• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • WHO WE ARE
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • News and Events
  • Areas We Serve
    • Essex County, MA
      • Andover
      • Beverly
      • North Andover
    • Hillsborough County, NH
      • Manchester
      • Nashua
    • Middlesex County, MA
      • Concord
      • Lexington
      • Wakefield
      • Winchester
      • Woburn
    • Rockingham County, NH
      • Exeter
      • Londonderry
      • Salem
  • Services
    • Asset & Business Planning
    • Elder Law & Medicaid Services
    • Estate And Gift Tax Figures
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Legacy Planning Services
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Loss Of A Loved One
    • Pet Planning
    • Power Of Attorney
    • Probate and Trust Administration
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Young Families
  • Elder Law
    • Coping with Alzheimer’s
    • Hospice Care
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Nursing Home Planning
  • Resources
    • Elder Law
      • Elder Law & Medicaid Definitions
      • Elder law reports
      • Elder Law Resources
        • Elder Law Resources – Londonderry, New Hampshire
        • Elder Law Resources North Andover, Massachusetts
        • Nashua, New Hampshire Elder Law Resources
        • Woburn, MA Elder Law Resources
    • Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning Articles
      • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
        • Advanced Estate Planning
        • Basic Estate Planning
        • Estate Planning for Niches
        • Trust Administration
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Free Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Asset Protection Planning
      • Business Planning
      • Charitable Gifting
      • Estate Planning
      • Elder Law
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Incapacity Planning
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Wills and Trusts
    • Medicaid Calculator
    • Newsletters
    • Presentations
    • Probate and Trust Administration
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss Of A Loved One
      • Probate Resources
        • Nashua, New Hampshire Probate Resources
        • Probate Resources – Londonderry, New Hampshire
        • Probate Resources – North Andover, MA
        • Probate Resources – Wakefield, Massachusetts
        • Woburn, MA Probate Resources
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
    • Published Books
  • Seminars
    • Live Seminars
    • Online Seminars
  • Videos
  • Contact Us
  • Blog
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us

DeBruyckere Law Offices, PC

Serving Southern New Hampshire & Essex Country, Massachussetts

Call us today(603) 894-4141

(978) 969-0331

Online Seminars
Attend Free Seminar
Home » Special Needs » The Long Term Care Crisis in Massachusetts

The Long Term Care Crisis in Massachusetts

April 2, 2015Special Needs

capture-20141215-205345

Fifteen years ago, there were around 40 long term care providers that offered these types of insurance policies in Massachusetts. Today, there are less than twelve. Genworth is the latest provider of long-term care insurance that has opted to cease offering these types of policies in the state. Unfortunately, it was also the largest insurer in the state. Massachusetts consumers in search of this type of insurance with the goal of helping to pay for the rising prices for nursing homes and elder services are finding a less than ideal market. Genworth’s decision is simply the highlight of this latest quandary many seniors face.

Genworth Financial has attempted to raise its rates in order to cover the rocketing healthcare costs not only in the state, but across the country. It actually ceased its practices this past December, though many are just beginning to feel the repercussions. Its reason is because state regulators never acted on its request for rate increases, some up to 134 percent. Company spokespersons say it’s not about profit, but survivability. The company had tried since 2012 to secure those increases.

Fortunately, if you’re one of the 35,000 policies already in place in Massachusetts, you’re still covered. These 35,000 policies account for 3 percent of Genworth’s 1.1 million long-term care customers nationwide, company officials said.

Insurance for long-term care was designed to fill the gap between Medicare, the health insurance for the elderly that covers only short-term rehabilitation and recovery services, and Medicaid, the program for the poor that pays for long-term care after a senior exhausts assets and meets income requirements.

It doesn’t help that our state is ranked highest in the costs associated with elder care. Last year, the annual costs of a home health care aide was a massive $57,000 – and indicative of a 3 percent increase from 2013. If you live in a semiprivate room in a nursing home, those costs were more than $126,900 each year.

While Massachusetts residents are feeling the heat, the problem extends across the nation. Many are concerned about the growing costs and shrinking options. Genworth isn’t the only insurance company that’s said, “Thanks, but no thanks” to this type of coverage. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. and Unum Group Corp, both heavy hitters in long term care coverage, have discontinued the policies for new applicants. They cite big losses and no way to recover those losses, even with rate increases.

Genworth is also rescinding its offers for long term care in New Hampshire and Vermont.

Despite the warnings we’ve heard for years about the baby boomer retirement period, many of these insurance companies say they were unprepared and admit to underestimating the number of new applications, which mean new claims. Genworth alone lost $416 million, with most of those losses coming from the long term care division.

For now, the Massachusetts Division of Insurance is working with the industry, regulators from other states, and various stakeholders, such as advocates for consumers and the elderly, to find better solutions. It’s both time consuming and costly. If you’re concerned about long term care coverage for you or a loved one, we invite you to contact DeBruyckere Law Offices, PC to discuss your options.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Daniel DeBruyckere
Daniel DeBruyckere
Attorney Daniel A. DeBruyckere has been practicing law in New Hampshire and Massachusetts since 1998, and has helped hundreds of clients with their estate planning and elder care issues. He is very well respected in the area of estate planning, probate, trust administration, elder law issues, and business planning.
Daniel DeBruyckere
Latest posts by Daniel DeBruyckere (see all)
  • Do I Need an Attorney to Administer a Trust? - January 26, 2023
  • How Using a Trust Can Protect a Valuable Inheritance - January 24, 2023
  • What Seniors Need to Know to Protect Assets - January 19, 2023

Other Articles You May Find Useful

DeBruyckere Law Offices, PC | Estate Planning & Medicaid Attorneys
Special Needs Planning for Grandparents
Special needs planning
Can Special Needs Planning Protect My Child’s Inheritance?
How a Special Needs Trust Can Protect Government Benefits
Elder 150x150
Residents with Special Needs or Alzheimer ’s Disease Now Have New Police Program in New Hampshire
DeBruyckere Law Offices, PC | Estate Planning & Medicaid Attorneys
Billions Gone: Medicare Advantage Plans Overcharges
DeBruyckere Law Offices, PC | Estate Planning & Medicaid Attorneys
Your Social Security and COLA

Download our free Estate Planning Worksheet

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkdin
  • Youtube
  • Instagram

Blog Subscribe

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Testimonials

DeBruyckere Law Offices, PC footer

Connect with Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkdin
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
footer-logo

© 2023 DeBruyckere Law Offices
All Right Reseved.

Attorney Advertisement

© 2023 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.