Long-term care insurance pays you back for help with daily living, in your home, in assisted living or in a nursing home, once you cannot do at least two of six daily activities or you have a cognitive impairment, and after a waiting period you choose when you buy. It costs more the older you are when you buy, you must pass medical underwriting, and in New York no company currently sells new state Partnership policies.
How does long-term care insurance work?
According to the federal ACL’s LongTermCare.gov, these policies cover personal and custodial care that regular health insurance does not. You pay premiums for years, and when you meet the policy’s conditions it reimburses care up to the limits you picked.
| Policy term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Benefit trigger | Most policies pay when you need help with two or more of six activities of daily living, or have a cognitive impairment. An insurer nurse and social worker team usually does the assessment. |
| Elimination period | The waiting period after the trigger before payments start, like a deductible measured in days. Most policies let you choose 30, 60 or 90 days. You pay for care during it. |
| Daily or monthly benefit | The most the policy pays per day or month. New York’s Department of Financial Services (DFS) notes that most policies do not cover the full cost of a nursing home or home care agency. |
| Benefit period | How long or how much it pays: one to ten years, lifetime, or a dollar total (usually days times daily benefit). |
| Inflation protection | Raises the daily benefit or total over time. New York insurers must offer it, and DFS says every optional benefit raises the price. |
The six activities, as the IRS defines them in Publication 502, are eating, toileting, transferring, bathing, dressing and continence. Some policies instead pay a set cash amount for each day you meet the trigger.
What happens when you need to make a claim?
- Read the policy, then call the insurer to open a claim. Check the trigger, elimination period, daily limit and provider rules, and ask what paperwork the doctor must supply.
- Complete the assessment. The insurer’s care manager then approves a plan of care that lists the benefits you qualify for.
- Get through the elimination period. ACL notes that some policies only count days when you actually receive or pay for care, so keep receipts.
- Submit bills. Most policies then pay up to the daily limit until the lifetime maximum runs out.
How much does long-term care insurance cost?
It depends mainly on your age at purchase, the daily benefit, the benefit period and add-ons such as inflation protection (ACL). The most recent price survey we could verify is the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance (AALTCI) 2025 Price Index, collected in January 2025. AALTCI is an industry association, and its prices are for Illinois and for people in “select” good health, so treat them as a rough guide for New York, not a quote.
| Age at purchase | Man, no inflation growth | Man, 3% growth | Woman, no inflation growth | Woman, 3% growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | $950 | $2,200 | $1,500 | $3,750 |
| 60 | $1,200 | $2,610 | $1,900 | $4,550 |
| 65 | $1,750 | $3,280 | $2,700 | $5,290 |
Yearly premiums for a single person and an initial pool of $165,000. With 5% growth, a 65-year-old man paid $4,255 and a woman $7,225. For a couple both 65 with 3% growth, the survey shows $7,150 combined. AALTCI also found that three leading insurers priced identical coverage for a couple aged 65 anywhere from $7,137 to $12,250 a year, so comparing companies matters.
Premiums can rise. DFS says individual policies must be guaranteed renewable, and premiums can go up only with the Department’s approval and only for a whole class of policyholders. For scale, the state’s Partnership program estimates the average New York City nursing home rate in 2026 at $502 a day ($183,384 a year). Nationally, the 2025 CareScout survey (CareScout is owned by Genworth) puts in-home non-medical care at $35 an hour and assisted living at $6,200 a month. For local home care prices, see our guide to home care costs in New York.
What does long-term care insurance pay for?
ACL says most policies sold today are comprehensive and can be used in several settings. New York also sells narrower policy types, so check which one you hold.
| Setting | Usually covered by a comprehensive policy |
|---|---|
| Care at home | Skilled nursing, physical, occupational and speech therapy, and help with bathing and dressing. Many policies add housekeeping or meal preparation only alongside personal care. |
| Adult day services | Yes, per ACL. See our adult day care guide. |
| Assisted living | Yes, including Alzheimer’s special care facilities |
| Nursing home | Yes |
| Hospice and respite | Yes, per ACL |
Does long-term care insurance cover assisted living?
