Genworth Financial Inc. (NYSE:GNW) is setting up a long-term care (LTC) planning education site, and it's introducing an LTCI product with a design meant to hold costs down. It's great to see Genworth continuing to have an interest in the LTCI market. If Genworth doesn't continue to have some love for that market, who will?
And, certainly, consumers need to think more about LTC planning and know more about the possibility of insuring themselves against LTC risk. But it seems to me that one huge, obvious problem is that the kinds of people who normally would be obvious candidates for buying private LTCI are running on fumes.
They are former, or even current, corporate executives, business owners or professional practice owners who look prosperous. They take nice trips, play golf and give to charity.
But, back when the rules on credit cards and home equity loans were different, they borrowed money to survive the effects of layoffs, or to keep their businesses or practices afloat or adult children afloat during the Great Recession. They look fine, but the roofs in their houses are caving in because they are using all available income to pay off the bills and preserve the illusion that they're solvent.