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3 smart long-term care insurance moves to make in your 70s
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Long-term care insurance can offer valuable financial support by helping pay for nursing homes, assisted living facilities and in-home caretakers. But if you’re shopping for long-term care insurance in your 70s, you’ve likely faced some hurdles. After all, with rejection rates around 50% for 70 to 74 year old applicants, it can be difficult to find a policy that gives you affordable peace of mind – but it’s not impossible.
The good news is that you likely have multiple options to choose from, even in your 70s. However, it’s imperative that you choose the best policy for your needs. And, there are a few smart moves you can make to ensure that you do.
Compare long-term care insurance policies now and lock in your coverage today.
3 smart long-term care insurance moves to make in your 70s
“When you enter your 70s, you may have had a health event or witnessed a friend or sibling with a health event,” explains Rhonda Bills, CLTC, and trainer for Certification for Long-Term Care, a training company that offers long-term care insurance agent certifications. “One of my clients’ first questions to me is, ‘Did we wait too long?’ The response is always NO.”
Here are a few moves you can make to find the best policy for your needs:
Make a plan
The first thing you should do as you look for long-term care coverage in your 70s is make a plan. Do you know how to access care when the need arises? Do you plan on leaning on your family members? Would you rather age at home or does the constant professional health assistance that comes with a nursing home or assisted living community sound more fitting?
These are important questions to think about because the cost of long-term care varies depending on the type of care you receive. Moreover, some policies will only cover formal long-term care options while others will make it possible to pay informal caregivers like your family members and friends.
You should also take this time to think about how much insurance you need. Chances are that you have retirement income. But how much of that income can you allocate to your care – and how much of a financial gap does long-term care insurance need to fill? The answers to these questions will help you find the type and amount of coverage you need.
Chat with a long-term care insurance expert now if you need help making your plan.
Shop around
Long-term care insurance options, limitations and premiums often vary from one provider to the next. So, it’s important to shop around. That’s especially true when you’re in your 70s as potential rejection and high prices are valid concerns. But, comparing multiple policies may bring quality coverage options at affordable prices to light.
“If you’re age 70 and shopping for long-term care, you should consider the difference in cost between insurance companies,” explains Justin Stivers, financial advisor and founding attorney at Stivers Law, a law firm specializing in estate planning. “This is even true for policies with similar coverage. By shopping around, you can compare costs and identify policies that offer the best value.”
It’s also important to note that different policies may come with different coverage options and features. “Shopping around for long-term care insurance can also allow you to explore policy features and select a plan that aligns with your needs and preferences,” says Stivers. “Some policies may offer more comprehensive coverage for home care services and alternative care.”
And shopping around could help you find better policy customization opportunities, “such as inflation protection riders, shared care benefits and non-forfeiture options,” says Stivers.
Get started
“A barrier for this age group is acceptance since the rejection rate by 70 years old is about 50%,” Afik Gal, co-founder and president of the financial planning and insurance firm, Assured Allies, told CBS News Wednesday. And that “barrier” only grows as you age. Not only will prices rise, but the coverage you do get offered may not be as comprehensive as it could have been if you had applied at an earlier point. So, it’s important to start now to give yourself the best chance of finding an effective policy at a reasonable price.
The bottom line
Shopping for long-term care insurance in your 70s can be challenging. But, it may still be possible to find affordable coverage that meets your needs. Before you shop, think about what your needs are and create a long-term care plan. Then shop around to find a policy that fits within your plan. And, perhaps most importantly, you should start your search for coverage now as it may not be available or affordable later. Get in touch with a long-term care insurance specialist today to discuss your options.
CBS News
Rex Heuermann, alleged Long Island serial killer, due in court as prosecutors promise major development
RIVERHEAD, N.Y. – Accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann is due back in court on Long Island Tuesday morning, and prosecutors are promising a major development in the case.
The hearing is set to begin after 9:30 a.m. A press conference is expected at the Suffolk County DA’s office shortly after. We will bring that news conference to you live on CBS News New York.