A comprehensive policy generally does. A policy that covers only nursing homes or only home care does not. DFS describes four New York policy types: long-term care (broadest), nursing home and home care, nursing home only, and home care only. Our home care versus assisted living comparison covers that choice.
What disqualifies you from long-term care insurance?
DFS says every long-term care policy in New York is medically underwritten, meaning the insurer looks at your physical and mental health history. ACL lists common reasons for being turned down:
- You already use long-term care services or need help with daily activities
- You have Alzheimer’s disease, any form of dementia or cognitive dysfunction
- You have a progressive neurological condition such as multiple sclerosis or Parkinson’s disease
- You had a stroke in the past one to two years, or several strokes
- You have AIDS or AIDS-Related Complex
- You have metastatic cancer
Standards differ by insurer. If one company declines you, another may accept you, and some group policies skip underwriting. If you buy before a condition develops, the policy covers care for it. DFS adds that a policy can delay benefits for a preexisting condition for no more than six months, and cannot use its mental illness exclusion to exclude Alzheimer’s disease or senile dementia.
Is long-term care insurance worth it?
That is a personal question we cannot answer for you, and a licensed insurance professional or an elder law attorney can look at your finances. These are the facts people weigh:
- The chance of needing care is high. ACL says someone turning 65 has almost a 70% chance of needing some long-term care services, though one-third may never need them, and 20% will need them longer than five years.
- Industry actuaries estimate use. AALTCI, an industry association, reports that for a buyer at 60, the lifetime chance of using the policy is 50%, or 35% with a 90-day elimination period.
- Cost and health. Premiums rise with age, can increase later, and you must be healthy enough to qualify. ACL warns against buying too much (you may cover part of the cost yourself) and too little (you only delay spending your own money).
- Medicaid is an option for people with limited income and assets. See our guides on what Medicaid covers for home care and the excess income program.
What is the New York State Partnership for Long-Term Care?
The Partnership is a Department of Health program that combined private insurance with Medicaid Extended Coverage (MEC), which lets policyholders who used their benefits keep some or all assets. Income still counts toward the cost of care. Total Asset plans disregard all resources, and Dollar-for-Dollar plans disregard resources up to what the insurer paid.
The key fact for shoppers: according to the Partnership’s own website, as of 1 January 2021 no insurer offers new Partnership policies in New York. Current policyholders are not affected. DFS still handles complaints about premium increases and claims for both Partnership and other policies, and its Consumer Assistance Bureau line is 1-800-342-3736. The Partnership office is at 1-866-950-7526.
Is long-term care insurance tax deductible?
Possibly. Under IRS Publication 502, premiums for a qualified long-term care contract count as medical expenses, up to an age-based limit per person. You deduct only medical expenses above 7.5% of adjusted gross income, and only if you itemize. The limits for 2026 come from Revenue Procedure 2025-32.
| Age at end of the year | 2025 limit | 2026 limit |
|---|---|---|
| 40 or under | $480 | $500 |
| 41 to 50 | $900 | $930 |
| 51 to 60 | $1,800 | $1,860 |
| 61 to 70 | $4,810 | $4,960 |
| 71 and over | $6,020 | $6,200 |
New York adds a state tax credit. The NYS Department of Taxation and Finance says the nonrefundable credit equals 20% of premiums paid in the tax year, capped at $1,500 for individuals, and individuals qualify only if their New York adjusted gross income is under $250,000. You claim it on Form IT-249. DFS says benefits from tax-qualified policies are generally not taxable if they stay within federal limits (the per-day limit is $430 for 2026).
