Long-term care insurance, explained plainly.

What it is

Help paying for care when you need it.

Long-term care is help or supervision you may need when you can’t do basic everyday activities, like eating, bathing, dressing or moving from a bed to a chair. It can also be needed because of a cognitive impairment, such as Alzheimer’s disease.

Depending on the policy, it can cover care in a nursing home or assisted living, and care at home, like home health care, personal care, adult day care, hospice and respite care.

In California, only three kinds can be sold: nursing facility and residential care facility only, home care only, and comprehensive long-term care.

Things to know

• Medicare doesn’t pay for long-term care. Since most long-term care is non-medical, Medicare and Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) don’t pay for it.
• Most policies pay back covered care costs after you receive the care and submit a claim. Some pay a cash benefit and typically cost more.
• During the elimination period, the stretch of time before benefits start, you pay the full cost of your care.
• The insurance company can’t cancel an individual policy as long as you pay your premiums, but it can raise premiums with the California Department of Insurance’s approval.