It is important to choose a major insurer with some history in the long-term-care and commitment to it, not just something you see in AARP ads, and make sure of exactly what and how much of it is covered. A lot of policies sound great but do not cover care outside of a nursing home. If you can get one which covers in-home and other not-nursing-home situations, it will be more money. There can be caps on how much is covered in a year and overall. You can get an option to have premiums stable or premiums rising, and different plans will cap the amount of rising the plan can do.
Overall, I am not a fan of insurance, but all the financial consultants and retirement experts want you to buy it as part of the solution. If you have the discipline to put away at least $5,000 a year starting in your fifties, knowing you won't touch it until your kids need it to take care of you, maybe you don't need LTC - that $5K I got from my premiums for DH and me. It is very expensive and the older you get the more expensive it gets.
I would be disgusted about the denial of benefits, but insurance companies make money when they don't have to pay claims...
I am so sorry to hear these sad stories about relatives passing away without the financial support from their own insurance policies.