Don’t Panic: Navigating Increasing Long-Term Care Insurance Premiums
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Long-Term Care Premiums Jumped 60%? Here Are Your 3 Options
You open the envelope, see those shocking numbers, and your heart skips a beat. You’re not alone—and you have more power than you think.
With 70% of people over 65 needing long-term care, you wisely purchased insurance knowing Medicare won’t cover these costs. Now you’re facing another premium increase, wondering how this happened.
Why Premiums Are Skyrocketing
The truth is simple: insurance companies didn’t do the math right. They failed to anticipate how long we’d live, how many would keep policies, or how expensive healthcare would become.
Now they’re asking policyholders to make up the difference—or risk going out of business entirely. If your company fails, you lose all coverage.
Martha, a 72-year-old retired teacher, watched her premium jump from $2,400 to $3,480. “I didn’t budget for this!” she said. Sound familiar?
Your 3 Strategic Options
- Pay the Increase
Robert, 68, cut restaurant expenses and kept full coverage. “This is worth it to me,” he said, refusing to put a price tag on peace of mind.
- Modify Your Policy
You can negotiate! Most Americans get inflation-adjusted Social Security, so your insurance doesn’t need to cover 100% of care costs.
Smart modifications:
- Lower daily benefits to match local care costs
- Reduce benefit period from lifetime to 5 years
- Adjust inflation protection
Susan reduced her lifetime benefit to five years and modified inflation protection—her premium stayed the same while maintaining substantial protection.
- Use Non-Forfeiture Rights
James paid $42,000 over 15 years, then stopped payments but kept reduced coverage. This is your legal right as a policyholder.
Take Action Now
Assess your needs: What’s changed since you bought coverage? Has your financial situation improved?
Get expert help: Ellen faced a 60% increase but discovered local care costs were lower than her policy covered—she reduced benefits while staying protected.
Consider hybrid policies: If healthy, these combine life insurance with long-term care and often guarantee no future premium increases.
Take your time: This isn’t a decision to rush.
The Bottom Line
Even with modifications, your policy protects against catastrophic long-term care costs. Making thoughtful adjustments shows wisdom—you’re staying protected while managing costs effectively.
Remember: Pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional. You’ve got options, and you’ve got this.
Read the full article on Forbes.com.