Best Long-Term Care Insurance

Mutual of Omaha has the best traditional long-term care insurance because of its customizable options and great customer service.

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Best Long-Term Care Insurance Companies

To find the best long-term care insurance companies, ValuePenguin's experts compared coverage amounts, coverage length options and waiting periods for major long-term care insurance companies. Local agent availability, AM Best financial strength ratings and complaint levels from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) were also considered.

Our experts analyzed traditional, standalone long-term care insurance as well as life insurance with long-term care add-on coverage. Long-term care insurance can be complex, so companies that offered flexible benefits, multiple products and local agents were ranked more highly.

Best long-term care insurance companies

Mutual of Omaha, New York Life and Nationwide are the best long-term care insurance companies.

Company
Best for
Type of policies
Mutual of Omaha Life Insurance logo
Mutual of OmahaTraditional long-term care insuranceStandalone policies and riders on life insurance
New York Life logo
New York LifeFlexible policy optionsStandalone policies and riders on life insurance
Nationwide logo
NationwideHybrid long-term care insuranceRiders on life insurance
Long-term care (LTC) insurance can help you pay for the high costs associated with nursing home, assisted living or in-home care. Nursing home care usually costs more than $100,000 per year, and more than two-thirds of people age 65 or older will need long-term care.

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You should work with a licensed agent when you buy long-term care insurance because the policies can be complex. You often can't get online quotes and usually can't buy a policy online because of the complexity. An agent can listen to your needs and help you choose options that are right for you.

You can buy a traditional standalone long-term care insurance policy or add long-term care coverage onto a life insurance policy. Either way, having coverage can help you and your family avoid high costs if you need long-term care later in life.

Mutual of Omaha: Best traditional long-term care insurance

  • Editor rating

  • Complaints: Fewer than average

Mutual of Omaha has two standalone long-term care policies so you can choose the best option for you.

Pros

  • Two policies to choose from

  • Has a policy that covers your costs right away

  • Local agents available

Cons

  • No online quotes

  • Website doesn't list specific policy options

Mutual of Omaha sells two standalone long-term care plans, MutualCare Secure and MutualCare Custom, that let you tailor your coverage to your needs. You have to work with an agent to get a policy.

MutualCare Secure is a good basic policy, and MutualCare Custom gives you more options. For example, with all long-term care plans, you have to choose a "waiting period" or "elimination period." This is the amount of time you have to pay for your own long-term care before your plan will start paying. With MutualCare Custom, you can choose a zero-day waiting period, which means your plan will start paying for your care as soon as you need it.

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The shorter your waiting period, the faster your long-term care insurance will start to pay for your living costs. You'll pay more each month for a shorter waiting period, but you won't have to pay for as much of your long-term care costs as you would otherwise.

MutualCare Custom also lets you choose an overall policy limit. With most long-term care plans, including MutualCare Secure, you choose how long you want your plan to pay for long-term care, such as two or five years. With MutualCare Custom, you instead choose a total coverage amount, up to $500,000. Your plan will then pay you the monthly benefit until you reach your total plan limit. With this option, you might be able to get care for a longer period of time.

MutualCare Secure
MutualCare Custom
Benefit period2, 3, 4 or 5 yearsDepends on overall coverage
Monthly benefit$1,500 to $10,000$1,500 to $10,000
Waiting period3, 6 or 12 months0, 1, 2, 3, 6 or 12 months

Rather than setting a daily limit for long-term care costs, Mutual of Omaha structures its policies with a monthly benefit. That way, if your daily care changes throughout the month, you don't risk letting your coverage go unused.

Mutual of Omaha lets you customize your long-term care policy with several add-ons.

  • Inflation protection: This coverage increases your benefits by a percentage you choose each year. Inflation means your benefits won't go as far because long-term care will cost more. Having an inflation guard on your policy helps shield your benefits from higher costs.
  • Shared care: If you've reached the end of your benefits, this option lets you use some of the benefits on your partner's insurance. You and your partner must have identical policies to qualify.
  • Security benefit: This coverage gives you an added monthly benefit you can use for your partner's care or living costs while you are receiving long-term care.
  • Return of premium: If you don't use your benefits or you use only some of them before you pass away, this option refunds a portion of the monthly rate you paid into the policy to your loved ones.

MutualCare Custom also has an option to add extra coverage for home health care. That way, if the cost for specific types of home health care is more than your monthly coverage amount, your plan will increase what it pays.

Mutual of Omaha doesn't let you get quotes or see much policy info on their website. You have to talk to an agent to get quotes and info, which is probably a good idea anyway, given how complex long-term care insurance is.

New York Life: Best long-term care options

  • Editor rating

  • Complaints: Fewer than average

New York Life's long-term care policies and riders offer more flexibility and options than many companies.

