A critical illness may not be life threatening, but it is life changing. In Canada there are:
§ 475 new cases of cancer diagnosed daily, one every 3 minutes*
§ 70,000 heart attacks happen every year, one every 7 minutes*
§ 50,000 strokes occur every year, one every 10 minutes*
* Statistics from Canadian Cancer Society/ Heart & Stroke Foundation
Illness is a reality in
When someone becomes ill, many hidden costs occur. Costs of treatment and travel, child care, or modifications to your home are some of the additional costs you may not have anticipated.
When you are diagnosed with a serious illness you'll often find yourself asking questions. Where are you going to receive treatment? Will you need to travel? Are you able to get a second opinion on your diagnosis and treatment from the best doctors worldwide? Will your income be affected? Will your spouse’s income be affected if he/she wants to take a leave of absence? Do you have adult children or family who will want to travel home to be with you during this time? What will be the impact of your illness be financially to your family?
Living with a serious illness will mean major changes to your lifestyle and harsh financial challenges if you are not prepared.
Life insurance is important, but it doesn’t pay you benefits if you survive. A disability policy may provide you with a monthly income, but it only pays you a portion of your income, and it may only be for a limited amount of time.
Heart surgeon Dr. Marcus Barnard, is the creator of critical illness insurance. Dr. Barnard worked to save patients’ lives over his 30 year career and saw the tremendous changes in both the medical needs and the financial needs of his patients.
He saw many people continuing to work while they were seriously ill because they needed the income. In 1983, Dr. Barnard worked with an insurance company to develop a new type of insurance, critical illness insurance.
This insurance was designed to pay out on the diagnosis of a serious illness such as a heart attack, stroke, life threatening cancer or over twenty other covered conditions.
“We, as doctors, are the physical doctors. The critical illness insurance is the financial doctor that provides you money when you need it most.” – Dr. Marcus Barnard
Critical Illness policies provides you with:
§ A lump sum, tax-free benefit to use anyway you choose.
§ Access to assistance services which significantly impact on your ability to cope with, and recover from, your illness.
§ No-cost access to the best doctors and medical services worldwide to confirm your diagnosis and treatment.
§ Flexibility to recover and resume a meaningful lifestyle without the added burden of financial concerns.
Before choosing a critical illness insurance policy it is important to seek professional advice and guidance to ensure you have the best available policy for your situation.
Unlimited Life offers unbiased advice from the world's leading insurance companies on critical illness protection products. Contact us today to find out more at (403) 320-6023 or via email at tania@unlimitedlife.ca.