Multi-life LTC Insurance Gaining Popularity
Recently, the country’s largest provider of employee insurance benefits, UNUM, announced that they will no longer offer group long-term care insurance to new customers. Clearly, there is a great need for these services, which prompted MedAmerica Insurance Company along with LTC Financial Partners, LLC (LTCFP) to announce their broad suite of LTC products, which will be available to employees at reduced underwriting and multi-life discounts. According to the article, “MedAmerica and LTC Financial Partners Announce a Broad Suite of Long-Term Care Insurance Products for the Workplace,” found on marketwatch.com, the LTC insurance industry is going through a vast change of policies, from traditional group plan, to multi-life LTC insurance, which is apparently more flexible and appropriate for modern times.
President of MedAmerica, Bill Jones, believes that while traditional group forms of long-term care insurance will remain in the picture, their popularity will likely decline as the multi-life model gains momentum because of its unique benefits. This new and improved product line will combine the choice and flexibility found with individual coverage, but with the cost reduction and simplicity of traditional group plans. Multi-life policies will have the freedom to be implemented as a voluntary benefit, one paid by the employer, or as a combination of both. The new products will also be appropriate in all work settings, regardless of size. CEO of LTCFP, Cameron Truesdell, claims that the traditional group plans “tend to be one-size-fits-all,” often with little choice and high premiums. He states that due to sophisticated underwriting, and simple, high-tech implementation, there will be a plethora of options, which is almost always preferred by employees and employers alike.
The new line of products is called LTC Complete Worksite Solutions, and Med America will complete all of the underwriting and claims management. LTCFP is the distributor of the program, with several hundred agents across the country. There are several benefits that the suite of products boasts. For example, employees can choose a low cost starter plan that can be used to supplement coverage or can be expanded at a later date. Additionally, employees can specify how they’d like to receive benefits, utilizing a reimbursement or cash plan. Inflation riders will also be available, as will personalized services from LTC specialists, amongst other things. According to Truesdell, this product suite is a “leading example of multi-life LTC benefit, which has a huge future as our workforce grows older.”