The judge has previously indicated he wanted to set a trial date at today’s hearing.
Heuermann’s last court appearance was back in October.
Heuermann accused of killing 6 women, so far
Heuermann, 61, has pleaded not guilty to murder charges in the deaths of six women between 1993 and 2011. The remains of 11 people were discovered around Gilgo Beach during that period, and investigators believe Heuermann may be linked to other killings. The Suffolk County DA has said there could be future indictments.
Four of the victims had their bodies disposed of near Gilgo Beach. Two others were murdered as far back as 2003 and 1993. Each of them had been involved in sex work.
Prosecutors allege Heuermann is linked to the murders through DNA, burner phone data, a description of his truck, internet searches and what they call a blueprint for how to get away with murder.
Attorneys wrangle over DNA, volume of evidence
A key point of contention in the new DNA evidence is called SNP, which prosecutors say links the hairs of victims to Heuermann. The defense has called an outside lab’s methods of genetic testing unproven and “magic.”
Another hurdle for prosecutors is the sheer volume of evidence. The DA says they’re struggling to keep up with the costs of processing the 120 terabytes of data and 400 electronic devices seized.
Heuermann’s attorney says his client is looking forward to his day in court and will be pursuing a change of venue, claiming the jury pool in Suffolk has been “poisoned.”
Heuermann remains in isolation in jail.
CBS News
Osiel Cárdenas Guillén — notorious drug lord nicknamed “Friend Killer” — returned to Mexico after U.S. prison sentence
Notorious drug lord Osiel Cárdenas Guillén has been returned to Mexico after serving a U.S. sentence and was quickly re-arrested and sent to a maximum security prison to face Mexican charges.
There had been nervousness about the impending return of Cárdenas Guillén, who once led the feared Gulf cartel in northeastern Mexico before he was arrested and extradited to the United States in 2007.
The U.S. Homeland Security Department confirmed in its social media accounts Monday that Cárdenas Guillén had been returned after serving 14 years in U.S. custody, most of his 25-year U.S. prison sentence. He is a Mexican citizen, so presumably he was deported.
“The successful removal of Osiel Cardenas, a notorious international fugitive, underscores our unwavering commitment to public safety and justice,” said Enforcement and Removal Operations Chicago Field Office Director Samuel Olson in a statement.
A Mexican federal official who was not authorized to be quoted by name said Cárdenas Guillén had immediately been taken into custody in Mexico on drug, organized crime and money-laundering charges.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement/Handout via REUTERS
The official said Cárdenas Guillén was being held at the country’s top maximum-security Altiplano prison just west of Mexico City.
Homeland Security Investigations posted photos of a paunchy, balding, bespectacled Cárdenas Guillén being escorted by two officers in helmets and flak vests, and the being walked over a border bridge.
The image contrasts with the drug lord’s fearsome reputation for violence in Mexico.
Nicknamed “El Mata Amigos” (“Friend Killer”), he recruited former Mexican special forces soldiers to form his personal guard. The former head of the Gulf cartel was known for his brutality. He created the most bloodthirsty gang of hitmen Mexico has ever known, the Zetas, which routinely slaughtered migrants and innocent people.
The 57-year-old native of the border city of Matamoros, Mexico, moved tons of cocaine and made millions of dollars through the Gulf cartel, based in the border cities of Reynosa and Matamoros.
After his arrest in the northeast border state of Tamaulipas, he was extradited in 2007 to the United States, where he was sentenced in 2010 to 25 years in prison and ordered to pay $50 million.
At that time, the Justice Department alleged that Cardenas Guillen threatened to kill a Texas sheriff’s deputy who was working as an undercover ICE agent because he refused to deliver almost 1,000 kilograms of marijuana.
CBS News
The Electoral College votes to confirm results for the 2024 presidential election today. Here’s what to know.
At state capitols across the U.S. Tuesday, the presidential electors will be gathering to cast their electoral votes, formalizing President-elect Donald Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.
