Spring Comes to LTC Insurance

My good friend and colleague Steve Forman has written a report titled “Spring Comes to LTC Insurance”. Here’s a link to the report.

Like me, Steve believes good times are coming for long-term care insurance (LTCi) sales. Here’s a blog I just did about how rate-stable today’s LTCi policies are.

Here’s an excerpt from Steve’s report explaining why the LTCi market is poised for an upswing in sales:

“While the last decade was marked by carriers exiting the long term care insurance market (from a peak of around 110 to today’s dozen or so), the transition to a soft market predicts new entrants will return. And that’s exactly what we’re seeing (aided by a new study from the Society of Actuaries which demonstrates to sideline insurers the remarkably good odds of a profitable future selling LTCI). Within the last twelve months, heavyweight endorser AARP has signaled a new partnership with the private market, a brand new carrier has announced its intention to sell traditional LTCI, and a third major brand has shed every product in its portfolio but LTCI.

Meanwhile, the number of life insurers who recognize the demographic opportunity represented by the Silver Tsunami is unprecedented: seven have entered the combo space within the past five years, while over twenty offer an accelerated benefit for chronic illness and/or critical illness. LIMRA reports that acceleration riders are now a “must have” benefit, and one carrier was quoted in confidence saying, ‘You will never see another life insurance product sold by us which does not include a long term care benefit.'”