Why would those wealthy enough to "self-insure" against long term care expenses consider purchasing an insurance product? Simplistically, society trains us to expect that "medical expenses" are paid through insurance plans. Just because someone can afford to pay the bill out of pocket doesn't mean she wouldn't prefer to have the bill paid out of the insurance company's pocket.
A more sophisticated answer requires an analysis of the relative efficiency of deploying capital to fund premiums versus other options; as this article from Private Wealth magazine discusses.
A Planning Tool
Given the availability and flexibility of today’s products, it’s hard to argue against making LTC insurance a part of an affluent client’s financial plan. Take the case of a wealthy client with more than $50 million in assets who purchased LTC insurance for himself and his spouse. He insures a $10 million home, a $2 million boat, $1 million in jewelry, $1 million in art and $500,000 in cars. He came to the conclusion that the potential need for long-term care was another risk that merited coverage. In fact, out of all his insurance policies, he believes he is most likely to use the benefits of his LTC policy.
