In the world of long-term care insurance, it seems like a broken record when it comes to the press: let’s report what’s wrong and what’s not working, like this article
from Time online. I suppose if you take a broader look, that’s what
happens in all areas of life. Negative seems to sell more papers (or get
more online eyeballs).
I don’t want to dwell on that part. I’ve tried to balance out
one-sided information about long-term care insurance that appears in the
press in posts on this blog, such as when I addressed the hue-and-cry
over premium increases.
Instead, I want people to hear what is working about long-term care
insurance—specifically 11 million reasons spread across the country.
Almost $11 million—that is how much the top 10 long-term care insurers are paying out each day in benefits to 5.75 million policyholders, according to a new study
conducted by the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance
(AALTCI). That adds up to nearly $4 billion a year in money that goes
into communities across the country to help people get the long-term
care they need.
Sometimes numbers that large can make your head spin, so I’ll make it
personal for you. I have a colleague, Dave, who did comprehensive
financial planning for many years. Because he was not an expert in
long-term care insurance, he came to me for help. I helped Dave place
long-term care insurance with nine households—many of them friends and
neighbors. To date, seven of his clients have accessed their long-term
care benefits. And not too long ago, Dave, now 85, called me to say it
was time for me to help him with his claim as well, as his wife has
Alzheimer’s. Two million dollars of long-term care benefits have flowed
into Dave’s neighborhood and community because he helped his clients
plan for all eventualities.
These are some of the numbers that I wish the press would report.
Until they do, however, I will continue to write and speak about them.