Arizona Long Term Care, Insurance, LTC Partnership, Premiums and Quotes 

Long term care involves various services that are intended to provide medical and personal assistance with daily activities such as bathing, eating, and grooming. This is one of those sticky issues facing American families that is best thought out and planned for earlier. The U.S Department of Health and Human Services says that over two thirds of Americans will need some kind of long term care after they reach the age of 65. Given that the average annual cost of a nursing home private room is well over $100,000, long term care expenses can devastate families’ savings and cause financial strain. 

The Grand Canyon State is amongst the most populous states in the country with over 7.28 million residents based on the 2019 World Population Review. The aging group – individuals over the age of 65 years – are more than 900,000 and counting. This has led to an increase in demand for long term care services at home, as well as in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. The state is emphasizing on the need for long term care coverage to prevent future property loss and emotional strain in families.

How to pay for long term care

Arizonans have a variety of ways to pay for long term care based on their personal preferences and financial capacity.

1. Self funding 

If you have significant wealth, then you may choose to pay for long term care out of pocket. This option provides maximum flexibility in that you can choose where and how you want to receive your care. Keep in mind though that the average annual cost of a private nursing home room in Arizona is $94,900. That would total up to $284,700 for a single long term care event lasting 3 years. 

1. Medicare

Medicare is a federal program that assists citizens to pay for medical bills and services. Medicare in Arizona only pays for long term care provided in Medicare qualified nursing homes and assisted living facilities.  You will need to meet certain requirements to become eligible for Medicare benefits. Medicare does not pay for custodial care such as bathing and walking, which makes up more than 90% of long term care.

1. Insurance

Arizonans have two primary types of insurance to choose from: 

• Traditional Long Term Insurance – this is the typical insurance arrangement where you pay annual premiums in exchange for long term care coverage. Traditional Insurance offers asset protection and make up about half the LTC insurance sold in Arizona.These policies have become less popular in recent years due to unpredictable premium hikes. 
• Hybrid Long Term Insurance – this type of long term care insuran You may subscribe via a single lump sum deposit, or several payments over a given period of time. Hybrid insurance is advantageous in that it eliminates the use-it-or-lose-it scenario with traditional insurance. If you need long term care, then the policy will pay out benefits. But if you do not need long term care, a death benefit will be paid out to your beneficiaries. 

LTC Tree specialists have helped thousands of Arizona families find the best long term care insurance to suit their budget and unique circumstances. Our goal is to help you plan ahead so you can protect your assets and save your family from emotional strain. Check out quotes from top blue chip insurers here.

Most popular long term care companies in Arizona

1. Genworth
2. Mutual of Omaha
3. Transamerica
4. Mass Mutual
5. John Hancock 
6. Northwestern 
7. Prudential

Arizona Long Term Care System (ALTCS)

Arizona Long Term Care System (ALTCS) is a Medicaid program that assists fixed-income seniors and other disabled individuals in Arizona to pay for medical expenses and services. The program requires your income to be not more than $2,313 to become eligible without including personal needs income( if any).  If your income is in excess of $2,313,you can still qualify for ALTCS coverage if excess income is placed into a Miller Trust. The trust must be irretrievable and in the event that the beneficiary passes away, Arizona Medicaid must be the pronounced recipient.

Arizona partnership for long term care

An LTC partnership program is essentially a collaboration between the state and private insurers. The Arizona Long Term Care Partnership program is a public-private partnership that aims to provide affordable, quality long-term care insurance while protecting residents’ assets. The innovative program is a collaboration between the state’s Medicaid program and insurance companies and is designed to provide Grand Canyon State residents with a motive to buy a Long Term Care insurance that protects their assets.

Those who purchase a Long Term Care insurance policy through the AZ Long Term Care Partnership program are protected both by their private policy and eventually, if needed, by Medicaid. An added advantage is that LTC insurance policies have reciprocity thus you may still receive the amazing Arizonan LTC services and benefits if you move to another state. 

Basically, the LTC partnership program works like this: If your Partnership policy is worth (let’s say) $200,000, and you use that amount of benefits but continue to need care, you can apply for Medicaid coverage while protecting your assets. During your Medicaid application, then $200,000 worth of your personal assets – such as savings or family-owned businesses – would be exempted from the qualification requirements . Further, Medicaid would not recover that $200,000 from your estate’s resources after you die.

Below are a few important highlights of the program:

• You can only protect up to the same dollar amount as your Long Term Care Insurance policy has paid out
• You must purchase inflation protection, subject to age limitations.
• You will have to meet all other Medicaid qualifications.

Cost of Long Term Care in Arizona

It’s important to know the cost of long term care in Arizona so you can select enough insurance coverage based on your area of residence. Below is a table that highlights the cost of care in different regions of Arizona, based on Genworth’s 2018 cost of care survey.

Cost of Long Term Care Insurance Premiums in AZ

Premium rates for long term policies can vary depending on aspects such as your age at the time of purchase. LTC Tree recommends that you purchase LTC insurance when young and healthy because you will likely meet most if not all requirements.  Your long term care insurance premiums cost in Arizona are also determined by the following:

• Benefit period – this refers to the total amount of time (in years) throughout which the insurance policy will pay out benefits.
• Daily maximum benefit – refers to the maximum dollar amount an LTC policy will reimburse you for each day when you receive care.
• Elimination period – an elimination period is the length of time between when you start receiving care and when the policy starts paying for that care.
• Inflation protection – when selected, this policy feature ensures that the benefit dollars you receive should you need long term care in the future are adjusted for inflation.

Arizona LTC Premium Cost Calculations

LTC Tree insurance specialists calculated the average premium cost for males, females, and couples seeking to purchase LTC insurance within the 50 – 65 age bracket at 5 year intervals.These sample premium calculations assume that the policy applicant selects an elimination period of 90 days, a daily maximum benefit of $200, and a benefit period of 3 years.

→ At Age 50

Single Male, Age 50, pays $1894 annually

Single Female, Age 50, will pay $2,277

Couple, each age 50, pays a combined $3,291 annually

→ At Age 55

Single Male, Age 55, pays $1,967 annually

Single Female, Age 55, will pay $2,381

Couple, each age 55, pays a combined $3,308 annually

→ At Age 60

Single Male, Age 60, pays $2,070 annually

Single Female, Age 60, will pay $2,963

Couple, each age 60, pays a combined $3,390 annually

→ At Age 65

Single Male, Age 65, pays $2,627 annually

Single Female, Age 65, will pay $3,921

Couple, each age 65, pays a combined $4,453 annually

Note: premium rates increase as you get older, regardless of gender. Women also tend to pay more for long term care insurance compared to men of the same age. Another important observation from the calculations above is that couples who decide to purchase their policy jointly can save a lot of money in annual premium rates.