Pros

  • Offers standalone long-term care policies and life insurance riders

  • LTC rates on life insurance stay the same

  • Local agents are available

Cons

  • No online quotes

  • Rates on standalone policies may increase after three years

New York Life offers two kinds of standalone long-term care policies, My Care and Secure Care, plus a life insurance policy. New York Life's policies have a lot of unique features that make them a good option if you're looking for flexibility.

My Care is a good option if you're willing to pay for some of your long-term care costs. The plan works more like health insurance than other long-term care plans. You can choose between four tiers: Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum. These aren't the same as the plan tiers in health insurance, although they have the same names. But like health insurance, higher tiers like Platinum give you more coverage.

Instead of a waiting period, My Care has a one-time deductible that you pay when you need long-term care.

My Care also has coinsurance, which means you and the company split the cost for long-term care. No matter which plan tier you pick, My Care pays for only 80% of your long-term care costs, up to the maximum monthly benefit amount. You have to pay the other 20% after you've paid the one-time deductible.

New York Life My Care benefits

Bronze & Silver

Gold & Platinum

Bronze
Silver
Lifetime limit$50,000$100,000
Monthly limit$1,500$3,000
Deductible$4,500$9,000
Coinsurance80%80%

Bronze & Silver

Bronze
Silver
Lifetime limit$50,000$100,000
Monthly limit$1,500$3,000
Deductible$4,500$9,000
Coinsurance80%80%

Gold & Platinum

Gold
Platinum
Lifetime limit$175,000$250,000
Monthly limit$5,000$7,000
Deductible$15,000$21,000
Coinsurance80%80 %
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New York Life is one of the best life insurance companies because of its customizable policies, customer satisfaction and high financial stability.

Secure Care is a more traditional long-term care plan, with a daily benefit, waiting period and benefit period. There are three Secure Care options: 100, 150 and 250.

Secure Care has a daily benefit for long-term care. This means the plan will pay up to the benefit amount each day that you need long-term care, whether in a facility or in your home. Daily benefits are common, but they can be problematic. If you have a daily benefit of $150, for example, but need only $100 worth of care that day, you can't get the leftover $50.

New York Life Secure Care benefits

Secure Care 100

Secure Care 150

Secure Care 250

Benefit
Amount
Lifetime benefit$109,500
Daily benefit$100
Waiting period90 days
Benefit period2, 3, 5 or 7 years

Secure Care 100

Benefit
Amount
Lifetime benefit$109,500
Daily benefit$100
Waiting period90 days
Benefit period2, 3, 5 or 7 years

Secure Care 150

Benefit
Amount
Lifetime benefit$164,250
Daily benefit$150
Waiting period90 days
Benefit period2, 3, 5 or 7 years

Secure Care 250

Benefit
Amount
Lifetime benefit$273,750
Daily benefit$250
Waiting period90 days
Benefit period2, 3, 5 or 7 years
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With both My Care and Secure Care, your rates might go up after three years. For the first three years, rates stay steady. After that, though, the company could increase rates. Long-term care plans can be expensive. Make sure you can afford a higher rate before you buy one of these plans, in case your costs go up in future years.

If a standalone long-term care policy isn't for you, you can buy a specialized universal life insurance policy with long-term care coverage, called Asset Flex. Your rate is guaranteed to never increase, and you can even get your money back if you never need the long-term care coverage, as long as you meet certain requirements. Plus, because it's also a life insurance policy, your loved ones will get a sum of money if you pass away.

With traditional long-term care insurance, it's possible to pay for decades before you use the benefits. And you might never need long-term care, which means you might pay tens of thousands of dollars for a policy you never use.

Rates for Asset Flex start at $10,000. This might seem high, but it could be cheaper over time than a standard long-term care policy. You can also sign up for a payment plan to pay the policy cost in installments. Asset Flex could be a good option if you aren't sure you'll need long-term care but still want peace of mind that you have coverage, just in case.

Nationwide: Best hybrid long-term care insurance

  • Editor rating Not rated
  • Complaints: Not available

Nationwide's long-term care riders let you pay informal caregivers, such as family, friends or neighbors.

Pros

  • Has three ways to get long-term care coverage

  • Allows you to pay informal caregivers, such as family members and friends

  • Leftover funds can be used for anything

Cons

  • Doesn't sell standalone long-term care policies

  • Website doesn't list specific coverage amounts

Nationwide offers three different ways to get long-term care coverage: CareMatters and CareMatters Together, which are both attached to a universal life insurance policy, and a long-term care add-on for universal or variable life insurance policies. This means you'll have coverage for your long-term care and your loved ones will receive a life insurance payout when you pass away.

With Nationwide CareMatters and CareMatters Together, you won't have limitations on how you spend your long-term care insurance payouts.

