OneAmerica Asset-Care LTC Insurance: Lifetime Benefits and Joint Life Explained (2026)

Most hybrid long-term care products are variations on the same chassis: a single-insured whole or universal life policy with an LTC acceleration rider, capped benefit periods, and reimbursement-only claims. OneAmerica Asset-Care breaks two of those constraints — it offers a lifetime unlimited benefit period when other hybrids stop at 6–8 years, and it's the only hybrid product in the market issued on a joint life basis, covering two people under one policy with separate benefit pools. For couples or individuals facing worst-case LTC scenarios, these differentiators matter. Here's an independent review.

What makes OneAmerica Asset-Care structurally different

The hybrid LTC market — Lincoln MoneyGuard, Nationwide CareMatters, Pacific Life PremierCare, New York Life Asset Flex — operates on broadly similar logic: take a whole or indexed universal life policy, add an LTC acceleration rider, and market the package as "your premiums aren't wasted if you never need care." The mechanics work. But nearly every competing hybrid caps benefit periods at 6–8 years total and is issued on a single-insured basis.

OneAmerica built Asset-Care differently, and the result is a product with two characteristics that no other hybrid can currently match:

1. Lifetime/unlimited benefit period. Through a Continuation of Benefits (COB) rider, Asset-Care policyholders can elect a lifetime benefit period — meaning benefits continue paying as long as the qualifying LTC need persists, with no maximum exposure cap. For context: 5% of claimants spend more than 5 years in care, and dementia cases commonly extend 10–15 years. No other hybrid offers unlimited coverage for this tail risk.
2. True joint life issuance. Asset-Care can be written as a single policy covering two named insureds, each with their own separate monthly benefit pool. If one spouse needs care while the other remains healthy, the healthy spouse's benefits are untouched. This is categorically different from a shared-pool joint product (like Nationwide CareMatters Together), where two people draw from the same pool and one spouse's extended claim depletes coverage for the other.

OneAmerica Financial is an Indiana-based mutual holding company with roots dating to 1877.¹ Like New York Life, the mutual structure means no shareholder pressure toward short-term profitability — the company's stated purpose is long-term policyholder protection. OneAmerica has been continuously writing new Asset-Care business throughout the period when Genworth, John Hancock, Transamerica, and others were exiting the market.

Asset-Care 2024: product structure

The whole life chassis and how LTC benefits work

Asset-Care uses a whole life insurance policy as its base. The life insurance death benefit can be accelerated — used for LTC expenses — while you're alive, and whatever portion isn't used for care passes to beneficiaries as a death benefit. If you never need care, the full death benefit pays to heirs. If you use the entire death benefit for care and still need more coverage, the Continuation of Benefits rider takes over and pays an ongoing monthly benefit from insurance company reserves.

This structure creates three simultaneous guarantees traditional LTC insurance cannot provide:

• LTC benefits if care is needed — the death benefit accelerates tax-free per IRC §7702B
• A death benefit if LTC is never needed — heirs receive a life insurance payout
• Return of premium option — if circumstances change, surrender the policy and receive at least your net premiums paid

Benefit period structure: 4, 6, 8 years, or lifetime

Asset-Care 2024 uses a layered structure to build the total benefit period:²

• Acceleration of Benefits (AOB): The base policy provides a 2-year acceleration period — meaning you can draw the full death benefit over 24 months of qualifying care.
• Continuation of Benefits (COB) rider: Added at purchase, the COB extends coverage for an additional 2, 4, or 6 years — or for lifetime/unlimited duration.

The lifetime COB option is unique in the hybrid LTC market. Lincoln MoneyGuard maxes at a multi-year Extension of Benefits rider. Nationwide CareMatters II goes up to 7-year benefit periods. OneAmerica is the only hybrid carrier that will contractually continue paying benefits for as long as qualifying LTC need persists — no cap.

