Life Insurance Riders
Previously, consumers had to purchase long-term care insurance separately from other policies. Now, more and more life insurers are offering a long-term care option as a policy rider.Long-Term Care
Americans are living longer and longer, which is a blessing and a challenge. Before the drop in mortality rates, long-term care was unheard of and largely unnecessary. Most would die before long-term care was necessary. However, now you can almost guarantee that you will need some form of long-term care as you get older. Until now, consumers have had to purchase a stand-alone long-term care policy, but they can now include this coverage as a life insurance rider. This combination of traditional products is permitted in most states, and it is an effective way to pay for the costs of long-term care while you're still alive. You get all the benefits of an insurance policy, with some living benefits also included. When you look for online term life insurance rates, you can find policies and annuities that include these valuable riders.
Acceleration and Extension Riders
As you look for online term life insurance rates, you will usually have the choice between two types of long-term care riders: acceleration and extension. Acceleration riders allow you to get an advance on the death benefit of your policy if long-term care becomes necessary. In other words, the rider allows the policyholder to "accelerate" the death benefit to pay for long-term care expenses. Of course, if long-term care is needed for an extended period of time, you will eventually use up the death benefit of your policy. An extension rider, on the other hand, allows you long-term care coverage beyond your policy's death benefit. Under some circumstances, it will even let you continue withdrawing money after your death benefit is exhausted.
How They Work
How you access your long-term care riders will depend on your insurance company. With some companies, you are allowed to collect a certain percentage of the policy's death benefit on a monthly basis. With other companies, you are reimbursed for your long-term care expenses as they occur. Before you can access either type of rider, something bad must happen to you. For instance, you may require home health care, which might allow you to access your rider with some insurers. Other insurers might require that you are chronically ill and unable to perform a certain number of daily living activities. Some companies may grant you access to the rider if you have a cognitive impairment, such as Alzheimer's or dementia.
