If you already have health problems that are likely to mean you will need long-term care (for example, Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease), you probably won’t be able to buy a policy. Insurance companies have medical underwriting standards to keep the cost of long-term care insurance affordable. Without such standards, most people would not buy coverage until they needed long-term care services. Some states have a regulation requiring the insurance company and the agent to go through a worksheet with you to decide if long-term care insurance is right for you. The worksheet describes the premium for the policy you’re thinking about buying and asks you questions about the source.
