Abstract

To assess preferences for features of long-term care insurance (LTCI) policies and programs, a discrete choice experiment was conducted as part of the Survey of Long-Term Care Awareness and Planning.

The most important insurance features to respondents was duration of benefit, followed by premium cost, and benefit amount (e.g., $150 a day). Weaker preferences were found for plans with no medical underwriting requirements. No statistically significant results were found for deductible amount. Voluntary participation was strongly preferred over mandatory participation, although additional benefits in mandatory plans could compensate people for their preference for voluntary participation. Nearly one-third of respondents always picked the least expensive plan, and 15% of respondents preferred no insurance under all scenarios including those at lowest premium monthly cost shown.

Preferences suggest that people are often not realistic in evaluating the tradeoffs among insurance policy characteristics, especially related to cost. Implications for the design of public and private insurance are discussed.

Slides