The older you get, the harder it is to qualify for long-term care insurance. If you are interested in buying this insurance, it is better to act sooner rather than later. Many people put off purchasing long-term care insurance until they need it, but by then, it may be too late. Not only do premiums increase as you age, unfortunately you also may not even qualify for insurance due to your health. The older you are, the more likely you are to have a pre-existing health condition that will disqualify you from getting long-term care insurance.
At age 56, Margery Newman bought a long-term care insurance policy from Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. She chose an option called “Reduced-Pay at 65” in which she paid higher premiums until she reached age 65, when the premium would drop to half the original amount. The long-term care insurance contract set out the terms of the reduced-pay option. It also stated that the company could increase premiums on policyholders in the same “class.” When Ms. Newman was 67 years old, the company notified her that it was doubling her premium. Ms. Newman sued MetLife for breach of contract and fraudulent and deceptive business practices, among other things. In its defense, the company argued that the increase was imposed on a class-wide basis and applied to all long-term care policyholders over the age of 65, including reduced-pay policyholders. A federal district court dismissed Ms. Newman’s suit, ruling that the contract permitted MetLife to raise her premium. Ms. Newman appealed.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reversed the lower court’s decision and held that MetLife breached its contract when it raised Ms. Newman’s premium (Newman v. Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, U.S. Ct. App., 7th Cir., No. 17-1844, Feb. 6, 2018). According to the court, reasonable people would believe that signing up for the reduced-pay option meant that they were not at risk of having their premiums increased. The court also allowed Ms. Newman’s fraudulent and deceptive business practices claim to proceed, ruling that she showed evidence that the company’s marketing of the policy was deceptive and unfair.
According to a recent study by the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, 44 percent of applicants who were age 70 or older had their applications denied due to health reasons. And those are the applicants who completed applications. Insurance agents frequently discourage unhealthy applicants from applying in the first place. In contrast to older applicants, only 22 percent of applicants who are between 50 and 59 years old and 30 percent of applicants between 60 and 69 years old had their applications declined. Generally, the best (and cheapest) time to buy long-term care insurance is when you are in your 50s.
Long-term care insurance is not the best option for everyone, but if you are thinking about it, don’t put off the purchase until it is too late. To find out if a long-term care insurance policy fits into your long-term care plan, consult with your elder law attorney.
