Are You Picking a Long-Term Care Policy That’s Affordable Enough for You?

We get asked a lot about buying long-term care insurance by readers, and we try to be cautious in our advice.  Even though long-term care insurance can be a great option to help finance eventual long-term care there are plenty of pitfalls that would-be long-term care insurance policyholders can fall into as well.  We have heard all too many stories about people paying into long-term care insurance policies for years, even decades, only to have their claims denied when they finally need care, and putting their families into huge finance holes.

Even worse, we’ve heard many stories of seniors who have  been forced to drop their long-term care insurance policies because they can no longer afford the premiums.  Dropped long-term care insurance policies only became more common as the economy dipped and the recovery dragged, and it’s a terrible situation.  After paying long-term care premiums for year, in some cases decades, seniors whose incomes dropped in the recession had to stop paying their premiums, in some cases just when they were on the brink of needing their long-term care benefits.  And don’t forget… once you’ve dropped your long-term care policy, that money is gone forever.

Crummy!  I Don’t Want To Lose My Money!  What Can I Do?

The most important thing to you can do to avoid having to drop your long-term care policy is to choose your long-term care policy wisely.  Whatever you do, pick a long-term care policy that you can afford in the long-term.  A long-term care policy with all the bells and whistles is going to do you no good if you have to drop it in five years because you can’t keep up with the payments.  Far better to pick a long-term care policy with more modest benefits you can safely pay over the years than one with more plush benefits that you have to give up, especially since you would have to forfeit all the premiums you’ve already paid.

Have you thought about buying a long-term care insurance policy? Tell us about it in our discussion forum!

Related posts:

1. CLASS Program Gone: 3 Secrets to Picking Long-Term Care Insurance
2. Long-Term Care Insurance: Will Your Long-Term Care Insurance Really Pay Your Claims?
3. Will Long-Term Care Insurance Go the Way Of the Dodo? How You Can Prepare Yourself For Long-Term Care
4. Long-Term Care Awareness Month: Have You Talked to Your Mother About Her Long-Term Care?
5. Do You Know How Much Long-Term Care Will Cost You?