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Today’s Long-Term Care Policies Are Well Priced

April 18, 2016 by Honey Leave a Comment

The March, 2016 edition of Broker World Magazine features an article called “Reflecting On Rates – Examining The Outlook of Today’s LTCI Pricing” written by two actuaries, Marc Glickman and Laury Falter, both of www.LifeCareAssurance.com. I can email this article to you.

They state that there is strong evidence of significant and mostly unrecognized safety in current long-term care insurance (LTCi) pricing, as a result of the Society of Actuaries Pricing Project, a very long range study.

They explain “LTCi pricing is now more conservative than ever because interest rates are at historical lows. Lapse rates have been effectively de-risked, and both mortality and morbidity reflect more conservative best estimates.”

The odds of suffering oppressive, frequent rate hikes on today’s LTCi policies are very low. The article goes on to back up these claims.

Of interest is a new trend caused by improved mortality and morbidity, meaning LTCi policyholders are dying, getting sick, and filing claims later than expected.

Only about 22 % of all LTCi claims are caused by Alzheimer’s Disease or other dementias. However, the article states that over half of all LTCi claim costs are due to Alzheimer’s or dementia.

Today’s LTCi policies are more lenient than ever. Buyers can expect very stable rates going forward!

TX Nursing Home Employees Quitting to Work at McDonald’s

April 12, 2016 by Honey Leave a Comment

According to reporters at Lubbock’s KLBK13, in a story titled, Nurses Quit Texas Nursing Homes to Work at McDonald’s, we face a dire shortage of nursing home beds by the end of this decade.

Nursing home employees, particularly certified nurse assistants, who are “front line” caregivers, get the worst pay, typically about $8/hour.

Meanwhile, McDonald’s is hiring, and they pay significantly more. Furthermore, their employees don’t have to mess with bed pans or risk injuries from transferring patients.

The story says TX nursing homes lose approximately $300 million per year. 85 percent of TX nursing home residents depend on Medicaid or Medicare. Each Medicaid patient is underfunded by 14 percent.

This dovetails with information I just received from Seven Acres, the Jewish nursing home here in Houston. Their April 2016 newsletter says, “Over 80% of our residents are so ill and indigent that they qualify for the state Medicaid program, which underfunds Seven Acres by $33,000 a year for each Medicaid resident. This translates into a $8 million annual loss for the Home. It is only through the generous support of our friends and community partners that we are able to offset the significant cost of care that Medicaid does not cover.”

Long-term care insurance (LTCi) ownership greatly increases the odds people will not receive care in a nursing home. Even the very best nursing homes – like Seven Acres – struggle with staffing shortages.

I’ve already sent Seven Acres my annual contribution.

Honey’s State of the LTCi Industry

March 21, 2016 by Honey Leave a Comment

I’ve just returned from the Society of Actuaries 16th annual Intercompany Long-Term Care Insurance Conference a few days ago.

I believe most attendees left the conference feeling more enthused about the future of long-term care insurance (LTCi) than we have in a while.

New carriers are entering the market. I got to preview National Guardian Life’s new LTCi policy, due for release this Spring. I am told its rates will be competitive and it will have some “sweet spots.” It’s an exciting plan and has some innovative, very attractive “spins” on traditional features.

Additional new products are entering the market, too!

My sentiment, and I believe that of the majority of attendees, is that the worst is over. Interest rate assumptions can’t be lower. Lapse rates, mortality and morbidity (how many policyholders will die or need LTC) have already been adjusted for “worst case,” hyper-conservative scenarios.

Long-term studies based on extensive experience & appropriate adjustments have convinced actuaries that the current generation of LTCi products are and will be very rate-stable.

The new, asset-based (also called “hybrid” or “combo”) LTC products are now mature, excellent products.

We now have a broader portfolio of rate-stable LTC solutions, reasonably priced, than ever before.

The press, this past year, has done excellent reporting on why Medicare and Medicaid cannot and will not pay for our LTC. Media has reported well on the high odds of needing LTC and the heartbreak patients and families often suffer due to unplanned LTC needs.

Demographically, there remains a huge, underserved market of Boomers and others who are unprepared and vulnerable to the “spending shock” of having an unplanned LTC need.

Some things have not changed in the 25+ years I’ve been working with LTCi. The public is still steeped in profound denial about their need for LTC. People would rather pay for fun things like travel and other toys than face the facts about needing LTC. There are still misinformed journalists who describe LTCi coverage erroneously, and inaccurately harp on wanton LTC rate hikes.

Extraordinary Story of Devotion…and No LTCi

March 14, 2016 by Honey Leave a Comment

Helping Mother Bathe — Elizabeth helps her mother bathe.
Mark Makela for The New York Times

A story in yesterday’s New York Times titled “Living With the Parents I’m Losing to Alzheimer’s blew me away. I hope non-subscribers can open it.

Here’s the accompanying slideshow.

The story is about Elizabeth Wolf, a very generous, candid, public person with a blog at www.upsidedowndaughter.com.

Read the column or blog to learn that five years ago Ms. Wolf was enjoying young adulthood and exciting new pursuits when she gave them up and returned home to become her parents’ primary caregiver. Both parents have Alzheimer’s Disease. She’s doing this with the help of her extremely devoted husband.

We know from graphic, detailed information in the story about finances and day-to-day coping, neither parent owns long-term care insurance (LTCi).

If you’re like me, you are forced to wonder how extremely different Ms. Wolf’s life and relationships with her husband and parents would be if one or both parents owned LTCi.

LTCi Pays – Have the Conversation Now!

March 3, 2016 by Honey Leave a Comment

The following piece was authored and is re-published here with the permission of my dear friend and colleague Tobe Gerard.

Tobe makes two points. The first is that long-term care insurance (LTCi) policies are normally purchased many years in advance of being needed. We are now seeing “the tip of the iceberg” of claimants who need to collect from their LTCi. For the foreseeable future, we should see annual increases in the number of claims being filed and the amount of money being paid out for LTC.

The second point Tobe is making is that it is typically a son or daughter who assists with the claim. LTCi claims are not onerous, but policyholders are typically not able to manage them alone. Letting kids and other trusted individuals know you own LTCi is sometimes difficult, but worth it. Knowing a parent owns LTCi proves to be a balm and a source of extra piece of mind and security for all involved.

Here is Tobe’s excellent blog:

According the the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, long-term care insurance (LTCi) companies paid $8.15 billion in claim benefits to 260,000 policyholders in 2015. That number is 4% more than what was paid out in 2014. We are all living longer, and though your clients hope to never have to use their policies, the good news is that policyholders and their families are benefiting from owning this important insurance protection. When the rubber hits the road, LTCi policies are paying out!

With that in mind, many advisors encourage their clients to have “the long-term care conversation” with their adult children. It’s not an easy conversation, but it is an important one. Having this conversation early allows adult children to know that their parents have thought things through and have a plan in place. Among other things, breaking the ice by having this conversation early allows adult children to know their parents own LTCi policies. The reality is that in most instances it will be the adult children who will be involved with filing the initial LTCi claim and, in many cases, supervising the care that will be required over time. Adult children want to learn what their parents have in mind. Owning a LTCi care policy should never be kept a secret!”

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Today’s Long-Term Care Policies Are Well Priced

TX Nursing Home Employees Quitting to Work at McDonald’s

Honey’s State of the LTCi Industry

Extraordinary Story of Devotion…and No LTCi

LTCi Pays – Have the Conversation Now!

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