“Plan ahead, protect assets from nursing home costs,” by Bonnie Kraham, Times Herald

“To plan ahead to protect assets from nursing home costs, you may either buy long-term care insurance or create a Medicaid Assets Protection Trust (MAPT) that protects trusts from nursing home costs after five years. . . . If you’re a single applicant, we have the ‘Gift and Loan’ strategy. . . . If you’re a married applicant, we have some general protections, and then we have ‘Spousal Refusal’ if your assets exceed the general protections.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): See why we need to close Medicaid LTC eligibility loopholes? Plan ahead,
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Categories: Industry News and Long-Term Care.

“The Urban Institute Model Of Financing Long-Term Services And Supports: A Critical Review,” by Mark Warshawsky, Health Affairs Blog

“Scoring in the LTSS area needs to be based on widely accepted facts (i.e., a fair reading of the literature and/or settled empirical findings), completely transparent (with all major assumptions disclosed and justified), and robust (to consider all types of policy interventions). Scoring should also be alternatively illustrated by conservative results and assumptions, to give a sense of the possible range of outcomes. Unfortunately, despite the great apparent effort of the Urban Institute, their model, as presently constituted, cannot serve this purpose.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): This is a devastating refutation of
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Categories: Industry News and Long-Term Care.

Priority Income Protection State Release

The following states are approved to sell Priority Income Protection as of March 1, 2017: CT, DC, DE, MT, ND, and SD. Priority Income Protection℠ helps you serve your middle income clients who have no current income protection and simply need basic coverage. The policy can also supplement existing group coverage to help clients complete their protection needs. Simple product, easy to understand (no riders) Affordable, clients choose their benefit amount and period to help fit cost to their budget Convenient, easy quote and e-App with knock-out questions, no medical exams or financial documentation required Fast protection, coverage is issued
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Categories: Disability Income Insurance and Mutual of Omaha (& Affiliates).

Medicare Supplement News – Omaha Family of Companies

Upcoming Rate Adjustment Please review information on upcoming rate adjustments in Al and TX. •  In-Force Only Rate Adjustment – TX supp •  1990 Standardized Rate Adjustment – TX supp and AL Modernized Rate Release The following rate adjustment is effective March 1, 2017, for new and in-force 2010 Modernized Medicare supplement in Mississippi and South Dakota. #goldencareagent #MutualOfOmaha
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Categories: Industry News, Medicare Supp./Adv., and Mutual of Omaha (& Affiliates).

Rate Adjustments Effective May 1, 2017

Long-Term Care insurance (LTCi) is a core product for Mutual of Omaha and we intend to remain a key player in this market for years to come. In order to fulfill this commitment, we actively monitor emerging industry trends as well as our own experience so we can make the adjustments necessary that will allow us to keep our promises to policyholders and remain competitive in the marketplace. For this reason, we will be implementing the following rate adjustments effective May 1, 2017: Block of Business Impacted States NHA, LTA, HCA, LT50, NH50 North Dakota, Oklahoma LTC04G West Virginia  
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Categories: Long-Term Care and Mutual of Omaha (& Affiliates).

Pennsylvania Approves Lower Inflation Rates for Partnership

Lower inflation rates now qualify for Partnership status in Pennsylvania for the MutualCare® Solutions (LTC13) products. This change will be implemented on March 1, 2017. LTC13 policies issued in Pennsylvania on or after January 10, 2017, will determine Partnership qualification based on these new guidelines. Software Information The Winflex and MutualCare® Solutions software can be downloaded from SPA starting on March 1st for PA. View states with approved Partnership and details here. Please remember to keep your Winflex or MutualCare® Solutions software up-to-date by downloading the latest version from SPA. For additional details on Partnership policies and information visit our
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Categories: Long-Term Care and Mutual of Omaha (& Affiliates).

Transamerica Holiday Closure February 20

The Transamerica Long Term Care administrative office in Plano, TX will be closed Monday, February 20, 2017, in observance of Presidents Day. Please allow additional time if necessary to order and receive materials during that time. Much of the important materials and resources you may need will be continue to be available on our Agent Resource Center. Transamerica Holiday Closure February 20 #goldencareagent #Transamerica
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Categories: Industry News and Transamerica.

“5 Long-Term Care Planning Lessons From ‘Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory’,” by Jamie Hopkins, Forbes

“Recently, a close family friend emailed me about his long-term care insurance policy, expressing his frustration over yet another premium increase. Despite the rising cost, he still feels good about his decision to have a long-term care insurance policy in place to help protect himself and his family. The discussion brought to my mind one of the most powerful and iconic scenes in children’s literature. I am referring to Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory . . ..” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): If you wonder where the author goes with that allusion,
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Categories: Industry News and Long-Term Care.

Mutual of Omaha: Mutually Invested in Long-Term Care

Want Your LTCi Business Issued Quickly? (We do, too!) Join LTC Underwriting Manager Demerri Bond for a look at how our underwriting team is invested in your success. Learn how we strive to issue your business as quickly as possible and get tips on what you can do to improve your placement rates. Join the Webinar Wednesday, February 22 | 2 p.m. CST Call-in Number: 1-888-816-4043 Conference Code: 402 351 5509 More Information   #goldencareagent #mutualofomaha
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Categories: Long-Term Care and Mutual of Omaha (& Affiliates).

LTCi Statistics

Some of the decisions about whether to purchase long term care insurance are highly dependent on a variety of factors, including an individual’s or couple’s finances and their desire to leave a bequest, their health history, and the peace of mind derived from obtaining coverage. Having access to revealing industry facts might also affect one’s decision. We have provided the following list of LTCi statistics1 that we hope you might share with your future LTCi clients. 44% of men will need LTCi 58% of women will need LTCi 22% of men will need LTC for more than one year in
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Categories: Long-Term Care and United Security.