Authority: IC 27-8-12-7

Affected: IC 27-8-12

Sec. 1. (a) No insurer may offer a long term care insurance policy unless the insurer also offers to the policyholder in addition to any other inflation protection the option to purchase a policy that provides for benefit levels to increase with benefit maximums or reasonable durations that are meaningful to account for reasonably anticipated increases in the costs of long term care services covered by the policy. Insurers must offer to each policyholder, at the time of purchase, the option to purchase a policy with an inflation protection feature no less favorable than one (1) of the following:

1. (1) Increase benefit levels annually to be compounded annually at a rate not less than five percent (5%).
2. (2) Guarantee the insured individual the right to periodically increase benefit levels without providing evidence of insurability or health status so long as the option for the previous period has not been declined. The amount of the additional benefit shall be more than the difference between the existing policy benefit and that benefit compounded annually at a rate of at least five percent (5%) for the period beginning with the purchase of the existing benefit and extending until the year in which the offer is made.
3. (3) Cover a specified percentage of actual or reasonable charges and does not include a maximum specified indemnity amount or limit.

(b) Inflation protection benefit increases under a policy that contains such benefits shall continue without regard to an insured's age, claim status or claim history, or the length of time the person has been insured under the policy.

(c) An offer of inflation protection that provides for automatic benefit increases shall include an offer of a premium that the insurer expects to remain constant. Such offer shall disclose in a conspicuous manner that the premium may change in the future unless the premium is guaranteed to remain constant.

(d) Inflation protection as provided in subsection (a) shall be included in a long term care insurance policy unless an insurer obtains a rejection of inflation protection signed by the policyholder. The rejection shall be considered a part of the application and shall state: "I have reviewed the outline of coverage and the graphs that compare the benefits and premiums of this policy with and without inflation protection and I reject inflation protection. _______________________________ (Signature of Applicant(s))".

(Department of Insurance; 760 IAC 2-7-1; filed Oct 30, 1992, 12:00 p.m.: 16 IR 862; readopted filed Sep 14, 2001, 12:22 p.m.: 25 IR 531; filed Oct 7, 2004, 1:00 p.m.: 28 IR 570; readopted filed Nov 27, 2007, 4:01 p.m.: 20071226-IR-760070717RFA; readopted filed Nov 26, 2013, 3:43 p.m.: 20131225-IR-760130479RFA; readopted filed Nov 19, 2019, 9:18 a.m.: 20191218-IR-760190497RFA; readopted filed Nov 30, 2022, 11:39 a.m.: 20221228-IR-760220302RFA)