Eligibility Requirements
- Any individual interested in protecting themselves and their families from the emotional and financial burden brought on by the need for long-term care
- Long Term Care (LTC) Health Insurance polices are medically underwritten, therefore it is in the individual’s best interest to apply when able to use your age and good health to your advantage.
- Long-term care includes a wide range of services provided to people who need continued help with Activities of Daily Living (bathing, dressing, eating, using the toilet, continence, transferring from bed to chair) due to a chronic condition or limited ability to function.
- When considering if Long Term Care insurance is right for you it is important to consider the following:
- Who will care for you when you require care? Where?
- Can you afford to pay the premiums every year?
- Medicare does NOT pay for most long-term care.
- Medicaid will generally pay if you have very little income and few assets.
- There are strict rules and penalties for transferring assets to qualify for Medicaid, and these rules keep getting tighter.
Types of Long Term Care (LTC) Health Insurance Plans Available*
- Individual Long Term Care Health Insurance: A cost-effective way for one person to plan for long-term care needs. A LTC policy may pay most of the costs for your care in a nursing home. Many policies also pay for care at home or other community settings.
- Shared Long Term Care Health Insurance: Provides the same benefits as an individual plan, with the added benefit of allowing a spouse/partner to utilize the same pool of benefits. May include survivorship and waiver of premium benefits.
- Group Long Term Care Health Insurance: Typically offered through an employer on a voluntary basis. May be subject to modified medical underwriting.
- The Connecticut Partnership for Long Term Care: The Partnership is a unique alliance between the State government and the private insurance industry developed to: provide individuals with a way to pay for their long-term care needs without the risk of impoverishment, enhance the standards of private long term care insurance, and conserve state Medicaid funds. The most unique feature of the CT Partnership policy is Medicaid Asset Protection. This feature provides dollar for dollar protection: for every dollar that a Partnership policy pays out in benefits, a dollar of assets can be protected from Medicaid spend down rules.
* The above information is intended as a general overview and should be combined with a professional review of your individual needs to determine which plan and carrier would best suite you personally and financially.
