Critical Illness – A Risk Too Big to Ignore

January 30th, 2012 | Author: Mitch Reynolds

You Can’t Ignore the Risk of a Critical Illness

The financial impact of a critical illness

Diagnosis of a critical illness costs money in Canada I don’t suspect you sit around imagining what would happen to your life if you were diagnosed with a critical illness. Unless you’re a serious pessimist, sitting around and worrying about the “what if I got cancer?” question isn’t a regular preoccupation of Canadians. That is where advice and guidance from a qualified insurance broker comes in. The financial impact of having a critical illness is just too great to ignore, and it’s almost too uncomfortable to talk about. Think of those people you know whose lives have been turned upside-down because of cancer, heart disease, stroke, Ms, Alzheimer’s, or many other serious illnesses. Most of us don’t even like to spend too much time dwelling on our friends and loved ones who are suffering from illnesses and injuries because it’s just too uncomfortable to think about.

But the reality is a critical illness can happen to any of us, at any time. Are you ready? Do you have a plan? In case you’re not sure what I’m talking about, let me explain. The Canadian universal healthcare system is designed to deliver primary care – that is treatment in hospitals and appointments with your doctor or specialist. Providing coverage for many expenses outside of the primary care system are the responsibility of the individual, including prescription drugs that are not administered through a hospital. Below are a number of major expenses that would not be covered by our healthcare system that could make a serious dent in your financial plans.

Prescription Drug Costs

Many critical illnesses require expensive prescription drugs. For example, chemotherapy or radiation treatments administered in hospital ARE covered by our healthcare system, but these treatments can often leave people in pain or with crippling nausea. The drugs that most cancer patients take to deal with pain and nausea are NOT covered by our healthcare system, and these can be very expensive, specialized medications (so as to not interfere with the chemotherapy drugs). I know some patients who were spending upwards of $500 per month just on nausea medication to deal with the effects of chemotherapy treatments, and this was out of their own pocket.

There are also many new, experimental drug therapies that have not yet been added to the approved treatments of provincial healthcare plans. These drug therapies are proven to save lives and offer a better chance of survival for many ill Canadians but until they are added to the approved provincial treatment plans, you would have to pay for these treatments out of pocket. Sometimes these treats, for once course of drug therapy, could cost $50,000 – $100,000 (no wonder the provincial healthcare systems are hesitant to add every new therapy to their treatment plans). If you knew you had a 40% greater chance of surviving your illness with this new drug therapy, would provincial coverage be a barrier to you? Would you have the money on hand to get this treatment, or would you have to settle to go without?

Travelling for Treatment

Not all specialists for a specific critical illness are right next door, in your neighborhood hospital. What if the treatment you need is offered only in one or two hospitals in all of Canada (think of the Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto which has some major specializations that can save a child’s life, but only in Toronto). Even though our universal healthcare system would cover the cost of hospital treatments, what about the travel to get there? If you were seriously ill and had to travel across the country, or just across your province, for treatment, would you want to go alone or would you want family to be at your bedside? The cost of travel for your family to attend you is not covered by our healthcare system. They would have to drive or fly to you (often multiple times if you are in for a long stay in hospital), stay in hotels, eat out, etc., etc. These costs can add up to thousands of dollars that are not covered and come out of your pocket.

Alternative Medical Care

Of course alternative medical care is not covered. The word Alternative means something other than the Canadian universal/provincial healthcare system’s coverage for treatment. If you want alternative care you are going to have o pay for it yourself. That could include things like:

Immediate cancer treatment in the US at the Mayo Clinic
Getting Liberation Therapy for MS in the US or Mexico
Seeking alternative medicines and therapies that are not even approved/offered in Canada
Getting new drug therapies in the US that are not yet approved by Health Canada

Either these treatments offer hope of a cure or higher chance of surviving your critical illness, or they are your personal choice for treatment because traditional medicine just isn’t working for you. Either way, you are going to need to find the cash to pay for these alternative medical treatments yourself.

Your Spouse’s Lost Income

Do you think you’re critical illness is suffered alone? No! The whole family goes on your journey or recovery with you, and your spouse more than all. It is usually your spouse who sits, night after night, by your bedside. They keep you company, read to you, and bring flowers to your room. They take a leave of absence from work to provide care for you at home and be with you through the tough times.

What happens to their income while you are going through treatments and recovery? If they are caring for you and not going to work, their income stops and you start living off your savings. How long will that last? How will it impact your retirement plans if you start spending your RRSPs as income today. When the family loses income from one parent/spouse/breadwinner they often lose income from both, especially through the rough times when care by one for the other is needed.

Care for the Caregiver

So, who is going to replace the caregiver if she (maybe he) is too sick to do it? This is usually the stay home Mom who cares for children and runs the home. If she becomes ill, then the family needs someone else to step in and help with ongoing childcare and housework. Unless you have an extremely strong support system and family close by, you will need to hire help, especially if the other spouse is trying to go to work and make an income to pay for all this. The cost to outsource the duties of the caregiver can run over $2,000 per month with childcare. It’s just another cost of getting sick that isn’t covered by our universal healthcare system.

Life Guard Insurance can help protect you from the unforeseen costs of a critical illness

Our brokers at Life Guard Insurance can help. If you want to plan for a financially devastating situation like the ones described above, we recommend owning critical illness insurance. It is an insurance policy that pays out a lump sum, tax free benefit 30 days after diagnosis of cancer, heart attack, stroke, and over 20 other major illnesses and injuries. Our advisors can show you how owning critical illness insurance can protect you and your family from the financial impact of a major health condition. Contact us today.

The article was written by +Mitch Reynolds. If you found this article interesting or it made you think, please feel free to share your comments below. Liking us on Facebook, giving us a +1 on Google or Tweeting this article Risk of Critical Illness Can’t be Ignored would be very much appreciated.