Mistakes to Avoid When Shopping for Long-Term-Care Insurance

How to Pick the Best the Policy for Your Needs and What to Avoid

By Anne Tergesen, WSJ
April 13, 2014 4:50 p.m. ET

It's a decision many baby boomers are grappling with: Should I buy long-term-care insurance?

The decision has never been more difficult. According to researchers at Georgetown University and Pennsylvania State University, about 70% of individuals 65 and older will need long-term care—whether at home or in an assisted-living facility or nursing home.

Have questions about long-term-care insurance? Don't miss this interactive video interview, featuring a panel of retirement-planning experts, hosted by The Wall Street Journal's Anne Tergesen.

At the same time, however, the price of long-term-care insurance keeps going up. A 55-year-old couple, for example, can expect to spend about $3,275 in annual premiums for $164,000 of coverage for each that grows by 3% a year, according to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, a trade group for insurance agents.

For some people, of course, long-term-care policies make no sense. Medicaid is there to help people who have little money. (Medicare doesn't typically cover continuing care.) People with assets of $2 million or more, meanwhile, can probably afford to pay for long-term care out of pocket, although a policy may still make sense to ensure they have money to leave to their heirs.

(More here.)