Cher011: If you have access to her financial information, perhaps you can retrieve data for LTC premiums that she paid. OR perhaps you may be privy to who her lawyer may be. OR perhaps you have access to her tax returns - schedule A and/or itemized return could tell if she claimed LTC as a medical deduction, per se.
If there is access to her accounts, the LTC premium will probably show up as a fairly eye-popping expenditure (unless she's quite well-off) if paid annually or even monthly. Ours last year was over $8K and projected to rise dramatically in the future unless we "opt" for a minimal buyout or significantly reduced benefits. I don't think LTC payments show up on tax returns if the standard deduction is used.
Since I began following this Forum, I've either made or am contemplating some changes to my end-of-life plan. One of them: to make it easier "when/if", I've started the process of permitting basic access to our bank accounts for our son (he already has our POA) and our long-time financial advisor so they know what's going on should we become disabled or lose competency.
Is your mom competent at all to know if she does? If not does she have any close family or friends she might have told about that matter? If anyone has POA they can go through paperwork and accounts and see if there is any information related to it.
Please note the person with the POA may not have the wherewithal to do a good job determining what is what. There are probably lots of people who paid for long-term insurance but never got used because the POA holder was not good at the task. If you suspect that they may have had long-term insurance and the POA is not very capable then hiring an elder law attorney may be a good idea.
My mom shredded all her insurance documents when she was in a dementia haze. And the car title. And the deed to the house. And...? At least she left the legal paperwork intact, which was a relief.
I found a business card for an agent from Northwestern in her dresser when I searched the drawers. Bingo! Keep your eyes open when going through belongings at the house. It can help.
Eesh! I had this problem. My stepdad had passed away and he had been on top of everything, so even at her best, Mom had no clue about their business. She made me her POA.
She reached the point she needed to be in assisted living and I was prepared to pay for it out of her assets. I went through everything I could find and found no record of a LTC care policy but I was very surprised my stepdad had not bought one. I got all her records to my house and was putting things away and I just happened to stumble across a piece of paper that made reference to a long term policy with Genworth! Like others here have suggested, I had been going through bank statements and had gone back more than a year but found no premium payments. It turns out the policy had been paid up for about ten years.
In talking to her financial advisor, I was telling him about our happy luck and he said "If you had just asked...". It turns out he had sold them the policy. Soooo - check with people like that. Financial advisors, investment brokers, insurance agents. See if any of them know of a policy. You might also try calling LTC companies directly and explain the situation. With your POA in hand, they should be willing to help you find a policy. I know Genworth was very helpful to me when I started trying to find out about the policy. That's kind of a needle in a haystack type of approach, but if you are sure there must be a policy somewhere, it would be worth the hunt.
does she have a POA who has access to her bank accounts? My Mom is using one policy now so she does not pay a premium anymore. She has another policy that she still pays a premium on and it is taken out each month. There should also be a written policy so check her files etc to see if she has one.
it is important to note that if premium payments lapsed at any point the insurer probably dropped her if she had a policy
cwillie is correct. If your Mom is no longer able to discuss what she has and does not have I am assuming that she already has a POA managing her bills. That person will know if Mom has insurance in accordance with payments going out to the company. That person should already have all files and records, as well, and if not it is crucial they find them, organize them, and continue to keep up all monthly records regarding them.
Since I began following this Forum, I've either made or am contemplating some changes to my end-of-life plan. One of them: to make it easier "when/if", I've started the process of permitting basic access to our bank accounts for our son (he already has our POA) and our long-time financial advisor so they know what's going on should we become disabled or lose competency.
Please note the person with the POA may not have the wherewithal to do a good job determining what is what. There are probably lots of people who paid for long-term insurance but never got used because the POA holder was not good at the task. If you suspect that they may have had long-term insurance and the POA is not very capable then hiring an elder law attorney may be a good idea.
I found a business card for an agent from Northwestern in her dresser when I searched the drawers. Bingo! Keep your eyes open when going through belongings at the house. It can help.
She reached the point she needed to be in assisted living and I was prepared to pay for it out of her assets. I went through everything I could find and found no record of a LTC care policy but I was very surprised my stepdad had not bought one. I got all her records to my house and was putting things away and I just happened to stumble across a piece of paper that made reference to a long term policy with Genworth! Like others here have suggested, I had been going through bank statements and had gone back more than a year but found no premium payments. It turns out the policy had been paid up for about ten years.
In talking to her financial advisor, I was telling him about our happy luck and he said "If you had just asked...". It turns out he had sold them the policy. Soooo - check with people like that. Financial advisors, investment brokers, insurance agents. See if any of them know of a policy. You might also try calling LTC companies directly and explain the situation. With your POA in hand, they should be willing to help you find a policy. I know Genworth was very helpful to me when I started trying to find out about the policy. That's kind of a needle in a haystack type of approach, but if you are sure there must be a policy somewhere, it would be worth the hunt.
it is important to note that if premium payments lapsed at any point the insurer probably dropped her if she had a policy
Are you her POA?