How to Compare Long Term Care Insurance Quotes

The six-point checklist

1. Identical design

Same monthly benefit, benefit period, elimination period, inflation option. A quote that looks 25% cheaper with 3% simple inflation against 3% compound isn't cheaper — it's smaller, and dramatically so after 20 years.

2. Inflation math

Compound beats simple by ever-widening margins: a $5,000 monthly benefit at 3% compound reaches about $9,000 in 20 years; at 3% simple, $8,000 — and the gap keeps widening exactly when you're most likely to claim.

3. Home care fine print

• Home care at 100% of the facility benefit, or reduced?
• Are homemaker services (cooking, errands) covered, or only hands-on care?
• Does the elimination period count calendar days or only days care is received? Calendar-day counting satisfies the wait far faster for part-time home care.

4. Waiver of premium

Premiums should stop while on claim — confirm when the waiver starts and whether it applies to home care.

5. Rate-increase history

Ask each carrier's history of in-force rate increases on existing blocks. Newer policies are priced more realistically than 1990s blocks, but history still signals pricing discipline — background in why premiums rise.

6. Financial strength

You're buying a promise that may not pay out for 30 years. Favor carriers rated A- or better by AM Best.

Frequently asked questions

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