Quick answer: Long-term care insurance in Ohio is regulated by the Ohio Department of Insurance, and OSHIIP offers free counseling. Ohio has an active Long-Term Care Partnership program that protects assets dollar for dollar from Medicaid limits and estate recovery.
The Ohio Department of Insurance regulates every long-term-care policy sold in the state, and its Ohio Senior Health Insurance Information Program (OSHIIP) offers free, unbiased counseling to help residents compare coverage options.
Ohio also maintains an active Long-Term Care Partnership Program, which lets qualifying policyholders protect assets dollar-for-dollar against both Medicaid eligibility limits and estate recovery. In practice, that means every dollar of benefits paid out under a Partnership-qualified policy shields an equivalent dollar of the policyholder's assets.
Does Ohio have a Long-Term Care Partnership program?
Yes. Ohio takes part in the Long-Term Care Partnership program created by the federal Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA). DRA Partnership states follow consumer-protection standards drawn from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) Long-Term Care Insurance Model Act and Model Regulation. A Partnership-qualified policy gives you dollar-for-dollar asset protection: for every dollar the policy pays in benefits, Ohio Medicaid can disregard a dollar of your assets when it decides eligibility, and the same amount is protected from estate recovery after death.
How the protection works (illustrative): if a Partnership policy pays $200,000 in benefits before you apply for Medicaid, Medicaid can disregard $200,000 of your assets on top of the state's regular asset limit, and that same amount is protected from Medicaid estate recovery later.
What makes a policy Partnership-qualified
- It's a tax-qualified long-term care policy under Internal Revenue Code § 7702B.
- It meets the state's Partnership consumer-protection standards and is issued while you're a resident of a Partnership state (each state sets its own start date and residency rule).
- It carries the required inflation protection for your age when you buy: compound annual protection if you're under 61, some level of protection from 61 through 75, and optional protection at 76 or older.
If you move to another state
Ohio appears on the New York State Partnership for Long-Term Care's reciprocity map as a Partnership state that honors reciprocity. In general, a Partnership policy bought in another reciprocal state keeps its dollar-for-dollar protection here, and a Ohio policy keeps it in other reciprocal states.
The original four: California, Connecticut, Indiana and New York started their Partnership programs before the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. Their programs were designed separately from the NAIC-based DRA model, so their rules differ (for example, some offered Total Asset protection), and California doesn't take part in reciprocity. If you bought a policy in one of these states, confirm how it's treated with the Medicaid agency where you'll apply.
Not every insurer offers Partnership-qualified policies in every state. When you compare quotes, ask whether each policy is Partnership-qualified in Ohio.
Sources and official resources
- Ohio Department of Insurance: Understanding the Basics of Long-Term Care Insurance
- Ohio Administrative Code: Rule 3901-4-02, Long-Term Care Partnership Program
- Ohio Administrative Code: Rule 5160-3-02.3, Nursing Facilities
- New York State Partnership for Long-Term Care: State Partnership Programs and Reciprocity map
- U.S. Code: 42 U.S.C. § 1396p (liens, estate recovery, transfers of assets, Partnership disregard)
Rules and figures change. Confirm current details with the agency before you act.