Have we learned a lot in the last year? Obviously not in the classroom. But there are a lot of takeaways from 2020. And resilience is but one. Planning ahead another. For many working from home became a new experience. It turned routines upside down. Required new or upgraded equipment. Increased productivity along with frustration
I JUST HATE … Rate increases! More than you do! Why oh why In our opinion there have been two rounds of rate increases on long-term care insurance policies (LTCI). But given the way state insurance commissioners have approved increases it seems as though they are eternal. Keep in mind that these rate increases primarily
What word pops into you head or out your mouth when you learn that a family member, business colleague or dear friend has tested positive for COVID-19? I’d tell you what comes to my mind but my 100-year-old father reads my blogs and he would blush and be disappointed in my language choices. I’ll just
Long-term care insurance (LTCI) premiums are changing. Care costs are changing, too. We’re seeing premium increases to in-force policyholders and new applicants. Why? Here are some of the factors behind these rate actions and how premiums can change. Insurance premiums will always cost less than the cost of care As insurance products go, LTCI is
It’s a month of awareness campaigns. Among them is National Peanut Butter Lovers Month and at least 45 others including National Alzheimer’s Disease Month, National Family Caregivers Month and National Long-Term Care Awareness Month. These all tie together for me. No not peanut butter even though it’s pretty sticky. Think about these facts, stats and
Planning for long-term care (LTC) is about dealing with the reality of needing assistance as we age. We’ll be the first to acknowledge this is not a fun conversation. But ignoring information to avoid the reality of needing long-term care is not a solution.
For those of us who work in this narrow but important insurance niche, we wait each year for our assumptions to be validated or tweaked by the annual LTCI survey published by Brokers World. Now in its 22nd year, we find few carriers participating in the “2020 Milliman Long Term Care Insurance Survey.“ Below are
I will always love you No matter what No matter where you go Or what you do “Come to Me,” lyrics written and sung by Celine Dion. It’s May. Once again Mother’s Day reminds us to pause to celebrate how special, caring and forgiving moms are. Mine died eight years ago after more than a
I do a lot of public speaking about long-term care, the risk, costs, funding options, product designs, what insurance covers, etc. Most of the groups that I meet with are trusted advisors – financial planners, CPAs and attorneys. I always ask if they have made a plan for long-term care. I don’t ask them to
Try to think past today. It’s hard to do because we are so focused on work, family, politics and social issues that take up all of our available time. But that can leave the future unplanned. A pretty common concern today is outliving money planned for retirement. Do you think you will live a long