If you’re in your 50s, you should be considering purchasing Long-Term Care (LTC) insurance but one thing you may not have counted on is your parents’ health. Genworth, a major provider of LTC insurance announced recently that it would rate applicants based on whether their parents suffered from early onset coronary artery disease prior to age 60 or dementia prior to age 70. Previously, many insurance companies looked at hereditary diseases such as Huntington’s disease if the applicant had not been tested or had tested positive.
If you try to purchase insurance at 50 years of age or below, Genworth doesn’t look at the health records of an applicant but if the applicant notes that a parent has Alzheimer’s then the insurance company will ask for your medical records. LTC insurance companies may reject applicants with a family history of other health conditions in order to cut their own risks. Insurance experts believe it’s only a matter of time before other insurers follow Genworth’s decision.
Can’t you just see the next generation hounding their parents about whether or not they’ve exercised today? Here’s the article for more information about the change.
