I’ve been on my soapbox for the past few weeks focusing on longevity and an unlimited duration of benefits that only Asset Care and Annuity Care can offer (in the asset-based / linked benefits space). This is important to me.
As I shared a few weeks ago, it is more than just important to me – it is personal. My family knows first hand (repeatedly) the impacts of long duration care. (Here is a link to the my family’s background story.)
The thing is that averages are deceptive.
Many moons ago when I was just starting in the business in a career agency, we were trained to fact find. Ask probing questions to help diagnose a client’s problems, concerns, and problems as well as gather information most effectively address them.
What I’ve discovered is that too often, those probing questions stop at legacy planning, wealth transfer, and retirement income.
It’s been said over and over that failing to include long term care in any plan is a recipe for disaster when (not if) a care situation occurs.
I am not saying that an unlimited (lifetime) duration of benefits is for everyone, but for those families who experience a long haul type of malady like Parkinsons or Alzheimers – they certainly benefit in a big way.
Both the Asset Care and Annuity Care products offer the unlimited benefits. And, if planning is for beyond averages, you should consider the cost that one long haul malady can have on a client, their family, and their plans.
With all of this in mind … my belief in planning and protecting for a long haul event, there are many who say that planning for average or moderate duration is adequate because of the numbers. The numbers being the number of people who are at or below the average duration.
I have no problem with that approach. I do, however, worry that too many policies are put in place that do not adequately take into consideration our clients’ concerns and experiences.
All I am saying is – ask the questions, do the fact-finding the right way, have them develop their plan, then find the right funding solutions for them.
That funding solution should ALWAYS be unique to their needs and not a cookie-cutter plan.
There are plenty of tools available to help that planning discussion – pieces like:
Step by Step Guide to Receiving Long Term Care (consumer approved)
Care Planning Worksheet (consumer approved)
The long and the short of this is that people need to plan. Agents and advisors need to include long-term care in their planning. And, the industry has to stop bickering about why they believe that their product is the “cat’s meow”.
Above all, we need to simply ask the question – what’s your plan and how will you pay?
Want funding ideas?
You can contact me or one of my internal sales partners – Justin Fox at (844) 658-3725 & justinfox.isp@oneamerica.com or Nick Angelov at (844) 623-4251 & nick.angelov@oneamerica.com
Fridays with Fisher 