Tax-Time Reminder About Long-Term Care Insurance.

• Position: Brief Article

The ElderCare Task Force would like to remind CPAs that many long-term care insurance policies qualify as a deductible medical expense. To qualify, the contract must only provide coverage for qualified long-term tare services and comply with all of the following requirements:

* Be guaranteed renewable.

* Not provide for a cash surrender value or other money that can be paid, assigned, pledged or borrowed.

* Provide that refunds, other than refunds on the death of the insured or complete surrender or cancellation of the contract, and dividends under the contract must be used only to reduce future premiums or increase future benefits.

* Generally not pay or reimburse expenses incurred for services or items that would be covered by Medicare, except where Medicare is a secondary payer, or the contract makes per diem or other periodic payments without regard to reimbursement.

Deduction limits per person for qualified long-term care premiums for 2000 tax...