Long Term Care Insurance for Business Owners & Executives: Tax Benefits Often Overlooked

For people in business, there's good news on the long term healthcare front. They can often insure themselves for less, thanks to favorable tax legislation. "Most owners or executives can use company dollars for a tax-deductible plan for themselves, their spouse, and dependents," says Denise Gott, Chairman of the Board of LTC Financial Partners LLC (LTCFP), one of America's most experienced long term care insurance agencies. "This is huge, but most business people miss out for lack of knowledge."

For millions of owners and executives, the dollar savings are threefold (when all conditions are met):

(1) The LTC policy is paid for, often completely, using company funds; and the payments are treated as a tax-deductible business expense.

(2) The premiums are not usually added to the business person's income (with some exceptions), adding no personal tax liability when the conditions are met.

(3) The benefits, when claimed, are tax-exempt.

"For most companies, even small ones, this can make a difference of hundreds to many thousands of dollars a year," says Gott. "Benefits for medium to big companies can range into the hundreds of thousands to millions." Associations and non-profits also stand to benefit.

The benefits apply, in varying ways, to sole proprietorships, partnerships, C-corporations, S-corporations, and limited liability companies. The business entities have the choice of providing the tax-favored insurance just for the owners and their spouses and dependents; or to selected executives important to the organization's success (in an "executive carve out"), or to all employees. When all employees are to be covered, the business has the choice of paying all or some of the premiums, or paying nothing and simply presenting the insurance as an employee-funded benefit option.

"Employees appreciate the coverage option even when they pay," says Gott, "because many carriers offer organizational discounts." Also, a payroll-deduction plan may be implemented, adding convenience.

Details are available from LTCFP's more than 500 state-licensed agents nationwide.