Why young people want care benefits

One of the biggest misconceptions happening in the market today is that younger generations don’t care about long-term care benefits. The reality is that it’s clear that these claims are growing farther and farther from the truth. While each generation appears to be outliving the one before it, Gen X, Millennials, and now even some Gen Zer’s, are beginning to experience the emotional and financial impacts that long-term care (and caregiving) can have on themselves, their friends, and their loved ones.

So, as the care crisis continues to show no signs of slowing down, it’s important to understand that there is a real opportunity for you to help the younger generations prepare for the care crisis. Supporting younger clients can not only drive meaningful impact for clients looking to recruit and retain talent but can also be a powerful catalyst for growth in your career – especially for younger brokers in the market.  

Living through the realities of the care crisis

Watching my mother navigate the challenge of finding long-term care options for my grandmother had a profound impact on my perspective on how young people view the care crisis. As part of the “sandwich generation,” my mother had to run two households at once, which meant caring for her aging parents alongside raising her five kids.

Fortunately, my grandmother and grandfather lived below their means, which allowed them to pay out-of-pocket for long-term care services while they were both still alive. That helped for a while, but it wasn’t until it was just my grandmother that we began to feel the emotional and financial strain. By the time my mother could find a reliable care option, expenses were creeping upwards of $5,000+ a month for a full-time caregiver, something that simply wasn’t feasible. We were fortunate enough to find a part-time caregiver through a neighbor, but what we didn’t realize was the effect of all the time my mother needed to commit to in order for my grandmother to get the care she needed. Once she was at an age when she could no longer attend family events and holidays, it became crucial for everyone to work together to meet her needs, including my mother and aunt often having to miss out on valuable moments to tend to her.

Before this situation, I understood the importance of planning for your financial future, but this experience truly brought it home for me. It wasn’t just my mom who struggled – it had an emotional effect that rippled through every member of my family. It showed me how quickly you can lose valuable moments with your family if you’re not financially prepared to care for a loved one.

Growing your sales by getting their attention

Even early in my life, I saw firsthand how long-term care can take a toll on a family – how it’s even more stressful when there is no plan in place. But the reality is that my experience is becoming less and less unique. Because of this, younger generations are motivated now more than ever to create a positive future for themselves. They understand that a day is never promised, and that is exactly why preparing early matters. Research from LIMRA has found that it's the younger generations that are the most concerned about care expenses.*

This is why now is the perfect time for brokers to incorporate long-term care as part of their benefits strategies - even for groups with younger demographics. Younger generations believe that taking any opportunity to be proactive, especially when it comes to their future, is essential.

I recognize that you want to grow you block of business, and getting your clients younger employees to enroll in long-term care insurance might seem unattainable. That’s likely because benefit offerings typically aren’t tailored to this demographic, and younger employees are hesitating in acquiring these benefits because they don’t see how they can help meet their goals for the future. They’re looking for information, from a source they trust, that proves to them that they need these benefits just as much as they need health insurance or their 401(k).

So, what can you do to get their attention and increase your sales? 

Make it simple:

• Young people will tune out if care benefits language, scenarios, and visuals feel complicated. And by the nature of it being insurance, they may already have it in their minds that something is being hidden from them (fees, stipulations, etc.), so it’s your responsibility to meet them where they are, avoid technical terms, and bring it back to their personal experiences, not hypotheticals  

Make it digital:

• Be sure to use short-form, mobile-friendly content during enrollment. Younger generations have been conditioned by the digital era, making anything that feels hard to navigate feel irrelevant and untrustworthy
• Cariloop®, a digital caregiver solution included in Trustmark’s product offerings, is a great example of a tool that brokers can reference to grab the attention of this demographic. It can help make these benefits feel more urgent and relevant to their current needs of becoming a caregiver (rather than needing care themselves) 

Make it financial:

• With a majority of young people already navigating potential student loans, housing, and childcare costs, they likely won’t see care benefits as a good decision unless they see it as a financial tool
• Cost-benefit framing can be a great tool to showcase how easy these benefits can be included into their financial strategies (e.g., “the cost of your coffee orders per month could save you thousands in the future”) 

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The care crisis isn’t going away anytime soon, so why not use the moment to build lasting relationships with your clients and employees? The next generation wants honest and clear guidance from their peers who understand their reality; not just someone selling a policy.

If you can make care benefits simple, digital, and financial, these benefits become more than a product – they become part of a long-term plan to sales success. For brokers looking to grow with your clients, the opportunity to position yourself as the trusted voice for the next generation is now. 

*LIMRA Insurance Barometer Report, 2021.