Contingent nonforfeiture benefits, inflation riders & Genworth rate hikes.
Honest analysis for the 6.5 million Americans who already own a long-term care insurance policy — and for the family members helping them decide what to do when the premium just jumped 30 percent.
Decision Framework
Five real options when your premium increases. Each option walked through with present-value math against your specific policy structure, age, and state.
The Carrier File
Eight major LTC carriers, four grounded metrics each: NAIC complaint indices, sales status, recent rate-filing approvals, and disclosed block size. Every figure linked to primary source.
Math, Not Opinion
The Self-Insurance vs LTC breakeven calculator the industry doesn’t want to exist. Disclosed assumptions. Scenario analysis, not personal recommendation.
Carrier Coverage Status: 2026 Outlook
Sales posture, recent state-DOI rate filings, and disclosed block facts for eight major LTC carriers. Each row links to that carrier’s full file.
| Carrier | Sales Status | Recent Rate Action | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Genworth Financial | RE-ENTERED 2025 | CT 97% (2022) | Legacy block + new CareScout Care Assurance line |
| John Hancock | CLOSED BLOCK | MD 29.9% (2025) | Discontinued 2016; LifeCare IUL hybrid available |
| Mutual of Omaha | ACTIVE | PA 74–98% (2022) | One of few writing new standalone individual LTC |
| Northwestern Mutual | ACTIVE | No specific approvals located | QuietCare + Long-Term Advantage hybrid (2022) |
| New York Life | ACTIVE | No specific approvals located | NYL My Care + Secure Care; Asset Flex hybrid |
| MassMutual | CLOSED BLOCK | NY 37.5%×4yr (2024) | Discontinued 2021; CareChoice hybrid; admin via LifeCare Assurance |
| Transamerica | CLOSED BLOCK | PA 30%+17.48% (2022) | Discontinued 2021; IUL LTC rider (Nov 2023) |
| Brighthouse Financial | HYBRID ONLY | Not located | SmartCare hybrid (2019); no standalone individual LTC |
For NAIC complaint indices, block size, and per-carrier rate-filing detail, open the full Carrier File.
EDITORIAL DISCLAIMER
Coverage status and rate-filing data are compiled from public NAIC SERFF filings and state insurance department records. We make no representation about carrier solvency or financial strength — consult AM Best or S&P ratings for that. Past rate-filing patterns are not a guarantee of future filings. Decisions about your specific policy should involve a fiduciary financial advisor.
Latest Analysis
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DECISION FRAMEWORK
The LTC Rate-Hike Letter: Five Options Inside the Decision Window
A long-term care rate-increase notice is a structured menu, not a single bill. The five options on the alternatives schedule, the deadlines that govern each, and the math signature for who each one fits.
IN-FORCE NAVIGATION
Should You Drop Your Long-Term Care Insurance? It Depends on What's Prompting the Question
Six triggers prompt the question of dropping a long-term care policy — rate hike, slow-burn affordability, health change, life-circumstance shift, value re-evaluation, and industry disillusionment. Each changes the math.
IN-FORCE NAVIGATION
Contingent Nonforfeiture, Explained: The LTC Paid-Up Benefit After a Big Rate Hike
NAIC Model Reg §28's contingent benefit upon lapse turns a big rate increase into a paid-up policy at total premiums paid. Trigger schedule, the math, the 120-day deadline, and who's left out.
CARRIER INTELLIGENCE
Genworth LTC Rate Increases: 2018–2025 Filing History
Genworth has obtained $31.8B NPV in approved LTC rate increases through Q3 2025. Connecticut policyholders received avg 97% increases (range 79-173%). Massachusetts denied a 161% request. What it means for in-force policyholders.
PRODUCT MECHANICS
Hybrid Life/LTC vs Traditional LTC: Eight Mechanisms the Cost Comparison Misses
A side-by-side cost comparison of hybrid life/LTC and traditional LTC misses eight structural mechanisms that change the math: claim trigger, payment style, rate exposure, lapse asymmetry, opportunity cost, underwriting access, tax treatment, and inflation mechanics.
ALTERNATIVES
Self-Insure vs LTC Insurance: Real Math at $1M, $2M, $5M Net Worth
Three worked-out scenarios using nominal-frame present-value math. Why the keep-vs-drop answer changes at each wealth tier — and where the $5M policyholder should rethink.