Overview
Focus group research examines how experienced financial professionals integrate retirement and long-term services and supports (LTSS) planning, highlighting current practices, barriers, training needs, and opportunities to improve financial and non-financial aging planning.
Key Participant Insights
- Financial professionals believe most clients should financially prepare for possible needs arounds long-term services and supports.
- Long-term services and supports planning is generally considered an integral part of retirement planning.
- Advisors focus primarily on financial aspects rather than care navigation or housing decisions.
- Client assets and anticipated family support are the primary factors influencing planning recommendations.
- Hybrid insurance products with long-term services and supports are generally preferred over standalone long-term care insurance.
- Advisors commonly recommend legal planning documents, including powers of attorney and health care proxies.
- Most advisors avoid recommending specific care providers due to limited expertise and compliance concerns.
- Participants expressed interest in structured aging plans, independent educational resources, and better decision-support tools.
- Researchers identify future opportunities related to cognitive impairment, catastrophic long-term care insurance design, consumer expectations, and aging plan development.
Key Components
- Executive Summary
- Introduction
- Participant demographics
- Long-term services and supports planning practices
- Integration of retirement and long-term services and supports planning
- Long-term care insurance practices
- Planning tools and information sources
- Aging plan framework
- Advisor involvement with cognitively impaired clients
- Holistic planning considerations
- Training and support needs
- Researcher's observations
- Future research priorities
- Acknowledgments
Acknowledgements
The researchers’ deepest gratitude goes to those without whose efforts this project could not have come to fruition: the Project Oversight Group and others for their diligent work overseeing questionnaire development, analyzing and discussing respondent answers, and reviewing and editing this report for accuracy and relevance.
Project Oversight Group members:
Cailyn Canty, FSA, CERA, MAAA
John Cutler, J.D.
Annie Gunnlaugsson, FSA, MAAA
Samuel Gutterman, FSA, MAAA, FCAS, FCA, HonFIA, CERA
Stephanie Moench, FSA, MAAA
Anna Rappaport, FSA, MAAA
Lisa G. Ullman, FSA, MAAA, FCA
At the Society of Actuaries Research Institute:
Steve Siegel, ASA, MAAA, Senior Practice Research Actuary
Barbara Scott, Senior Research Administrator
FAQ
Most begin discussions on long-term services and supports during retirement planning, typically with clients in their 50s, using financial analyses, insurance options, annual reviews, and legal planning discussions to prepare clients for potential long-term care costs.
Participants reported hybrids offer guaranteed premiums, beneficiary value if care is never needed, greater flexibility, and avoid many of the premium increase concerns associated with traditional standalone long-term care insurance.