Long-term care insurance is designed to help Americans afford the healthcare services some need, whether that be near the end of their lives or years earlier than that. The exact details of your policy will depend on a number of factors, including what insurance company you use. One popular provider of long-term care insurance is Nationwide. This guide will explain the types of long-term care insurance products Nationwide offers and how you can go about buying them. For more help with financial planning, including long-term care planning, consider working with a financial advisor.
Generally, long-term care is provided in one of three settings: in a policy holder’s home or residence, in an assisted living facility and in a skilled nursing facility. While these services are essential for many older people who simply cannot live independently anymore, they can get very expensive. A year in a private room in a nursing home will run you more than $105,000, while an assisted living facility costs more than $51,000 annually.
These high costs can present a major financial planning problem that must be solved. One option can be using a 1035 exchange. While there are some government solutions, including using state partnership programs or federal agencies like Medicaid, the best way for many people to prepare for these costs is to get a long-term care insurance policy. These work like any other insurance policy, meaning you’ll pay a premium now in exchange for payments later in life when you need to pay for long-term care.
Overview of Nationwide
Nationwide – formally known as Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company – is a private company based in Columbus, Ohio. The company has more than 25,000 employees and offers a wide variety of insurance products including pet insurance, life insurance and auto insurance. In 2020, the firm paid nearly $17 billion in claims to members. It is also a Fortune 100 company.
In terms of financial strength, Nationwide gets an A1 rating from Moody’s, an A+ from A.M. Best and an A+ from Standard & Poors (S&P). Nationwide has seen net income go down over the past few years, but it remains comfortably in the black.
Nationwide Long-Term Care Policy Features and Riders
At Nationwide, long-term care coverage can come in the form of a rider on a broader life insurance plan or a stand-alone, traditional policy not connected to life insurance.
If you get a long-term care rider on a life insurance policy, but don’t end up filing any long-term care claims, your family will still get a death benefit upon your passing. If you do need long-term care, there will be a cash payment upon your death. This will be the greater of either any unused long-term care benefits or 10% of the policy’s specified death benefit.
The exact premium you’ll pay for long-term care insurance either as a stand-alone policy or as a part of a life insurance product, will depend on a number of factors. These include your age, sex, where you live and how much money you want to have available in benefits.
Money paid for long-term care can be claimed in one of two ways. That can be as a monthly reimbursement where expenses are submitted to Nationwide and the agency decides whether or not they are covered, or as cash indemnity, where you get 100% of your monthly benefit in cash and can spend it as you see fit. With the latter option, there’s no need to submit receipts to Nationwide.
Long-term care insurance from Nationwide can cover a variety of costs. Chief among them are home healthcare, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, adult daycare, home modifications and care coordination.
Nationwide Customer Satisfaction
There are no complaints on record with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) for long-term care insurance from Nationwide. However, this may be due to the fact that Nationwide often sells long-term care coverage as a rider on life insurance. That said, the overall rate of of complaints at Nationwide is low, with just 24 complaints on record and a complaint index of 0.10. This indicates far fewer complaints than average for the company. Only closed, confirmed complaints provided by state insurance departments are used in this NAIC report.
Nationwide is accredited by the Better Business Bureau and gets an A+ rating from the agency.
How to Contact Nationwide
To find a Nationwide agent to help with long-term care insurance, you can call 1-866-207-9160. To talk to someone at the company about general planning, including insurance, you can call 855-529-2729 during regular business hours.
Bottom Line
Nationwide is an insurance provider that sells many types of coverage, including long-term care insurance. Long-term care insurance is often included as a rider in a broader life insurance policy, but can be purchased on its own. Nationwide provides a death benefit for the family of people with long-term care insurance, including getting back any money not spent on care.
Long-Term Care Planning Tips
- If you want help with long-term care and other financial planning questions, consider working with a financial advisor. Finding a qualified financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to three financial advisors in your area, and you can interview your advisor matches at no cost to decide which one is right for you. If you’re ready to find an advisor who can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.
- A major factor in financial planning is long-term care, as it ends up being an essential service for many Americans. Check out SmartAsset’s guide to creating a financial plan to learn more.
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