It typically gives you payouts if you wind up having cognitive impairment (such as dementia or Alzheimer's) or if you physically can no longer perform some specific "activities of daily living" on your own. We're talking about feeding yourself, bathing yourself, and so on.
For example, the policy can pay for someone who stops by the house for a few hours a day or a few days a week. Or it can help with the cost of a senior day-care facility, an assisted care set-up or full-fledged nursing home care.
