More than half of new long-term care insurance claims in 2016 were for people who received care in their homes, according to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance. That's a 3% increase from 2012.
"Individuals continue to mistakenly think of long-term care insurance as nursing home insurance," Jesse Slome, director of the AALTCI, said in a statement. "I sometimes refer to LTC insurance as nursing home avoidance insurance because often having this insurance protection in place allows the individual to be cared for in their own home."
Less than a third of new claims started in a nursing home last year, and just 14% of new claims were from claimants in an assisted living facility, AALTCI found.
Furthermore, 56% of claims ended in the claimant's home, according to the release.
"Most long-term care insurance claims begin and end in the home," Slome said. "People want to be in their home with family and loved ones, and having some long-term care insurance in place can help pay for the cost of home care services."