Cash indemnity or reimbursement — buyer's choice (new in 2024)

The 2024 Asset-Care redesign added a meaningful claims feature: policyholders can now elect to receive benefits as cash indemnity rather than reimbursement-only.²

The distinction matters operationally. Reimbursement policies pay only for documented, facility-approved care expenses — you submit receipts and the insurance company reimburses. Cash indemnity policies pay the monthly benefit directly to you once benefit triggers are met (2 of 6 ADLs or cognitive impairment per IRC §7702B), regardless of what you spend the money on. You could pay a family caregiver, adapt your home, or cover a care facility — the insurer doesn't restrict use.

Nationwide CareMatters II has competed on cash indemnity payment as a differentiator. Asset-Care 2024 now offers the same flexibility, letting buyers choose the payment model that fits their care preferences at purchase.

Payment flexibility

Asset-Care offers more premium payment options than most competing hybrid products:²

• Single premium: One lump sum — common for 1035 exchanges repositioning existing life or annuity cash value
• 5-pay: Level premiums over 5 years
• 10-pay: Level premiums over 10 years
• 20-pay: Level premiums over 20 years
• Ongoing annual: Guaranteed level premiums to age 95, never increasing

All payment structures offer the same contractual guarantee: premiums are fixed at issue and can never be increased by the insurer. This is the core advantage over traditional LTC insurance, where premiums can rise if the state insurance commissioner approves a rate increase request.

Issue ages are 35–80 for single and recurring premium structures. The wide age range accommodates both mid-career planning (55–65) and later-stage buyers who may otherwise find traditional LTC underwriting difficult.

The joint life policy: how it works and why it matters for couples

Roughly 70% of people age 65+ will need some form of LTC, and AALTCI data suggests a 91% probability that at least one member of a couple will need care. Traditional insurance and most hybrid products address this by offering spousal discounts (15–35%) and shared care riders — but each person still holds a separate, individual policy.

Asset-Care's joint life structure is fundamentally different: two named insureds on a single policy, each with their own individual monthly benefit amount. The policy is underwritten on both lives simultaneously; a maximum 25-year age difference applies between unrated joint insureds.²

The practical implications for couples planning:

• One application, one underwriting process covering both insureds
• One premium check (or funding event) covers the couple
• Each insured's benefit period and benefit amount are distinct — you can size them independently based on gender-adjusted risk (women typically need larger coverage given 3.7-year average care duration vs. 2.2 years for men)
• Couples coordination is inherent in the policy design, rather than requiring a shared care rider add-on

See our spousal LTC planning guide for the full framework on how to size coverage asymmetrically for couples based on gender, health history, and asset tier.

Financial strength: AM Best A+ and 145 years of continuity

OneAmerica Financial holds an A+ (Superior) financial strength rating from AM Best — the second-highest tier — with a Comdex percentile score of 95 out of 100.¹ S&P Global rates the company AA-. These figures place OneAmerica among the top 5% of life insurance companies by financial strength metrics.

In the context of the LTC insurance market, where most carriers that wrote policies in the 1990s have either exited or sought large inforce rate increases, OneAmerica's continued active underwriting and financial stability is meaningful. The company has continuously written Asset-Care policies through the period when Genworth, John Hancock, Transamerica, MetLife, and Prudential chose to exit. Active new business provides actuarial balance — fresh premium inflows — that closed-block carriers managing only legacy policies cannot achieve.

Who should consider OneAmerica Asset-Care

Asset-Care is worth serious evaluation when:

