Long Term Care Insurance

What does long-term care insurance cover?

Think help with bathing, dressing, eating, using the toilet, managing continence or transferring, such as getting out of bed. Long-term care isn't just nursing home care.

Depending on its terms, a policy may cover home care, adult day care, assisted living, nursing home care, respite care or hospice. Check which services and settings the contract includes. Don't assume every policy covers the same care.

When does a policy start paying?

You must meet the policy's benefit trigger. The NAIC's 2022 shopper's guide says many policies use needing help with two of six activities of daily living. For tax-qualified coverage, the need for substantial help must be expected to last at least 90 days, or you must need substantial supervision because of severe cognitive impairment.

That expected duration isn't the same as an elimination period. The elimination period is the waiting time before benefits begin, during which you pay for care yourself. Our guide to how long-term care insurance works explains these moving parts.

How much does long-term care cost?

The 2025 Cost of Care Survey reported these national medians. They're care costs, not insurance premiums, and they aren't a quote for your neighborhood.

• Non-medical care at home: $35 per hour in 2025.
• Adult day health care: $95 per day in 2025.
• Assisted living: $6,200 per month in 2025.
• Nursing home, semi-private room: $114,975 per year in 2025.
• Nursing home, private room: $129,575 per year in 2025.

Use local care prices when planning. Then ask how much of that bill you could comfortably pay yourself.

Who pays if you don't have insurance?

Medicare doesn't pay for ongoing long-term custodial care. Most health insurance, including Medicare supplement coverage, doesn't either. Without another payer, those bills fall to you.

Medicaid can cover nursing home and home-based long-term care if you meet your state's eligibility rules. Income and asset limits apply, and covered services vary by state. It isn't an automatic fallback.

If you plan to use savings or family help, talk through the money and caregiving expectations now. Explore alternatives to long-term care insurance before settling on a plan.

Which policy features deserve a closer look?

• Traditional versus hybrid: Compare standalone long-term care coverage with life insurance or annuity contracts that include long-term care benefits. Read how the benefits work, not just the product label.
• Inflation protection: This increases potential benefits as care costs rise, but also increases the premium.
• Premium increases: An insurer can't raise your premium just because you claim benefits or your health changes. It can raise rates for an entire class of policies, subject to state filing or approval requirements.
• Partnership policies: State rules vary. These policies may let you retain additional assets when qualifying for Medicaid, based on benefits paid. They must be tax-qualified and include required inflation protection.

How do you decide whether to buy?

Start with what you want to protect and what you can afford. Could you handle care bills from savings? Could you keep paying premiums if they increased? Who would help arrange your care?

Compare covered settings, benefit triggers, waiting periods, inflation protection and premium terms. Ask what each policy would leave you paying yourself.

When you're ready, compare long-term care insurance quotes using the same coverage assumptions so the differences are easier to see.