LTC regulator panel may consider viaticals, hybrids

April 04, 2016 at 10:26 AM
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Members of the new Long Term Care Innovation Subgroup want to talk about possible alternatives to traditional stand-alone long-term care insurance (LTCI) as well as to traditional LTCI.

The subgroup, part of the Senior Issues Task Force at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), has adopted proposed charges that call for it to "review the number of alternative products structures being developed, and, in some cases, sold by companies (i.e., long-term care/life combination products, term products, and universal long-term care insurance policies."

The subgroup hopes to "consider whether these are viable alternative products and what other types of products may assist in financing long-term care costs," according to the proposed charges. 

The Senior Issues Task Force adopted the subgroup's proposed charges during a conference call meeting in February.

Rich Robleto, a Florida regulator, suggested during the call that the subgroup might look at the use of life settlements and reverse mortgages in long-term care (LTC) planning.

The task force itself is part of the Health Insurance and Managed Care Committee, one of the top-level committees at the NAIC. The committee is preparing to consider the charges Monday, during an in-person session at the NAIC's spring meeting in New Orleans, according to a committee meeting packet.

Members of the LTC Innovation Subgroup brought in Bruce Chernof of the SCAN Foundation and Katherine Hays of the Bipartisan Policy Center to brief them on two of the major LTC reform proposals now circulating among policymakers.

Bonnie Burns of California Health Advocates, one of the people that the NAIC has appointed to represent consumer interests in NAIC proceedings, said in response to both presentations that a key component missing in the discussions has been care management and care coordination. Care coordination "must be part of any discussion in addressing the financing of long-term care," Burns said, according to meeting minutes included in the packet.

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