LTC Insurance & Home Care
In addition to home care, most policies will also pay for home modification and other necessary training and support to help a person remain in their home. Long-term care at home is changing significantly for most Americans. Family members who used to act as traditional caregivers are now employed full time or live away from their loved ones and cannot provide the care directly. The time for long-term care insurance to play a significant role in helping to pay the cost of home care has arrived.
Benefit
The majority of people are most comfortable in their own environment where they feel safe and close to the things they love, and home care is the long-term care option that promotes the individual’s independence and ability to continue with normal, daily routines as long as possible. The goal of home care is to provide in-home care for those who need it, and to allow an individual to “age-in-place” at home as long as possible, regardless of age or disability.
Filing Claims
There is no real way of truly knowing which company is most reliable with claims except by reputation (RAH often assists in this area, without endorsing a specific vendor). To avoid the hassle of filing a claim, you may want to choose a carrier that offers “indemnity” or “cash” benefits. Under the indemnity-based method, once you qualify for benefits, you don’t submit claims. The insurance company will send you or your representative a check once a month for the maximum allowable daily, weekly or monthly benefit in the policy. Some companies with built-in cash or indemnity pay a lesser amount under that option than under a claims option. But for some people, the prompt payments are preferable because they ensure cash flow. Perhaps the most compelling reason for choosing indemnification is that you are more likely to receive the full benefits of the policy before you pass away. Not all carriers offer indemnity. For those that do, it might be a part of the specific LTC policy provision or it sometimes is offered via a separate rider.
“Death Benefit”
Some group policies will return an insured’s premiums if death occurs before age 65 or 70 and no claims were made. Many individual policies will include a rider for an additional cost that returns all premiums paid at the death of the policy owner. Depending on the rider, there may be additional requirements such as death occurring before a certain age or holding the policy a certain number of years before the rider is effective. Premiums returned may be less any claims paid and other policies may return all premiums regardless of claims.