Nationwide even guarantees that your beneficiaries will get at least a 20% death benefit, no matter how much of the long-term care benefits you've used. The long-term care benefits come out of your total life insurance amount. Without the guarantee of a death benefit, it's possible to use all of the life insurance amount for your long-term care. That would mean your beneficiaries don't get a payout when you pass away. Nationwide's guaranteed 20% death benefit is a huge perk in that regard.

CareMatters and CareMatters Together are essentially the same, but CareMatters Together allows you to cover two people. This means a couple could purchase just one plan and both be covered.

CareMatters and CareMatters Together also have flexibility that other long-term care coverage doesn't.

  • You can use the money to pay unlicensed caregivers, such as friends, family members and neighbors.
  • If you don't use the entire monthly payout for care expenses, you can use it for other costs or save it for the future.
  • Once you qualify, you don't have to submit receipts or bills each month.

Nationwide also allows you to add long-term care coverage to its universal and variable life insurance products, although there might be more stipulations on how the money is used.

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What is long-term care insurance?

Long-term care insurance helps pay for services and programs that can assist you with daily life tasks.

You'll usually have coverage for nursing homes, assisted living facilities, in-home care, adult day care and memory care homes.

You're typically eligible for long-term care when you can't perform two or more "activities of daily living" (ADLs) without help. These activities include:

  • Bathing or showering
  • Dressing
  • Eating
  • Getting in and out of bed or a chair
  • Using the restroom
  • Walking

How to get the best long-term care insurance

Working with a licensed insurance agent or financial planner can help you get the best long-term care coverage.

To get the right policy, you need to understand your situation and decide what your goals are for care as you age.

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Find an agent or financial planner. Long-term care insurance has a lot of components, and many companies offer policies that are relatively unique. An agent or financial planner, especially one that works with multiple insurance companies, can help you understand your options and choose a policy.

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Think about your needs as you age. For example, do you think you might need to be in a memory care facility? Do you want to have coverage for in-home care? Understanding your needs will help you and your agent or financial advisor choose a long-term care option that fits your situation.

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Decide which type of coverage is best. Work with your agent or advisor to decide if a traditional long-term care policy or a rider on a life insurance policy is the better option for you. Traditional policies often have better coverage, but a rider gives you both long-term care coverage and life insurance coverage.

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Shop around. As with other types of insurance, it can be helpful to shop around and consider your options. An agent or financial advisor can often shop around for you. However, comparing long-term care insurance isn't like comparing other types of coverage. Different companies offer vastly different policies, so it's important to consider price and coverage.

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Alternatives to long-term care insurance

Long-term care insurance can be expensive. There's also no guarantee that you'll need long-term care, which means you could buy a policy and never use it. But with the cost of long-term care being so high, it's a good idea to have some kind of plan in place in case you do need assistance.

  • State programs: Because long-term care is so expensive, many states offer programs to help eligible residents pay for nursing homes or other facilities. Check the programs in your state to know what options you have.
  • Medicaid: Medicaid might help offset the cost of a nursing home. Not all nursing homes accept Medicaid as payment, though, so be sure to research facilities first. To get Medicaid, you usually have to meet certain low-income requirements.
  • Savings: If you have the ability to save for long-term care, you could pay for it yourself. Nursing homes are expensive, though. Costs can easily reach $100,000 or more per year. To maximize how far your savings will go, you could start putting away money well ahead of when you'll need long-term care.

Frequently asked questions

What company is the best for long-term care insurance?

Mutual of Omaha sells the best traditional long-term care policies. The company has two plans, MutualCare Secure Solution and MutualCare Custom Solution, that give you up to $10,000 per month for long-term care. The Custom Solution plan offers an option that gives you coverage from the first day you go into a long-term care facility. Usually, you have to pay the cost for care for the first one to three months before your plan starts paying.

What is the biggest drawback of long-term care insurance?

Long-term care insurance can be expensive, and not everyone will need care as they age. That means you might end up paying an expensive rate for a policy that you never use. However, more than two-thirds of people age 65 or older will need some kind of long-term care. A long-term care policy can help you afford that higher level of care if you need it.

Is long-term care insurance really worth it?

If you end up needing long-term care, a plan can be worth it. Most plans cover between $100 and $300 per day for long-term care, which adds up to $3,000 to $9,000 per month. That level of coverage can make a huge difference, especially if you would otherwise struggle to afford nursing home care or assisted living.

Methodology and sources

ValuePenguin chose the best long-term care insurance companies based on the kinds of coverage sold, the flexibility of benefits and the availability of local agents. Third-party ratings were used to determine a company's financial strength and level of service.

Sources for this article include:

Editorial Note: The content of this article is based on the author's opinions and recommendations alone. It has not been previewed, commissioned or otherwise endorsed by any of our network partners.