BSMG Blog: Protecting the Future of Families and Businesses

From the moment we all first received payment for work, we have, either consciously or subconsciously, put a dollar value on our time.

When I was 10 years old, with no earthly expenses, responsibilities, or any other place to be, $10 to mow the lawn at my parents’ house felt like a dream. If it took me an hour to do it, at $10/hour I felt like I was winning big. My expenses were zero, and I was therefore making infinity times my monthly expenses. I had nowhere else to be and no other method of earning, so my opportunity cost was also zero. Every time the lawn would get barely long enough to cut, I’d be asking to do it again, in what I felt like was a chance to cash the same paycheck.

Why is the long term care conversation so important to have with Mom and the women in your life? We're sure you already know that the life expectancy of women is higher than that of men, but did you know the difference is an average of 5 years. Also, women have higher rates of disability and chronic health problems. American Association for Long Term Care Insurance reports that women represent more than two-thirds of Americans age 85 or older, and more than 70 percent of nursing home residents are women! 

The long term care conversation is gaining more and more steam. The opportunity and responsibility is now for you and your clients to have the conversation with Mom. Ask her about her health and finances to get a better understanding of what she may need later in life. There are long term care and critical illness riders to help with these costly expenses.  You and your clients can start the planning today to better protect for tomorrow.  

Share these statistics with your clients. Download the infographic below and share with your clients they to begin the conversation with their moms. 

 Learn More: Mind the Gap: Life Insurance to Last Beyond 100

Permanent life insurance is designed to be in force for the policy holders lifetime to provide for a family and their assets. What happens when the policy owner outlives the maturity date on their policy? Things aren't like they used to be, people are living longer and life expectancies are increasing from what they were fifteen to twenty years ago.  

The World Health Organization projects the global number of centenarians to increase tenfold between 2010 and 2050.  While most life policies written today protect people until the age 121, LIMRA's data reports that nearly 6 in 10 Americans have life insurance that was purchased over 15 years ago. The problem here is that policies written before 2004 protected those insured only to an average age of 95 or 100. There is a big gap between age 95 and 121!

Are you talking to your clients about Long Term Care (LTC) and Linked Benefits? If so, great job! More than likely you have seen the positive impacts these conversations have on your business, as well as the lives of your clients. We know this to be true, which is why we are sharing client facing tools like this downloadable LTC infographic to help start the conversation with your clients. 

DOWNLOAD THE INFOGRAPHIC TO START SHARING WITH CLIENTS

The importance of Long Term Care (LTC) and Chronic Illness (CI) riders is more crucial than ever. By adding on these valuable options your clients can access tax-free life insurance benefits while living. Take a look at the benefits of AIG's Accelerated Access Solutions (AAS) as an example in this hypothetical case study. 

BSMG's Joseph Savastano addresses the shifting landscape and popularity of Long Term Care products. He touches upon client objections against LTC and how three types of solutions - Traditional LTC, Linked Benefit Products and Life insurance with LTC or Chronic Illness riders - address client needs. The presentation also includes an illustrated case example.

Read More: Top LTCi Blogs for Long Term Care Awareness Month

In celebration of Long Term Care Insurance Awareness Month, we wanted to bring you the top LTC blogs of all time, posted by BSMG! 

Last week we broke down a "Stand Alone Long Term Care Survey" to discuss the LTCi market landscape and a look into claims. Today, we will talk about the survey results for couples, home care coverage, and underwriting for LTCi.

Did you know?

Although 6 insurers saw an increase in Long Term Care (LTC) sales in 2015, overall policy sales, in this category, decreased 22.2% for a decrease of 18.3% in premium from 2014.

"The 2016 Milliman Long Term Care Insurance Survey is the eighteenth consecutive annual review of long-term care insurance (LTCI) published by Broker World magazine. It analyzes the marketplace, reports sales distributions, and details available products."

In 2015, 102,970 stand alone LTC policies were sold by sixteen carriers. These policy sales resulted in a new annualized premium of $257,097,874. This number is predicted to increase in 2016.

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, stop and think about all the things you have to be thankful for as a financial advisor. One main item at the top of your list should be...

"I have a chance to help people and their families avoid financial hardship."

We know your day-to-day work is hard; it’s physically and emotionally draining, especially at this time of year but in the end, the satisfaction you get when seeing the benefits your clients reap from sound financial planning is worth it. 

We challenge you to dig a bit deeper into your client conversations this holiday season and reach out to families about long-term care planning. Here are a few great resources to add to your memory bank and long term care planning arsenal.