What You Need to Know
Long-Term Care with Life Insurance is a new optional benefit which offers one policy, with two benefits: long-term care coverage, which provides support for activities of daily living (examples: eating, bathing, and dressing) if you need it, combined with life insurance coverage for your designated beneficiary.
What is long-term care insurance?
Not to be confused with long-term disability (LTD), Long-Term Care (LTC) with Life Insurance provides coverage to help with services that are needed when you are unable to care for yourself due to an illness or injury. Services can range from help at home with daily activities, like meal preparation and housekeeping, to personal care services like bathing and dressing. Long-term care is also provided in assisted living facilities, which are home-like settings that offer safety and security, plus nursing homes that provide round-the-clock skilled nursing care.
How does it work?
PayPal has partnered with Trustmark to provide this policy, which offers life insurance for your family or designated beneficiary upon your passing and includes an accelerated benefit that can be used to pay for long-term care benefits when you need it. You can access 4% of the selected life insurance benefit per month to help pay for your long-term care needs. The LTC benefit continues paying up to twice the life insurance benefit amount if you continue to need care. For example, if your life insurance benefit is $100,000, your monthly LTC benefit would be $4,000, and your total LTC benefit would be $200,000. Enrollment and premium payments are made through the Trustmark system and not through YBR. This means that, if you continue to remit your monthly premium payments through Trustmark, you may continue participating in this benefit plan if you leave PayPal.
Why should I consider LTC coverage?
During your lifetime, the likelihood of needing LTC coverage increases, and LTC services may be expensive. This optional coverage offers financial security and peace of mind if you or your covered dependents experience physical or cognitive impairments. LTC coverage will help protect your retirement savings, allows you the option to choose the setting in which you receive care, and may ease the burden of caregiving typically taken on by your loved ones.
Does my medical plan cover LTC expenses?
LTC coverage is typically not covered by medical health insurance or disability plans, and Medicare provides minimal coverage.
Eligibility
To be eligible for enrollment, you must be:
- A full-time employee over 18, working a minimum of 30 hours per week
- A US resident living within the United States
- Actively at work and not on a leave status (including sabbatical)
Visit the Trustmark site for PayPal employees, or read the FAQ to learn more about this optional plan. You can also contact an LTC Customer Care professional by calling 800-918-8877, Monday through Friday between the hours of 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. CT.
Washington State LTC mandate
Washington State mandated the collection of LTC premiums through payroll withholdings effective July 1, 2023, for required LTC benefits through the state. If you are a resident of Washington State, please visit the WA Cares Fund to learn about this coverage.
How the state mandate affects you
Beginning in July 2023, PayPal is required to deduct $0.58 per $100 of income from the pay of all regular employees earning income in Washington. What does this potentially look like? Consider this example: If you make $50,000, then $24 per month will be deducted from your pay beginning on the July 7, 2023, pay date. There is no income limit for the withholding — all income is subject to this mandate.
This money withheld from your pay will fund the state’s WA Cares Fund. More information and important details about how this may affect you are available on the state’s website.
Opt-out information
If you have a qualified, private long-term care plan and it was in place before the November 1, 2021, Washington State deadline to apply for an exemption through the state, you can apply for an opt-out waiver from Washington State through December 31, 2022. Note that, if you opt out, you waive the right to receive long-term care benefits under the state program.
Things to know
You must live in Washington when the need for long-term care arises. If not, you cannot receive the state benefit, even if you paid into the fund as required.
If you obtain long-term care coverage after November 1, 2021, you will not be able to opt out of the state program. You’ll be responsible to pay both the private long-term care insurance premiums and the WA Cares Fund withholdings.
The state exemption is permanent — once you opt out of the fund, you cannot opt back in.
Consult a financial advisor before choosing the best option for yourself. PayPal offers financial coaching to all eligible employees through Ayco.
How to submit an opt-out waiver
After you receive your state exemption, you must provide a copy of your approval letter to PayPal no later than June 1, 2023, to stop the long-term care premium withholdings. Scan, upload, and attach your approved exemption letter via the Bridge (only accessible within the PayPal firewall):
- Click the blue Contact Us icon at the lower right corner of any site page.
- Click Submit a Ticket.
- Select Payroll from the category drop-down menu.
To prevent the withholding from being deducted before the July 7, 2023, pay date, submit your exemption approval letter by June 1, 2023.