It’s largely a ceremonial vote, the next step after the presidential election. When Americans cast their ballots on Election Day, they’re technically voting for a slate electors committed to supporting their choice for president and vice president.
How does the Electoral College work?
The rules governing the Electoral College are outlined by the 12th Amendment.
Presidential electors, according to the amendment, “shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President, and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify.”
The political parties choose the slate of electors ahead of the general election.
After Election Day, all the votes are counted and then certified by each state. According to the 2022 Electoral Count Reform Act, the deadline to certify the results is set at six days before the electors are scheduled to meet, traditionally on the first Tuesday after the second Wednesday in December.
The Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022 also requires that each state determine a state official — the governor unless specified otherwise — to be responsible for submitting the “certificate of ascertainment” that identifies the state’s electors and includes a security feature.
What were the 2024 Electoral College results?
Trump won 312 Electoral College votes to Harris’ 226. See state-by-state results here and below.
Nationally, Trump also won the popular vote, winning 77.2 million votes to Harris’ 75 million.
How many electoral votes does each state have?
The Electoral College consists of 538 electors, and a majority of 270 is needed to become president.
Each state’s electoral votes are equal to the number of representatives they have in the House, plus two senators.
While the number of Electoral College votes has remained at 538 since 1964, the number of votes per state changes to match congressional apportionment after the decennial census. Between the 2020 election and the 2024 election, Texas gained two Electoral College votes, while five other states — Colorado, Florida, Montana, North Carolina and Oregon — gained one electoral vote each. Six states lost an electoral vote: California, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
The map below shows the changes by state between the 2020 election and the 2024 election.
Does each elector have to vote with the state election results?
Forty-eight states and Washington, D.C., are winner-take-all, so the winner of the popular vote in the state wins all of the state’s electoral votes. Maine and Nebraska allocate their electors based on the winner of the popular vote within each Congressional District and then two “at-large” electors are determined based on winner of the statewide popular vote.
The electors are supposed to vote in accordance with the outcome of the popular vote in their state. The Constitution does not require electors to vote with the winner of the popular vote, but most states have laws that nullify the votes of “faithless electors.” The Supreme Court ruled in 2020 that states can punish these “faithless electors.”
According to FairVote, there have been 90 “deviant” votes cast by electors for president since the founding of the Electoral College, although the majority of these were due to the death of a party’s nominee rather than a true deviation from the voters’ intent.
There have also been 75 faithless electors for vice president, for a total of 165 faithless electors throughout history, according to FairVote.
After the 2020 election, so-called “fake” Republican electors in seven battleground states won by President Biden met anyway and cast phony votes for Trump. State criminal charges have been filed against fake electors in Georgia, Michigan and Nevada. In charging Trump for attempting the overturn the election results, special counsel Jack Smith said these fake electors were part of a plan to overturn the election, orchestrated by pro-Trump attorneys with Trump’s support. Those charges have been dismissed since Trump’s victory in the 2024 election.
What’s next after the Electoral College certification?
After the results are signed and certified, they are sent to Harris, acting as the president of the Senate. The vote certificates must be received by the fourth Wednesday in December, which this year is Dec. 25. The archivist then transmits the sets of certificates to Congress on or before the new Congress meets on Jan. 3, 2025.
On Jan. 6, 2025, Congress meets in a joint session to count the Electoral College votes, overseen by Harris. After the votes are counted, the vice president announces the winner of the election.
Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance will take the oath of office at the inauguration at noon on Jan. 20, 2025.
Rex Heuermann, alleged Long Island serial killer, due in court as prosecutors promise major development
Osiel Cárdenas Guillén — notorious drug lord nicknamed “Friend Killer” — returned to Mexico after U.S. prison sentence
The Electoral College votes to confirm results for the 2024 presidential election today. Here’s what to know.
Rex Heuermann, alleged Long Island serial killer, due in court as prosecutors promise major development
Osiel Cárdenas Guillén — notorious drug lord nicknamed “Friend Killer” — returned to Mexico after U.S. prison sentence