New Hampshire's Long-Term Care Partnership
Part Ins 3602 is titled the New Hampshire Long-Term Care Partnership Program. The rules state that the program was established under the federal Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 and approved through Medicaid State Plan Amendment 07-009, and they contain program-specific filing, notice, and exchange provisions (Ins 3602 Partnership rules).
The current presence of Part Ins 3602 in New Hampshire’s active insurance rules supports describing the Partnership framework as active rather than closed or legacy-only. It does not guarantee that every carrier currently sells a qualifying policy, so a shopper must obtain written confirmation that the exact policy is a New Hampshire Partnership-qualified policy before relying on any asset-protection feature (Ins 3602 Partnership rules).
How Partnership planning fits Medicaid
A Partnership policy is relevant because the state’s rules connect the program to federal Medicaid estate-recovery authority. The planning value depends on the policy’s qualified benefits, inflation-protection and other applicable standards, claims actually paid, and the recipient’s later Medicaid application; it is not a substitute for reading the policy and state rules (NH Partnership rule authority).
New Hampshire law also refers to a resource-ceiling adjustment and a corresponding recovery exemption for certain institutional-level-care recipients with qualifying insurance benefits. That connection should be confirmed with the insurer, DHHS, and an adviser before a family treats a policy as protection for a particular asset (RSA chapter 167).
Ask for the outline of coverage, Partnership disclosure, rate-history information, inflation terms, elimination period, benefit triggers, exclusions, and a written answer on portability. Those questions are as important as the premium quote.
Insurance takeaway: New Hampshire Insurance Department rules include an active Long-Term Care Partnership program. Confirm that the policy actually being considered is Partnership-qualified and that its current terms fit the household’s Medicaid and estate plan.
For a current list of carriers, product filings, or consumer assistance, contact the New Hampshire Insurance Department directly. The regulatory rules establish standards, but they do not assure that a particular carrier will quote or issue coverage to a particular applicant (NH Ins 3600 rules).
Federal Tax Incentives for LTC Insurance Premiums (2026)
Beyond any state-level benefit, a tax-qualified LTC insurance contract (one meeting IRC § 7702B)
carries several federal tax benefits, and a number of the relevant limits increased for 2026:
- Age-based premium deduction: eligible premiums count as a medical expense on
Schedule A (to the extent total unreimbursed medical expenses exceed 7.5% of AGI), up to 2026 limits
of $500 (age 40 or younger), $930 (41–50), $1,860 (51–60), $4,960 (61–70), and $6,200
(over 70) — all increased from 2025 (IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32, § 4.27).
- Self-employed and business deductions: self-employed individuals can deduct 100%
of eligible premiums up to the same age-based limits without itemizing, and C-corporations can generally
deduct LTC premiums paid for employees as an ordinary business expense under IRC § 162, uncapped by
the individual age-based limits.
- Tax-free benefits: benefits from a tax-qualified contract are generally excluded
from income under IRC § 7702B(d); per-diem/indemnity contracts are tax-free up to $430/day (about
$13,079/month) for 2026 (IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32, § 4.62).
- HSA-funded premiums: HSA funds can be withdrawn tax-free to pay eligible LTC
premiums, up to the same age-based limits above.
- New for 2026 — penalty-free retirement withdrawals: SECURE 2.0 Act § 334
lets eligible 401(k), 403(b), and governmental 457(b) participants under 59½ withdraw funds to pay
premiums on a certified LTC contract without the usual 10% early-withdrawal penalty, up to the least of
the actual premium paid, 10% of the vested account balance, or a statutory cap of $2,600 for 2026. The
distribution itself is still fully taxable as ordinary income and is not available from IRAs
(IRS Notice 2026-33).
New Hampshire state incentive: New Hampshire does not tax wage income and offers no separate state credit or deduction for LTC insurance premiums — only the federal incentives above apply (
Got LTCi, State Tax Incentives).
State tax rules change frequently and the credit/deduction summary above is not exhaustive —
confirm current eligibility, forms, and amounts with your state department of revenue or a tax
professional before relying on any figure here.
Not mutually exclusive. Most families combine two or three funding pillars — this one rarely stands alone.
The
Journey Assessment ranks all ten pillars against your specific situation and
recommends the top three.
