- Josh DeMers, FLMI
- December 18, 2020
- 3 min read
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At the end of the year, it is an important time to be reviewing your insurance coverage, especially your health insurance. Health insurance will help you pay for health care services but what happens when something dire happens to you like getting diagnosed with cancer or having a heart attack?
Having excellent health insurance won’t cover all of your costs, leaving you financially at-risk. But there is a way to protect yourself and your family with supplemental coverage. Below you will learn more about who needs it, how much it costs, and where you can get it.
P.S. If you are looking for a guide on health insurance or looking for coverage, Stride has put together an excellent resource for you: The Stride Guide to Health Insurance
Key Takeaways
- Supplemental health insurance is a great way to protect your out-of-pocket costs and help you cover your living expenses.
- If you have a high deductible health plan or not much in savings to cover an emergency, this coverage can fit your needs.
- Even top-notch health insurance plans won’t cover everything, leaving you financially exposed in the event of getting cancer or having a heart attack.
- These policies are relatively low cost and can be applied for in less than 5 minutes online through Prepare Insurance.
Table of Contents
What is Supplemental Health Insurance?
Starting from the basics, supplemental health insurance is a plan that can cover beyond what your health insurance coverage does or can provide additional protection and benefits.
For example, imagine you have a health insurance plan that comes with a $5,000 deductible and a critical illness insurance plan with a $25,000 benefit.
If you get diagnosed with a covered condition like cancer, there are going to be many expenses that you will be responsible for such as paying your $5,000 deductible, traveling for medical visits, paying for living expenses such as housing and food, and replacing income if you take time off work.
In this example, health insurance is going to cover the majority of your medical expenses due to cancer treatments, but not all of the additional expenses above. Once diagnosed, critical illness insurance will pay you the $25,000 benefit for you to use however you like.
Types of Supplemental Health Insurance:
- Critical Illness Insurance
- Dental and Vision Insurance
- Disability Insurance
- Medicare or Medicaid Supplemental Plans
- Long Term Care Insurance
- Short Term Health Insurance
How to Tell if you Need Supplemental Coverage?
First, let’s start by looking at your health insurance plan and look at the potential gaps:
- Out-of-pocket Gaps
- Deductibles – This is the amount you pay for medical services before coinsurance kicks in.
- Coinsurance – This is the medical costs that you are responsible for after you’ve met your deductible.
- Copays – This is what you pay for at the time of care for health care services.
- Out-of-pocket Gaps
These are items that you will have to pay for depending on your health insurance plan. It is also important to look at your out-of-pocket maximum as this is what you will potentially need to pay if something serious happens to you or your family.
Questions to determine if you need supplemental coverage:
- Do I have enough in savings to cover my out-of-pocket maximum?
- Do I want to rely on my family, friends, or fundraising to cover my medical expenses if I get sick?
- Do I have money that I can access through a health savings account or flexible savings account?
Use our Needs Assessment Calculator to figure out how much coverage you need
How Much Does Coverage Cost?
Depending on the carrier, the typical price range and coverage amounts vary. Below are examples of what you could possible pay per month based on the following benefit amounts.
$5,000 in Coverage
-
25 years old - $4/mo
-
35 years old - $6/mo
-
45 years old - $9/mo
-
55 years old - $14/mo
$20,000 in Coverage
-
25 years old - $9/mo
-
35 years old - $16/mo
-
45 years old - $28/mo
-
55 years old - $49/mo
$50,000 in Coverage
-
25 years old - $19/mo
-
35 years old - $37/mo
-
45 years old - $67/mo
-
55 years old - $119/mo
Want to learn more about Critical Illness Insurance?
Check out our 101 guide to learn the basics.
How Can I Get Critical Illness Insurance?
Through Prepare Insurance, you can get your quote instantly and apply for coverage in a matter of minutes.
Here is how our process works for you:
- Get your instant quote
- Answer demographic questions such as name and address
- Answer health questions such as height, weight and if you’ve ever been diagnosed with cancer
- Submit payment info
- Sign your insurance application
- Then you’ll get a decision on if your policy has been approved or needs to be reviewed
The process is so simple that you can do it all on your phone, we make it that easy for you!
We tried to capture the most important aspects about critical illness insurance but if you have any questions or want to walk through the process with our team, we are here for you. Critical illness insurance is about obtaining peace of mind for your financial future. Call us at 402-454-7433 or email us at support@prepareinsure.com
Summary
Supplemental coverage like critical illness insurance can take the financial burden off of you as it pays you directly regardless of other insurance coverage. It can protect your out-of-pockets costs when you are diagnosed with a covered condition.
This coverage is a great fit for you if you have a high deductible health plan or do not have much in savings to cover an emergency.
An unexpected illness like cancer, heart attack, or stroke, can happen to anyone. Even having excellent health insurance won’t cover all of the costs leaving you financially at-risk.
These policies are relatively low cost and can be applied for in less than 5 minutes online through Prepare Insurance.
Get your instant, personalized quote
Our process takes minutes, saving you time and money when you need it most.