Critical Illness Insurance – Critical Illness Plans, Coverage & Quotes
Financial hardship makes battling a critical illness even harder, especially if you are a student. Critical illness insurance is available to help you and your family through that period. It is not the same regular student health insurance–that covers the medical costs directly associated with your illness, such as hospitalizations. On the other hand, critical illness insurance, it doesn’t account for other expenses that may result from your condition. If you are predisposed to a covered condition, critical illness insurance plans provide you and your family with an added measure of security.
How does a critical illness insurance policy work? It pays out a lump sum if you develop a severe illness covered in the contract. These conditions cannot be the result of your own actions, meaning that they
can’t be self-inflicted, a result of your illegal activity, or suicide. Exact coverage varies, but illnesses covered by the average critical illness insurance plan include most types of cancer, heart attack, stroke, most organ transplants, and deafness or blindness. Sometimes certain subcategories of conditions aren’t covered by most critical illness insurance companies (e.g. many critical illness insurance plans don’t most forms of skin cancer). That’s why it’s so important to read the contract carefully and understand exactly what is covered. Critical illness insurance rates will most likely be higher if you want fuller coverage with fewer exclusions.
Critical illness health insurance allows you to use the payouts for any purpose. Critical illness insurance policies are meant to reduce stress and allow you to focus on recovering from your illness. The lump sum you receive can be used to keep up with student loan payments, mortgage or rent payments, or utility bills if you are unable to work and any disability insurance you may have isn’t enough. Unfortunately, college student loans won’t go away, even if you file for bankruptcy.
As a supplement to your health insurance for students, critical illness insurance will help you steer clear of those dire straits. The money can also be used to hire household help like a maid, cook, or nanny; doing so would take some of the burden off your caregivers. Health care for a critical illness can be expensive, due to advances in medical technology. You may be left with large deductibles and co-payments for prescriptions and treatments, even if your affordable student health insurance plan covers the majority of your costs. With critical illness insurance, you and your family and friends will also be able to afford travel and accommodations to and from specialized treatment centers, or even a vacation.
However, there are some disadvantages to critical illness insurance. You will obviously not be able to buy critical illness insurance after having already developed an eligible condition. Critical illness insurance companies make money by taking the risk that they will pay out lump sums rarely; meanwhile, the majority of policyholders will remain healthy and continue paying premiums. Insuring someone with a current critical condition defeats the purpose of a critical illness insurance policy. This is also why most critical illness insurance companies refuse to sell policies to individuals over the age of 65; as people get older, they are more likely to develop illnesses.
Keep in mind that there will most likely be a waiting period before your critical illness insurance coverage takes effect. Also, many critical illness insurance plans will not pay out a lump sum if you die fewer than 30 days after your diagnosis. For an extra fee, you can buy policy riders that will mitigate this risk and make sure your beneficiaries are covered in the event of your death.
Critical illness health insurance can be cheap for students. If you believe you are at high risk for developing a chronic illness, and/or have other people to support, it may be a good idea to buy a policy now, when critical illness insurance quotes will be lower. It is recommended that you buy enough critical illness insurance
