Promise of insurance article unfulfilled

Your Oct. 14 piece on long-term care insurance, “Trusting a Promise to Care,” belonged in the Op-Ed section of the paper.

Vera Smith may well have a legitimate case against her insurance company, though it would be difficult to discern from the evidence reporter Molly Selvin has offered.

The simple fact is that the long-term care insurance industry is paying tens of thousands of claims totaling millions of dollars.

Selvin’s premise that payments in long-term care insurance are a problem is belied by her own article: The 2,500 complaints (which may or may not be justified) against 6.1 million-plus policies in force represent a minuscule percentage.

How does this compare with other types of insurance policies that consumers own?

It is unfortunate that some older policies may have contractual language that limits benefit payment. Today, Californians enjoy the most highly regulated and standardized individual long-term care insurance policies offered in the United States. Insurance agents in California must complete continuing education on the subject of long-term care insurance if they wish to sell it to consumers.

The “promise” that Selvin failed to cite in her article is evidenced by the millions of Americans who won’t have to rely on their families or the welfare system to pay for their long-term care. While insurance companies and agents do have a responsibility to act in good faith, no insurance policy can perfectly anticipate each individual’s need or solve every problem.

Barry J. Fisher

Canoga Park

The writer operates Paradigm Insurance Marketing, which specializes in long-term care insurance.