Long term care (LTC) is no longer just a form of health care nowadays but an important investment that is why many people buy insurance products that are designed for it. Like other investments, though, you have to dissect every part of an LTC insurance policy before putting your money on it.
Why long term care insurance (LTCI) is considered an investment is simply because it requires so much money unlike vision insurance or dental plans. In fact, if you're earning only enough to put food on the table and you force yourself to acquire an LTCI policy you will have to make big sacrifices in your lifestyle just so you can satisfy your annual premium.
Forget your whims and probably live on a fixed diet for months so you can put away a bigger chunk of your income for the aggregate annual premium.
However, if you learn the ropes before buying a policy then you can absolutely cut down a substantial amount from your annual premium.
First and foremost, check the background of the company from which you intend to buy your LTCI policy because a lot of insurance companies these days are only after people's money. To find out if a company has a clean track record, check out their ratings with authoritative insurance rating agencies namely A.M Best Company, Standard & Poor's, Wiess Research, and Moody's Investor's Service.
You'll find a licensed LTCI agent who is affiliated with major LTCI companies helpful in this process. What's more, an adept broker is familiar with the various LTCI offerings of each insurance firm and can no doubt clinch a good deal for you. This is after you have provided him with your complete and honest information.
Essentials of LTC Insurance
Before you can sign a comprehensive LTCI policy you need to go through a long process to ensure that the piece of paper on which you would affix your signature bears exactly what you need.
Firstly, you have to provide your agent with your complete medical information which he can use to gather your LTCI quotes. Don't bother to hold back important facts in hopes of getting your application approved fast because the insurance company will discover it anyway once it requests your medical records.
Besides, there's no point lying to your agent because you'll just make his job tougher and this will delay the whole process. If you want to receive LTCI quotes that will meet your health requirements and budget start clean.
Once you have received your quotes, compare these with the cost of care in your area. There is no point going for the lowest LTCI quote if this won't meet the rates of LTC facilities in your place because you could wind up spending more out-of pocket.
Once you have decided on your maximum benefit amount and benefit period, look into your policy's inflation protection rider as this ensures your benefits keep pace with inflation. With the right choice of inflation protection, even if it takes 50 years before an event triggers your LTC insurance benefits rest assured you won't have to worry about the cost of care.
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