“We are receiving an increased number of questions from consumers and hearing from more family members who are having difficulty getting claims approved for their aging parents,” explains Jesse Slome, director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.  ”These are individuals who did the right thing and purchased insurance.  We want to do what we can to help make it easy for them to get the benefits they qualify for.”

According to the organization, the nation’s long-term care insurance companies paid out $12.3 billion in claim benefits in 2021.  “That’s over 336,000 very happy policyholders and families,” Slome declares.  “But it’s not always smooth sailing for everyone and we are hearing about more frustration as people report increased difficulty even getting through to claims departments for answers to simple questions.”

The Association will launch a new online claims resource.  “We’ll start with the most commonly asked questions we receive,” Slome explains.  “As people share other questions or pose issues, we’ll add answers and information as a benefit to others.”

Access Long-Term Care Insurance Claims Resource

Access the long-term care insurance claims information center via the organization’s website. To see a history of amounts paid for long-term care insurance claims go to https://www.aaltci.org/news/long-term-care-insurance-association-news/claims-paid-2021-grow-by-700-million.

The American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance (AALTCI) advocates for the importance of long-term care planning and supports insurance professionals who market both traditional and hybrid LTC solutions.  To access the latest long-term care insurance statistics including need and insurance, visit the Association’s Data Center at www/aaltci.org/LTCFacts-2022/.

To obtain long-term care insurance costs from a long-term care insurance specialist call the organization at 818-597-3227 or visit their website https://www.aaltci.org.

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“The holidays are an ideal time to take an aging parental reality check,” suggests Jesse Slome, director of the American Association for Long Term Care Insurance.  “Those who can’t regularly look in on aging family members should use seasonal visits to help aging parents maintain their independence as long as possible.”

Holiday visits are an excellent opportunity to assess the health of a loved one, to address home safety issues and to discuss important planning issues.  “Difficult discussions are best started in a face-to-face setting because they are seldom one-shot conversations,” Slome acknowledges.

Some tips when visiting older loved ones:

Check the home environment.  Look for unopened mail, especially unpaid bills.   Address safety issues such as loose rugs or wires that could result in falls.

Has the parent lost weight.  Is there outdated and spoiled food in the refrigerator or pantry?

Write down important information including the license plate of the parent’s car.  That way, if it is gone, you’ll have information accessible to share with the police.

Prepare a list of medications and the physician contact information.  Record important local resources such as plumbers or electricians should repair issues arise.

Ask if the parent has prepared advanced health directives and know where they keep copies.  If they own long term care insurance protection write down the policy number and claim department contact information.   ”The number of people calling with questions about policy benefits increases by roughly 15 percent immediately following the holidays,” explains Bill Jones, President of MedAmerica a family of leading long term care insurance carriers.   ”Many older Americans eventually need some hands-on assistance and the holidays are often the time of year when families recognize that eventuality has arrived.”

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