Jim Grauel
VP of Sales & Marketing

News flash!  

California Long Term Care plans cost more today than they did 20 years ago! While it is true that the cost of LTCi insurance has gone up in recent years, see all the press releases, so has the cost of care. Cost is relative to everything, remember what you were paying for medical coverage in 1994? How about a gallon of gas? Now, think about your income in 1994 and today. Everything is relative right?  This doesn’t negate the need to plan ahead and prepare for something that will affect 7 out of 10 Americans.

The interesting thing about the 7 out of 10 is that it doesn’t differentiate between economic classes. The need doesn’t change for someone earning $50,000 annually or someone earning  $150,000 annually. Loss of your ADL’s or cognitive issues could care less about your income. Having the funds available to pay for care is a necessity not a luxury. Not having a plan is a plan, just not a good one. Cost of care will continue to rise forcing you to spend more to get quality care. You can pay that difference yourself or get some help from an insurance carrier to pick up the majority of the bill. Choosing to work with an insurance carrier will definitely help lower your California Long Term Care plans cost.

Designing a personalized plan to protect your family and assets doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice today. With medical advances and the odds being in your favor of living longer and needing care it is important to protect as much as you can. A good friend of mine has been known to say that people live on budgets all the time; why would that change if you were in need of care? The question is would $2,000 or $3,000 make a difference in the care you received? So no matter what your income, the risk remains the same, now is the time to look through the different your options for California Long Term Care plans. Cost will vary but you can  put together a plan so when the need arises you have the ability to receive care and protect your family.

To speak to a representative or schedule an appointment, simply fill out and submit the short form to the right.

It is often hard for consumers to see the benefits of purchasing Long Term Care Insurance.  They also often overlook the value in working with an agent and an agency that specializes in LTC.  Our work as an agency definitely does not end with our client’s initial decision in purchasing Long Term Care Insurance. Two recent real-life experiences illustrated why a specialist agent and agency can make a difference:

•  A client called and said he needed to use the policy for nursing home care.  He said he had used home care services for the past 6 months.  His health had deteriorated and he felt a facility was a better fit for him now.  I asked why he didn’t use the coverage for the home care help.  He thought it wasn’t covered because he had hired a private caregiver.  He mistakenly believed that only aides from a home care agency qualified for reimbursement.  He was able to get all of the long term care services covered.  He moved to an assisted living facility and his wife lives in the independent living unit nearby. 
• A client called and asked to review her coverage.  During the conversation she said she thought she may need to use the insurance sometime in the future.  She described her circumstances and I realized that she might qualify use the insurance now.  I convinced her to file a claim. This activated the Care Coordination service.   They helped her find caregivers and put together a plan of care.  The plan of care outlines the details of needs and how they are met by the aide and various community services like Meals on Wheels.  Her care is covered by the insurance policy. 

We at California Long Term Care Insurance Services, Inc have been working with these types of policies for over 20 years. An agent or agency that does not have as much exposure to Long Term Care insurance plans may not have realized the opportunity to help the client use the insurance.  In both these cases we helped protect our clients’ income and assets but also improved the quality of their lives. We helped make their decision of purchasing Long Term Care Insurance a great tool in improving their quality of life when they most needed it.

Our LTCI specialists make your shopping experience easy, by helping compare the costs and benefits of policies from select insurance companies. More importantly, our agency will be there for you beyond purchasing Long Term Care Insurance. To speak to a representative or schedule an appointment, simply fill out the short form on the right and start with your Free consumer guide or contact us.