Tag Archives: Mutual of Omaha

Deadline 5/31 for Women to Apply at Current Low Premiums with Life Secure

Long Term Care, , , , , , , ,

Life Secure (owned by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan) has just announced that like the rest of the nation’s Long Term Care insurers, they will change their premium price structure for women. They have already filed the paperwork with the California Department of Insurance to update to their new policies. In fact, on June 1st they will be suspending LTC sales in California until their new policies are approved.

The premium cost for women, effective after 5/31 will be a minimum of 25% higher, even more for single women.

There is a 2 week window of opportunity, before Life Secure catches up to the other LTC companies.

The “sex” distinct pricing reflects an industry wide long term care claims history that women account for two of every three LTCi claims benefits paid. Genworth, Mutual of Omaha, Transamerica and John Hancock have already implemented a gender pricing structure.

Here is an “apples to apples” annual premium comparison for a married female age 55 for a $ 250,000 policy.

 

ANNUAL PREMIUM
     Life Secure       $1,419     
     Mutual of Omaha       $1,796     
     Genworth       $2,493     
     TransAmerica       $2,030     
     John Hancock       $2,611     

 

The message is clear – if you are a woman, or married to one, waiting to act is going to assure that a plan will be more expensive.

If your application reaches Life Secure prior to May 31, you will still have 4-6 weeks to think about LTC before finalizing the coverage.

If you think you want long-term care insurance, now is the time to apply!

Genworth Changing to gender rating: 3 weeks to apply at current low lower premiums

Long Term Care, , , , , , , ,

Yesterday, Genworth announced that like the rest of the nation’s leading insurers, they will change their premium price structure for women effective September 10, 2015.

The premium cost for women, effective after 9/10 will be a minimum of 25% higher, even more for single women.

There is a 3 week window of opportunity, before Genworth catches up to the other major companies.

The “sex” distinct pricing reflects an industry wide long term care claims history that women account for two of every three LTCi claims benefits paid. Mutual of Omaha, Transamerica and John Hancock have already implemented a gender pricing structure.

Here is an “apples to apples” annual premium comparison for a married female age 55 for a $ 250,000 policy.
     ANNUAL PREMIUM
     Genworth “Flex” (closes Sept 10th)      $1,116.68
     Mutual of Omaha      $1,516.29
     TransAmerica      $1,671.82
     John Hancock      $1,523.20

The message is clear – if you are a woman, or married to one, waiting to act is going to assure that a plan will be more expensive.

If your application reaches Genworth prior to September 10, you will still have 6-8 weeks to think about LTC before finalizing the coverage.

If you think you want long-term care insurance, now is the time to apply!

 

Mutual of Omaha is back in California

Long Term Care, , , ,

In early March, Mutual of Omaha came back to California with two new Long Term Care products.  The one I really like is the MutualCare Custom Solution. It, as the name suggests, is very customizable with some new rider options to the industry.

Policy Design Options:

  • Policy limits: $50,000 – $500,000 at $25,000 increments
  • Monthly Benefits:  $1,500 – $10,000 at $500 increments
  • Elimination Period: 0, 30, 90, 180 or 360 Calendar Days

This way of designing a plan gives a large range of coverage options, allowing it to be optimized for the client. In addition to the benefit options there are a number of Inflation Protection options. You can set up 1% – 5% compound inflation at .25% increments. By choosing any of the Inflation Protection options you are given the opportunity to increase the inflation protection each year.

Included Benefits in the policy:

  • Cash Benefit: 40% of the monthly benefit available in cash (up to $2,400)
  • Home Health Care – so you can stay at home as long as possible
  • Facility Care – up to 100% of the monthly benefit
  • Respite Care – to provide relief for unpaid caregivers (up to one month per calander year)
  • Hospice Care
  • International Benefit – up to the monthly maximum for 12 months
  • Waiver of Premium – waives the premiums while on claim

Optional Riders:

  • Waiver of Elimination Period for Home Health Care – 0 day elimination for home health care
  • Shared Care – if you reach your maximum benefit you can use your partners (until your partner has one year of care left) If either partner dies, the surviving partner will receive the the deceased partners benefits without having to continue paying the deceased partners premium
  • Joint Waiver of Premium – If one partner is on claim, both premiums are waived
  • Survivorship Benefit – If one partner dies after both policies have been in force for 10 years the premium is waived for the surviving partner

Another rider that I really like is the Security Benefit rider. If your partner doesn’t have a LTC policy, the Security Benefit will pay an additional 60% of the monthly reimbursement that can be used to help pay for care or living expenses. This is a great option for those with a spouse that may be uninsurable due to health reasons.

This new policy by Mutual of Omaha is also priced very competitively, making it a great addition to the California Long Term Care Insurance options.