Standardized long-term care policies, such as what can be found for Medicare supplement insurance, actually do not exist in the long-term care market. Therefore, comparing policies can be extremely difficult because companies sell policies with many different combinations of benefits and coverage. Most offer to pay a fixed dollar amount each day you receive care. Other companies offer to pay a percentage of the cost of services or a specified dollar amount to cover the actual charges. Without inflation protection, which is described in an answer to a question below, a consumer will be left with a benefit that is essentially meaningless.

Generally, long-term care benefits are offered as part of some individual life insurance policies. Under this plan, a percentage of a policy's death benefit is paid when long-term care is needed and death benefit and cash values are reduced accordingly. These policies also commonly have strict rules for qualifying for coverage.