• You're a couple and want each partner's coverage protected from the other's claim. The joint life structure with separate pools eliminates the shared-pool depletion risk that exists in competing couple-focused products. This matters most for couples with a family history of dementia or other extended-duration conditions in one partner.
• You have a family history of dementia, Parkinson's, or other long-duration cognitive conditions. The median LTC stay is 2–3 years, but Alzheimer's cases commonly run 10–15 years. A 7-year hybrid benefit period from a competing carrier still leaves significant uncovered tail risk. Asset-Care's unlimited benefit period is the only hybrid option that eliminates this ceiling.
• You have existing life insurance or annuity cash value to reposition. A 1035 exchange into Asset-Care converts embedded gains in an old policy into LTC coverage without a tax event. Single-premium or limited-pay structures work particularly well for repositioned assets.
• Premium certainty is non-negotiable. Like all hybrids, Asset-Care guarantees premiums from issue — they can never increase. If the history of Genworth or John Hancock rate hikes makes you unwilling to accept any inforce increase risk, hybrid LTC generally and Asset-Care specifically eliminate that exposure.
• You've been declined or rated for traditional LTC insurance. Asset-Care's 2024 update explicitly accommodates slightly-rated applicants who might be declined outright by stricter traditional LTC underwriters. Combined with an issue age ceiling of 80, this opens eligibility windows that other products close earlier.
• You're age 60–75 and want to capture significant leverage on the LTC benefit relative to premium. The death benefit accelerates at 2× or more for qualifying LTC expenses, meaning you get substantially more LTC coverage than the cash value alone would provide.

Asset-Care is less likely to be the best fit when:

• You want maximum LTC coverage per dollar of premium — traditional LTC insurance (Mutual of Omaha, Thrivent, NGL) delivers a higher LTC benefit per premium dollar because it doesn't also fund a death benefit.
• You're a single healthy individual in your mid-50s without family history of extended-care conditions — a 4–6 year benefit period from a competing hybrid may be more cost-efficient, especially if the unlimited benefit period premium is meaningfully higher.
• You want a Partnership LTC policy for Medicaid asset protection — hybrid LTC products are typically not Partnership-qualified, and Asset-Care is no exception. See our Partnership LTC guide for why this matters.
• You have $2M+ in liquid household assets and a sound investment strategy — self-funding may be the better economic decision. See our HNW LTC planning guide and self-fund strategy guide for the crossover analysis.

Tax advantages: IRC §7702B qualified treatment

Asset-Care is a qualified long-term care insurance contract under IRC §7702B, which means it receives the same HIPAA tax treatment as traditional LTC insurance:

• Benefit exclusion: LTC benefits are excluded from income up to $430/day ($156,950/year) — the 2026 HIPAA per diem limit.³ For cash indemnity benefits, the daily amount of benefits exceeding this cap is taxable income; amounts within the cap are fully excluded.
• Premium deductibility: Eligible LTC premiums are deductible as medical expenses, subject to the 7.5% AGI floor. 2026 HIPAA-capped deductible amounts by age: under 41 ($500), 41–50 ($930), 51–60 ($1,860), 61–70 ($4,960), over 70 ($6,200).³
• Self-employed above-the-line: Self-employed individuals deduct eligible LTC premiums above the line, bypassing the 7.5% floor.
• C-corporation unlimited deduction: Employer-paid LTC premiums are deductible under IRC §162 with no HIPAA dollar cap when a C-corp pays for employee coverage. See our business owner LTC guide.
• 1035 exchange: Funding Asset-Care via a direct 1035 exchange from an existing life policy or non-qualified annuity eliminates income recognition on embedded gains. This is frequently the most tax-efficient way to fund Asset-Care for policyholders with appreciated cash-value policies they no longer need for pure death benefit protection.

Underwriting: what to expect

Asset-Care 2024 is underwritten on both lives simultaneously for joint policies, with a maximum 25-year age difference between unrated joint insureds. The 2024 product update explicitly expanded eligibility to include slightly-rated applicants — individuals with minor health conditions who might be declined outright by stricter traditional LTC underwriters can sometimes qualify for Asset-Care at a rated premium level, with benefits scaled to the health classification.²

Issue ages span 35 to 80 for all payment structures. This upper age ceiling (80) is notably higher than many competing hybrid products and some traditional LTC carriers, creating an option for late-stage buyers who may have missed their optimal window.

The standard industry underwriting caution applies: AALTCI data shows approximately 51.5% of applicants in their late 60s are declined across the industry. Applying earlier — while in good health — is the single highest-leverage action for anyone considering LTC insurance. See our full underwriting guide for health class tiers, automatic disqualifiers, and what rated premiums mean for benefit levels.

