Plan for Your Peace of Mind With Long-Term Care Insurance
Our RamseyTrusted® insurance pros are ready to guide you toward a plan that gives you confidence in your financial future.
On This Page:
How Long-Term Care Insurance Works
Talk to a RamseyTrusted Pro
A RamseyTrusted pro helps you figure out how much insurance you need and what term length fits best. Once you’ve got your policy, you’ll pay a yearly premium.
Choose Your Elimination Period
You’ll pick an elimination period of 30, 60 or 90 days. That’s how long you’ll pay out of pocket before your policy kicks in.
Receive Your Insurance Reimbursements
Insurance pays you back up to a set dollar amount per day or per month. If your care costs more than that limit, you’ll need to cover the rest.
Long-Term Care Insurance Explained
Long-term care is any care that involves help with daily activities—like bathing, dressing or cooking—and lasts longer than three months. While many people think of nursing homes for this type of care, long-term care can also happen at home or in adult day care centers. It’s often needed due to aging, illness, injury or disability. Long-term care insurance helps cover the cost of care either in your home or at a care facility.
If you want to protect your nest egg, take some of the burden off family members, and be more in control of how you spend your golden years, long-term care insurance is a must!
How Much Does Long-Term
Care Insurance Cost?
Long-term care insurance protects your money from the sky-high cost of care as you age. Medicare won’t cover nursing homes, assisted living or in-home care. And without a plan, families can face six-figure bills. Yikes!
The sweet spot for buying long-term care insurance is around age 60—premiums are still reasonable, and the risk is rising. The average cost is $1,200–1,960 a year for a policy that covers $165,000 in care, and couples can save with joint policies.1 Let’s break down the numbers so you don’t have to break into your retirement savings.
Who Are RamseyTrusted Pros?
RamseyTrusted pros are your trusted guides to insurance—vetted experts who have your best interests at heart. They’ll shop the insurance market to find discounts and deals for you at no extra cost, saving you time and money. And when it comes to protecting what matters, they make sure you’ve got the coverage you need—and nothing you don’t.
Are you an insurance pro looking to work with our fans? Click here.
Who Needs Long-Term Care
Insurance?
If you’re currently healthy, you might be wondering, Do I need long-term care insurance? Yes! Because odds are, you’ll end up needing long-term care—and it’s not cheap.
The numbers say 7 out of 10 Americans over 65 will need long-term care, and an estimated 20% will need it for longer than five years.2 Learn more about who does and doesn’t qualify for this type of policy.
Is Long-Term Care Insurance
Worth It?
Long-term care insurance steps in to cover what your regular insurance won’t so you don’t have to dip into your retirement savings or burden your family.
Sure, premiums can vary and increase over time, but having a plan in place brings peace of mind and financial protection when you need it most. We’ll go over the pros and cons of getting a policy and show you why it’s definitely worth it!
Tax Advantages of Long-Term
Care Insurance
If you’re 60 or older and thinking about long-term care insurance, here’s one more reason not to wait: tax breaks. Yep—if you itemize, your premiums may count as tax-deductible medical expenses, and that’s money back in your pocket.
We’ll show you how it works and how much you can deduct from your tax bill.
Frequently Asked Questions About
Long-Term Care Insurance
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Can I buy long-term care insurance for my parents?
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Yes. And if they won’t do it themselves, you probably should.
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How does long-term care insurance work?
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You’ll pick a term (a time of 1–10 years) and benefit (the amount your insurer will pay). When you need in-home, assisted living or nursing home care, your insurer will pay your monthly benefit to help cover those costs for the length of your term.
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What does long-term care insurance cover?
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Long-term care insurance covers a lot of in-home care costs—including medical care and equipment, task assistance, and home modifications. So if it’s your goal to stay at home, long-term care insurance is a must. It also covers services outside your home like nursing homes, assisted living facilities and adult day care.
(Spoiler alert: Medicare won’t cover many of those costs.)
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Does Medicare pay for long-term care?
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Yes . . . and no. Medicare covers some costs, but you have to pay the rest. If you can’t, the government can come after your spouse and kids to collect that debt after you pass away. And to add insult to injury, Medicare has lots of limits—so you won’t be able to choose the type or quality of care you deserve.
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What are state partnership plans?
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To encourage folks to buy long-term care insurance and to relieve some of the burden on Medicaid, the government created a partnership plan. State partnership plans let people receive Medicaid benefits after their LTC insurance runs out while protecting their assets (like their home), and it works on a one-to-one ratio. Typically, the government will confiscate assets to pay for any Medicaid you use. With the partnership plan, if you buy $100,000 of LTC insurance, you then get $100,000 in asset protection if you need to use Medicaid because your LTC insurance ran out.
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What about my health insurance—won’t it help?
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No. Unfortunately, health insurance policies don’t cover long-term care costs.
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Can I be denied long-term care insurance?
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In some situations, yes. Long-term care insurers may deny you if you have certain health issues. A RamseyTrusted pro can help you find out if you qualify for traditional long-term care insurance. And if you do have a disqualifying health issue, they’ll help you understand your other options—so you can get the care you deserve.