beneficiaries need. This alarms the government because the fact that a large share of the fund goes to LTC disbursement, other necessities are left out or just use limited amount of the fund.

The government presumes that if more people would acquire their LTC policies, then the number of Medicaid dependents would decrease, thus saving some sufficient amount of money to cover the other things that they need to pay off.

Getting credible and helpful long term care insurance information may also change one's mind regarding the perfect timing of his plan acquisition. Many people nowadays think that it would be better if they just save up and use these savings and their other personal assets to pay for any LTC services or facilities that they might need in the future. By doing this, they think that they have cut the cost of their LTC expenditures.

Sad to say, this thinking would not work when it comes to acquiring LTC insurance plans. Why? Because the rates and other costs of LTC services increase by almost 20 percent annually, according to some surveys conducted to determine the difference of LTC policies' rates over the years.

Given this almost fixed and permanent price increase, those who are just earning enough amount of money monthly may find themselves in trouble of getting their very own LTC plan. If they do not act now, their savings might not be fully enough to pay for all the LTC services and facilities that they will need and use in the future. What's worse than this is the fact that they might compromise all their other LTC needs and just settle with those that their budget can accommodate.

These facts may not always be discussed to an individual if ever he inquires about a potential LTC policy, leaving the impression that such policies could wait and hoping for other ways to at least cut a reasonable percentage in the monthly premiums. But if one gets a trustworthy and credible source of long term care insurance information, he might realize just how important it is to acquire his policy now and enjoy the perks of owning an LTC plan at a younger age.

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Do Partnership Policies Cost More?

Buying a Partnership Long Term Care Insurance policy provides an individual long term care (LTC) coverage and Medicaid asset protection, but contrary to many people's speculations it does not cost more than the traditional long term care insurance (LTCI) policies.

Because of the term "asset protection" people find a Partnership policy more advantageous but they are discouraged by the possibility of spending more on annual premiums. The fact of the matter is that state officials have instructed insurance companies selling LTCI policies to charge traditional and Partnership policyholders the same premiums if their type of coverage is similar.

Although that's the case, an insurance company has the discretion to increase the premium of a Partnership policyholder if his maximum daily benefit amount and benefit period are bigger and longer than those of a traditional LTCI policyholder.

Partnership LTCI policies would benefit both the government and the insured individuals. It delays a person's eligibility for Medicaid assistance, which is advantageous to the government especially now that it is still in the process of recovering from its high deficit resulting from last year's big LTC expenditures.

On the other hand, those who are contemplating buying LTCI can settle for a shorter benefit period and save a chunk on their annual premiums if they would opt for a policy which complies with the Partnership Program. Should they need further care, they can apply for Medicaid assistance without spending down a portion of their assets that is equivalent to the benefits which they have received from their policy.

Requirements of Partnership Long Term care Insurance

To know if your LTCI policy complies with the Partnership Program it has to meet a set of requirements which are as follows:

• It should be tax qualified and it pays benefits on a reimbursement, cash benefit, or indemnity basis.

• Its date of issue should be after the official date that the Partnership Program took effect in your state of residence. If you have purchased your non-Partnership policy before the state's issue date of Partnership policies, you can exchange it for the latter. You have to acknowledge it as a newly issued LTCI policy though because Partnership qualified policies have an underwriting that is different from traditional policies.

• The insured should be a legit resident of the Partnership state when coverage took effect under his policy.

• The policy should comply with the consumer protection requirements defined in the Social Security Act.

• It bears the asset disregard feature so in the event that the insured would require ongoing care from Medicaid after having exhausted his LTCI policy's benefits, the amount of his assets that is equivalent to the benefits that he received from his Partnership policy shall be exempted from Medicaid's spend-down rule.

• Individuals who have purchased their Partnership long term care insurance policies before the age of 61 should have a compound annual inflation protection; those who are 61 but younger than 75 at the time of purchase should be given some level of inflation protection; while individuals who are 76 or older don't need any form of inflation protection.

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