What are the alternatives to long-term care insurance?
| Option | How it pays | The catch |
|---|---|---|
| Medicaid | Home care, adult day health care or nursing home care for people who meet income and resource rules. The state lists 2026 home care allowances of $1,836 income and $33,038 resources for one person. | Assets and income are tested, and the program works through assessments and managed care plans |
| Medicare | Skilled care in limited situations | Medicare.gov says it does not pay for long-term care. See what Medicare covers. |
| Hybrid life and long-term care policy | A life policy with a care benefit, so something is paid either way. ACL says the care benefit is usually a percentage of the death benefit. | AALTCI’s 2024 examples for a 55-year-old (no inflation growth) were $3,265 to $3,540 a year for a $180,000 care pool, or a single premium of about $52,753 to $54,022. That is well above the $900 to $1,500 traditional examples above. |
| Paying with savings | Your own money, including the private-pay home care route | Costs add up quickly at the rates above |
| Family and paid caregiving | Relatives, sometimes paid through New York programs | Eligibility rules apply |
Some life policies also let you take an accelerated death benefit for care, though ACL says payouts are often limited. Veterans may have another source in VA home care benefits.
Before you decide: advice from our nurse director
Anna Klyauzova, RN, MSN, MPA, Director of Patient Services at ProLife Home Care, on what she sees in practice:
Families often haven’t heard of the Medicare Savings Programs, Extra Help with prescription costs, SNAP, or HEAP for heating bills. Many never check Medicaid or home care eligibility because they assume their income is too high.
If you don’t know what you qualify for, start with what is on the table: insurance, income, benefits already received and the person’s care needs. You don’t have to fill out a dozen applications this week. First find out which programs fit. NYC Aging, NY Connects and Medicaid specialists are good places to ask, and hospital Medical Social Services can help in tricky situations. We help families understand their home care options in Brooklyn and Queens and send them to the right specialist for the rest, so nobody has to sort it out alone.
We are a licensed home care agency in Brooklyn and Queens, licence #2572L001, New York State Department of Health. We can talk through the care you may need and what it costs on a private-pay basis. Whether a specific long-term care policy reimburses a provider is set by the policy, so ask the insurer. Our financial help guide lists other programs older New Yorkers often miss. Call (718) 232-2777 or use our contact page.
Insurance prices, tax limits and program rules change. Everything above was checked on 12 October 2026 against acl.gov, dfs.ny.gov, nyspltc.health.ny.gov, tax.ny.gov, irs.gov, medicare.gov and the AALTCI and CareScout surveys. Premium figures come from an industry survey of Illinois prices and are not a New York quote. This page is general information, not financial, tax or legal advice. Talk to a licensed insurance professional, a tax professional or an elder law attorney about your own case.
Frequently asked questions
How much does long-term care insurance cost?
In AALTCI’s January 2025 survey, a single 65-year-old man paid $1,750 to $4,255 a year and a woman $2,700 to $7,225, depending on inflation growth, for a $165,000 pool. Prices are higher with age, vary by insurer and state, and can rise later.
Is long-term care insurance worth it?
It depends on your health, finances and risk tolerance. ACL says almost 70% of people turning 65 will need some long-term care, but one-third will not. A policy must be bought while you are healthy, and premiums can rise.
How does long-term care insurance work?
You pay premiums. When you need help with two or more of six daily activities, or have a cognitive impairment, and the elimination period (often 30, 60 or 90 days) passes, the policy reimburses covered care up to its daily limit and lifetime maximum.
What disqualifies you from long-term care insurance?
Per ACL, common reasons are already needing help with daily activities, dementia, progressive neurological conditions, a recent stroke, metastatic cancer and AIDS. Standards differ by insurer, so a decline from one company does not always mean another will refuse.
Does long-term care insurance cover assisted living?
Comprehensive policies generally do, and also cover home care, adult day services and nursing homes. Nursing-home-only or home-care-only policies do not, so check which type you have and how the policy defines an assisted living facility.
Is long-term care insurance tax deductible?
Premiums for a qualified policy can count as medical expenses up to an age-based limit ($1,860 at ages 51 to 60 and $4,960 at 61 to 70 for 2026), if you itemize and exceed 7.5% of adjusted gross income. New York also offers a 20% credit capped at $1,500.
Can you still buy a New York Partnership policy?
No. The Partnership says that as of 1 January 2021 no insurer offers new Partnership policies in New York. People who already hold one keep their coverage and Medicaid Extended Coverage rights.
