What exactly is tax-qualified Long Term Care insurance?
A 90-day certification period is required before insurance benefits can be paid. In other words, a health care professional must certify that a condition is expected to last for three or more months. It does not mean that the client must wait 90 days for benefits. This requirement was included in the 1996 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act to help ensure that tax-qualified long-term care insurance provides protection only for chronically ill persons. The tax implications: Long Term Care insurance premiums are tax deductible if a policyholder itemizes his or her medical expenses and they total at least 7.5 percent of the persons annual gross income. Benefits received are not taxable as income.
