When I see questions like this, I often wonder if the person asking the question is from Canada (or some other country with a halfways sane health insurance sys

When I see questions like this, I often wonder if the person asking the question is from Canada (or some other country with a halfways sane health insurance system) Many people (most?) would not have purchased health insurance when they were young and healthy, and they certainly would never purchase long-term care insurance. Those people who get Health Insurance typically either get it as part of a Group Insurance Plan from a company (in which case, they insurance company gets a nicely mixed up group of healthy and unhealthy people). With systems like 23andMe - otherwise healthy people now start loading up on various kinds of insurance, with a greater chance that the Insurance Company will have to pay out on the policy. It's somewhat like someone having advance notice of an arsonist in the neighborhood loading up on fire insurance. No guarantee that you will use it - but a much better chance than average.