New York Estate Planning & Elder Law Blog
New York insurance laws allow for insurance providers to offer insured seniors life-care policy coverage. A specialized form of insurance coverage, a life-care policy indemnifies the holder for end-of-life care and treatment as part of an extended life services agreement. Distinct from a limited life insurance agreement, life-care coverage can be purchased as a separate policy. An option for estate planning clients, life-care can be written into an agreement as part of a comprehensive insurance policy. Combining life insurance with the added health and life expense benefits that may be required by an estate holder while still alive, life-care coverage protects valuable estate and trust assets in the interim. Insurance policies offering value-added, life-care coverage agreements:
1) Extended Life-care Policies
A comprehensive life-care policy will cover life insurance beneficiaries on death, as well as any life expenses a holder may have such as residential services, housing, treatment, and end-of-life costs. Some extended life-care policies also offer healthcare services agreements with unlimited access to medical providers at little to no difference in fee assignment. Extended life-care policies tend have a higher sign-on fees.
2) Modified Life-Care Policies
Life insurance policies modified to include health care services, provide an insured with unlimited medical care expense coverage without any increase to monthly premium fees. A modified extended life-care agreement, this type of insurance policy may also include coverage of a limited stay in a full-care nursing facility with no extra service provider costs.
3) Fee-for-service Policies
A limited type of life-care insurance policy, a fee-for-service agreement enables an insured to take advantage of healthcare services at market rates. This on-demand model of life-care agreement, offers an insured specified service coverage at a lower sign-on fee. Fee-for-service life-care policies are generally considered to be inadequate for covering the costs of long-term care patients.
NY Insurance Provisions
Life-care insurance provisions within New York Consolidated Laws, Insurance Laws are defined by rules to “Access to specialty care” ISC § 4804 and “Access to end of life care” ISC 4805. Article 28 – F., Section 2899 n. Relation to other laws and contracts is part of recently introduced legislation outlining the state’s rules to end-of-life planning. New York is one of twelve states to incorporate “Policy Conversion Consumer Disclosure” legislation within its insurance statute. The disclosure rule is intended as an educational provision for policyholders, and mandates disclosure of “Long Term Care Benefit Plan” structure within life-care insurance policies. A strategy to promote an end to forced Medicaid sign-on, the disclosure rule expands protections for insured seeking life-care coverage independently.
Estate Planning Attorney
A licensed attorney at law can advise a client about the terms and conditions
of a life-care insurance agreement before signing on. Ettinger Law Firm is a licensed New
York attorney practice specializing in financial planning and estate probate
litigation. Contact Ettinger Law Firm to schedule a consultation about an estate law related matter.
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