Long Term Care Insurance FAQ |
This
page will provide you with the answers to your questions
about long term care insurance. These FAQs
help educate you about long term care insurance so
that you can make and informed decision upon purchasing
a long term care policy. Be sure to read through
all of these questions so
that you get the best policy for your money.
- Is
Alzheimer's disease covered by long term care insurance?
- When
will a long term care insurance policy pay
benefits?
- What
is not covered by Long Term Care insurance?
- What
is a federally tax-qualified long-term care policy?
- Do
Long Term Care insurance premiums increase each
year?
- Where
does Medicare fit in to Long Term Care Insurance
coverage?
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Most Long term care insurance policies will
cover Alzheimer's and other organic cognitive disabilities.
Check the policy contract to be certain. An insurance company
will not issue a new long term care insurance policy to someone
already suffering from Alzheimer's. |
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When will a long term care policy pay benefits?
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Most long term care insurance policies will pay benefits
when a need is demonstrated by the inability to perform a
specific number of activities of daily living (ADL's). Long
term care insurance will cover you if you are unable to do
any of the following activities:
- Bathing - Able to get in and out of the bathtub or
shower, or bathing oneself.
- Continence - Able to maintain
bowel and bladder control.
- Dressing - Taking off and
putting on clothing.
- Eating - Feeding oneself.
- Toileting - Going to and
from the toilet and maintaining personal hygiene
- Transferring
- Getting in and out of bed, moving from one place
to another.
Your insurance policy should pay benefits when long term care is needed due to a cognitive
impairment such as dementia. Your insurance policy should also cover you
when long term care is medically necessary and prescribed
by the patient's physician.
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What is not covered by Long Term Care insurance? |
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All long term care insurance policies have limits. Some
conditions that are already preexisting for six months are
barred from long term care insurance coverage. Long term
care insurance premiums would be very expensive if there
were no limits on long term care insurance policies. Prior
to purchasing your long term care insurance policy, you should
make sure that you comprehend what is and what is not covered.
Some insurance companies will cover some kinds of preexisting
conditions. This is of course, if the condition is not severe
enough to get rejected by the insurance company.
Most long term care insurance policies will not cover a mental
or nervous disorder other than Alzheimer's disease or other
some other form of dementia; alcohol or drug addiction; or
care necessitated by an act of war or self-inflicted.
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What is a federally tax-qualified long-term care policy?
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Long term care insurance policies can be tax-qualified
or not. Tax-qualified polices may allow you to deduct the
cost of premiums as medical deduction subject to a 7.5% adjusted
gross income limitation, and allow you to exclude from taxable
income any benefits you receive. To be qualified, insurance
policies must be labeled as tax-qualified, must be guaranteed
renewable, include a number of consumer protection provisions,
cover only long term care service, and generally cannot have
a cash surrender value. Consumers should only consider tax-qualified
plans
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Do Long Term Care Insurance premiums increase
each year? |
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The younger you are when you first buy a policy the lower
your annual premium will be. Insurance companies can raise
rates but only for everyone in the same pool of insured.
The company cannot target individual policyholders for special
rate increases despite the number of claims someone may make.
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Where does Medicare fit in to Long Term
Care Insurance Coverage? |
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Medicare covers doctors and hospitals plus some restricted
short-term skilled nursing. Medicare pays no extended long
term care insurance. |
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| For more answers to questions
you may have, feel free to give us a call at 1-888-430-0002
or email at service@LTCiGuide.com.
A long term care insurance specialist will be happy to answer
your questions or help you select a company and plan that's
best for you. |
