Mo. House Proposal Offers Broader Incentives for Long-term Care Insurance

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The Missouri House gave initial approval earlier this week to a bill aimed at encouraging more Missourians to purchase long-term care insurance.

The measure by Rep. Chuck Portwood, R-Ballwin, raises the income tax deduction from 50 percent of an annual premium for a long-term care insurance policy to 100 percent of the premium.

The other major change in the legislation helps people protect more of their assets if they buy insurance to cover their care in a nursing home, or even in their own home, as they age and their health worsens.

“The ultimate goal of the legislation is to encourage personal responsibility,” Portwood told the House.

The legislation calls for the amount the policy pays out for a person’s care to be deducted when calculating a person’s total assets later to pay for their care out of pocket or determine their eligibility for Medicaid. The intent is to leave them something to pass on to their heirs.

Portwood said the law would encourage more people to buy such policies and ultimately reduce the state’s costs by having fewer people in nursing homes on Medicaid.

But some Democrats said poor people can’t afford such insurance even with the tax break, and questioned whether those who buy long-term care policies would ever wind up relying on the state for health care, anyway.

“I’m not sure this benefits the state,” said Rep. Clint Zweifel, D-Florissant.

Portwood said his bill would cost the state about $2.8 million a year, and nursing home care costs about $35,000 per person per year.

The measure, approved by a voice vote, needs a second vote to move to the Senate. The House also approved similar legislation last year, but it died in the Senate. The Long-term care bill is HB40.