Tips to DI Underwriting Success

The more you know about DI underwriting, the easier it will be to get applications issued faster. That’s why we created a series of DI success tips that focus specifically on underwriting. This tip focuses on avoiding common application mistakes. On a DI application, these are the most often missed questions: Tobacco and nicotine replacement Unearned income Other inforce coverage Make sure these questions are answered before the application is submitted. Give specific information on employment information. Don’t just list the job title, but include the job setting and duties. Also, for medications, list the specific medical condition or diagnosis
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Categories: Disability Income Insurance, Industry News, and Mutual of Omaha (& Affiliates).

“Reverse Mortgage Pioneer Talks Past, Present, Future of Equity Conversion”

“Reverse Mortgage Pioneer Talks Past, Present, Future of Equity Conversion,” by Jessica Guerin, Reverse Mortgage Daily “Rather than using proceeds of a reverse mortgage to pay for long-term care costs, I have suggested using reverse mortgage proceeds to pay for the premiums of a private long-term care insurance policy, and then the insurance policy can pay for the costs of long-term care when needed.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Great idea that I’ve also advocated for a couple decades. This article is an interview with Yung-Ping “Bing” Chen, a long-time friend and fellow
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Categories: Industry News and Long-Term Care.

“Who Will Care for Us?: Long-Term Care and the Long-Term Workforce”

“Who Will Care for Us?: Long-Term Care and the Long-Term Workforce,” by Paul Osterman, new book from Russell Sage Foundation “The number of elderly and disabled adults who require assistance with day-to-day activities is expected to double over the next twenty-five years. As a result, direct care workers such as home care aides and certified nursing assistants (CNAs) will become essential to many more families. Yet these workers tend to be low-paid, poorly trained, and receive little respect. Is such a workforce capable of addressing the needs of our aging population? In Who Will Care for Us? economist Paul Osterman
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Categories: Industry News and Long-Term Care.

“Oregon removes nearly 55,000 people from Medicaid after they failed eligibility checks”

“Oregon removes nearly 55,000 people from Medicaid after they failed eligibility checks,” by Hillary Borrud, The Oregonian “Oregon has kicked nearly 55,000 people off its Medicaid program, after the state found they no longer qualified or failed to respond to an eligibility check. . . . Historically, around 28 percent of Oregonians on Medicaid were found to no longer qualify at annual eligibility reviews. But when the state finished working through its backlog of 115,000 Medicaid enrollees, it took the free insurance away from nearly 48 percent of them.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care
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Categories: Industry News and Long-Term Care.

“Warning comes with sharp rise in hospitals holding ownership links to post-acute care”

“Warning comes with sharp rise in hospitals holding ownership links to post-acute care,” by Emily Mongan, McKnight’s LTC News “The percentage of hospitals with shared ownership or investor links to a post-acute care provider jumped from 25% in 2005 to nearly 50% in 2015, a new Health Affairs study shows. That sharp increase could have policy- and care-related implications, according to the study’s authors. . . . Their findings, published Tuesday, showed that hospitals with investor links to skilled nursing facilities increased from 10.7% in 2005 to 17.5% in 2015. The study’s results also found 61.8% of skilled nursing facilities
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Categories: Industry News and Long-Term Care.

“Retiring This Year? Here’s What You’ll Pay for Health Care”

“Retiring This Year? Here’s What You’ll Pay for Health Care,” by Michael S. Fischer, ThinkAdvisor “Fidelity Investments reported Thursday that a 65-year-old couple retiring this year can expect an estimated $275,000 in health care and medical expenses throughout retirement. Fidelity’s annual analysis of retirees’ health care costs represented a 6% increase over last year’s estimate but a whopping 70% increase since its initial retiree health care cost estimate in 2002. . . . It assumes enrollment in Medicare health coverage, but does not include the added expenses of nursing home or long-term care.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President,
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Categories: Industry News and Long-Term Care.

“Respite Care: How to Ease the Stress of Caregiving”

“Respite Care: How to Ease the Stress of Caregiving,” by Kelly Burch, Parade “Your respite care might look like this: In-home caregivers can offer temporary services—from cooking, cleaning and companionship to medical assistance. Costs vary depending on where you live and the type of care. Medicare and long-term care insurance may cover the costs of more professional services. Adult daycare centers provide social activities with trained staff, and often include meals and transportation. Many offer services on sliding payment scales, based on income. Medicaid and long-term care insurance may cover costs. Ask about extra fees for field trips or other
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Categories: Industry News and Long-Term Care.

Customize your client’s premiums with MutualCare Custom Solutions Long-Term Care Insurance

If your client has a number in mind, an amount they can spend on an LTCi policy, it’s easy to make adjustments to arrive at an affordable premium using a variety of inflation duration and inflation percentage options. MutualCare Custom Solution provides: Inflation duration options that include lifetime, 20 years, 15 years and 10 years Inflation percentage options that range from one percent to five percent in increments of .25 percent A MutualCare Custom Solution policy gives your clients the flexibility to explore a variety of different inflation protection scenarios. For more information on how inflation protection is a benefit
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Categories: Industry News, Long-Term Care, and Mutual of Omaha (& Affiliates).

Customer Email Notifications

Customers who are currently set up for automatic deductions and enrolled in Customer Access will begin receiving a notification email when a renewal payment is about to be deducted from their bank account. The reminder email will include a link to Customer Access so your customers can make changes, if necessary before their renewal payment is withdrawn from their account. Customers who are signed up for automatic deductions will be receiving an email next week informing them they will begin receiving these email notifications. If you have questions, please contact your Mutual of Omaha Sales Director or Account Executive.  
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Categories: Industry News, Life Insurance, and Mutual of Omaha (& Affiliates).

Credit Card Payment Options are Now Available for In-Force Policies

Your customers can now make a renewal payment on an in force policy by making a one-time charge to their credit card. Your customers are able to use credit, debit and Social Security Direct Express cards for these one-time charges – and there is no additional fee. Available on these products for all states, except New York: Term Life Express (TLE) Living Promise (Final Expense) Children’s Whole Life (CWL) Term Life Answers (TLA) How your customers can pay by credit card: Your customers have two options for paying with credit card. They can log in to Customer Access before their
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Categories: Industry News, Life Insurance, and Mutual of Omaha (& Affiliates).