What a fee-only advisor does when evaluating Asset-Care

OneAmerica distributes Asset-Care through both career agents and independent insurance brokers. Independent brokers earn commissions on Asset-Care sales, which creates the same incentive structure as the broader LTC insurance market: the product recommended is correlated with the product the advisor is paid to sell, not necessarily the product that best fits the client's situation.

A fee-only advisor evaluating Asset-Care against other hybrid and traditional options does the following differently:

• Models whether hybrid LTC makes sense at all. For a $3M+ household with sound investment strategy, self-funding may dominate hybrid LTC economically. The advisor runs the crossover analysis before comparing carrier products.
• Compares joint structure economics for couples. For couples, the advisor models Asset-Care's joint separate-pool structure against Nationwide CareMatters Together's shared pool and two individual policies from other carriers — identifying which structure actually protects both spouses better across plausible scenarios.
• Evaluates unlimited vs. capped benefit period for the specific client. The lifetime COB costs more than a 6- or 8-year benefit period. The advisor models whether the added premium for unlimited coverage is justified given family history, health profile, and existing assets. For a 65-year-old woman with a family history of dementia and $800K in liquid assets, the unlimited option may be worth it. For a 60-year-old man without that risk profile, 6–8 years may be sufficient and more cost-efficient.
• Checks 1035 exchange feasibility. If the client holds existing life insurance or non-qualified annuity cash value, the advisor models whether funding Asset-Care via 1035 exchange delivers better economics than ongoing premium payments from cash flow.
• Quotes all four traditional carriers simultaneously. Mutual of Omaha, Thrivent, NGL, and New York Life are quoted alongside Asset-Care — with identical benefit specs — to let the client compare hybrid vs. traditional economics with full information.

See our hybrid LTC insurance guide for the full framework on hybrid products, and our LTC insurance company comparison for a side-by-side of all active carriers in 2026.

1. OneAmerica AM Best A+ and COMDEX 95: OneAmerica Financial holds an A+ (Superior) financial strength rating from AM Best and a 95/100 Comdex percentile score, placing it among the top 5% of life insurers by financial strength. S&P rates the company AA-. Sources: Breeze 2026 OneAmerica review; Leverage Planning 2026 OneAmerica review; Consumers Advocate 2026 OneAmerica review. Breeze 2026 OneAmerica Asset-Care Review
2. Asset-Care 2024 product features: 2-year AOB base, COB rider options (2/4/6 years or lifetime), cash indemnity or reimbursement election (new 2024), 5–20-pay and single-pay options, joint life with separate pools (max 25-year age gap), issue ages 35–80, slightly-rated applicants eligible. Sources: OneAmerica.com official product announcement; LongTermCareInsurancePartner.com 2025 Asset-Care update; CompareLongTermCare.org 2024 review. OneAmerica.com — Asset-Care 2024 Launch; LongTermCareInsurancePartner.com — Asset-Care 2024 Update
3. 2026 HIPAA LTC tax values: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-28 establishes the 2026 per diem exclusion at $430/day and eligible premium deductibility limits by age ($500/$930/$1,860/$4,960/$6,200 for five age brackets). IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-28
4. LTC carrier market and hybrid comparison: Active hybrid LTC writers in 2026 include OneAmerica (Asset-Care), Lincoln Financial (MoneyGuard), Nationwide (CareMatters II), Pacific Life (PremierCare Max), New York Life (Asset Flex). OneAmerica is the only carrier offering a lifetime benefit period and the only hybrid issued on a joint life basis with separate benefit pools. AALTCI tracks carrier activity and claim statistics. AALTCI (American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance); HybridLongTermCarePlans.com 2026 Comparison

Carrier ratings and product details verified as of June 2026. AM Best ratings are subject to change; verify at ambest.com before making coverage decisions. Product availability, benefit parameters, and issue ages vary by state and policy year.