athena53
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
- Joined
- May 11, 2014
- Messages
- 7,377
We are pretty much self insured, and what I cannot fathom is buying LTC insurance "when you're younger and get a better deal" and yet I repeatedly see where they can increase your premiums at will. How on earth can you assess the value of a policy when they can ratchet it up to the point you drop it, perhaps a year or two when you could collect? Seems like a great business model for them but for you "buying a pig in a poke." Whatever that means.
It's not a great business model for the insurers, either. That's why they keep increasing rates and why so many no longer provide it. There's a lot of adverse selection involved; people who come from families where everyone dies of a heart attack before age 60 are unlikely to buy it. When rates get increased, the ones who keep paying are the ones showing early signs of dementia. OK, that's an exaggeration, but people who buy and keep this coverage are the ones most likely to need it. I'd also guess that if you do get into a nursing home and have adequate coverage, you'll live longer than someone who tries to age at home because they don't have the money for LTC.
I've come to the same conclusion as you, though- we're self-insuring.