As part of your federal benefits, you and your qualified relatives are eligible to apply for coverage under the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP). Since its launch in 2002, the FLTCIP has offered active and retired members of the uniformed services the opportunity to help take control of their future long term care needs. Even if you do not apply, consider how a spouse, parent, or other family member may benefit from this important coverage. Share this information with your family today.

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) suspended applications for coverage under the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP) effective December 19, 2022. The suspension will remain in effect for 24 months, unless OPM issues a subsequent notice to end or extend the suspension period. https://www.ltcfeds.com/ will have current information about the program throughout the suspension period.

Current enrollees' coverage status will not change as long as they continue to pay premium. For those in a claim status, there is no change to coverage or the claims reimbursement process as long as benefits have not been exhausted.

For more information on the suspension, please visit: https://www.ltcfeds.com/support/suspension-notice

The FLTCIP is available to eligible federal and U.S. Postal Service employees and annuitants, active and retired service members, and certain qualified relatives.

Army National Guard Service member on state active duty are eligible to apply for FLTCIP with full underwriting. Abbreviated underwriting, which asks fewer health questions, is available to Army National Guard service member on state active duty who are within 60 days of becoming eligible for the FLTCIP. The following family members are also eligible to apply, even if you do not:

• Parents, parents-in-law, and stepparents of living eligible active members of the uniformed services; parents of retirees are not eligible

• Spouses and domestic partners* of eligible active and retired members of the uniformed services

• Survivors of active and retired service members, receiving a survivor annuity; this includes domestic partners receiving an insurable interest annuity (e.g., the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) and Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) are considered survivor annuities for the uniformed services)

• Adult children (18 years or older) of living eligible active and retired members of the uniformed services, including adopted children and stepchildren

Please visit https://www.ltcfeds.com/program-details/eligibility for the current eligibility listing.

*A Declaration of Domestic Partnership form must be submitted to the employee’s agency or annuitant’s retirement system before you apply. 

Long Term Care: Long term care is care that you need if you can no longer perform everyday tasks (activities of daily living) such as bathing or dressing by yourself due to a chronic illness, injury, disability, or the aging process. Long term care includes the supervision you might need due to a severe cognitive impairment (such as Alzheimer’s disease).

Long term care is not intended to cure you. You may need chronic care for the rest of your life. This care can span years and can be expensive depending on the type of care you need and location where that care is received. Long term care insurance is one way of helping to pay for these expenses.

This type of care is generally not covered by traditional health insurance plans, including TRICARE, TRICARE For Life, the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program, and Medicare. VA benefits may cover long term care, but coverage is based on available funding and is limited to those with service-connected disabilities.

Care can be received in a variety of settings, including home, assisted living facilities, nursing homes, adult day care centers, or hospice facilities. The FLTCIP also covers home care provided by informal caregivers such as friends and family members, who did not normally live with you at the time you became eligible for benefits. (Benefits for family care are limited to 500 days.)

FLTCIP 3.0 Plan Features: The FLTCIP offers four prepackaged plans, based on the most popular plan options, or plans that can be customized to suit your individual needs. The following features need to be considered when choosing a plan under the FLTCIP. Each of these features will affect your coverage and premium:

• Daily Benefit Amount (DBA): The maximum amount the insurance will pay in any single day. The FLTCIP offers daily benefit amounts from $100 to $450 in $50 increments.

• Benefit Period: The length of time the insurance will last if care is received every day at a cost equal to or more than your DBA. The benefit periods offered under FLTCIP are 2 years, 3 years, or 5 years.

• Inflation Protection Options: The FLTCIP offers a choice of two inflation protection options that increase the value of benefits over time to keep pace with increasing costs of care. The automatic compound inflation option (ACIO) increases your benefits automatically by 3% compounded annually with no corresponding increase in premium. The future purchase option (FPO) increases benefits every 2 years with an increase in premiums based on the CPI-U.

In addition, the FLTCIP offers a built-in premium stabilization feature, which is designed to reduce the potential need for future premium increases. Under certain conditions, this amount may be used to offset your future premium payments or provide a refund of premium death benefit to your estate or designated beneficiary.

Calculating Premiums and Costs: The FLTCIP website (https://www.ltcfeds.com/planning-tools) provides a premium calculator to determine premiums for both prepackaged and customized plans, a cost of care resource tool, and the interactive Guided Planner. Note: Premiums are not guaranteed. Your premium will not change because you get older or your health changes or for any other reason related solely to you. Your premium may only increase if you are among a group of enrollees whose premium is determined to be inadequate. While the group policy is in effect, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must approve the change.

Applying for the FLTCIP: The FLTCIP website (https://www.ltcfeds.com/) provides the ability to apply online or apply by phone (1-800-LTC-FEDS (1-800-582-3337) TTY 1-800-843-3557) when applications are being accepted. You can download important information and forms from the library of resources.

For more information, please visit the FLTCIP website at https://www.ltcfeds.com/ or utilize the Tools and Resources at https://www.ltcfeds.com/planning-tools.

The FLTCIP is medically underwritten, which means you will have to answer questions about your health on your application. Certain medical conditions, or combinations of conditions, will prevent some people from being approved for coverage. You need to apply to find out if you qualify for coverage under this program.

The Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program is sponsored by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, insured by John Hancock Life & Health Insurance Company, under a group long term care insurance policy, and administered by Long Term Care Partners, LLC.