How deep do the expenses go for a stroke or heart attack?

Health insurance has always been a great thing to have. However, now days the reality is that a stroke or a heart attack can leave you with a ton of out-of-pocket expenses that even the best policy can't help you with. Dr. Marius Barnard, when he realized this harsh truth, proposed the idea of critical illness insurance. This kind of insurance helps provide cash benefits to the individuals that are facing a critical illness, helping them survive on both a financial and physical level.

Insurance Has Its Limits:

While most of your medical bills will be taken care of- depending on your insurance- out-of-pocket costs can be incredibly high; especially when you consider the fact that you will often have to see multiple doctors for different procedures. While the insurance may cover all of these doctors, you are still required to pay the deductible and co-pays for every visit. 

You might also want to try experimental treatments that aren't covered by your insurance; you may need to travel in order to get the best care that you can as well, which won't be covered by your insurance. And, you might have to be on medical leave for a long time, as well. Since there are also everyday living expenses that you might need to cover while you are out of work, then it is incredibly important that you plan how much money you might need in case of a health problem.

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Budgeting Is Never Precise:

The harsh reality of illnesses is that you can't see the future: you can't predict how long you will be off your feet, or if the illness will come back.

For most people, the best way to make a financial plan for a critical illness, is to decide the coverage amount for your insurance policy, which can be based on what you make in a year. When you buy a policy based on this number, you will more than likely be protected against most of your potential income loss. However, if you are out of work for a year or longer, you will more than likely need extended care, which, in this unfortunate case, makes some policy payouts larger.

An alternate plan is to figure out how many months you could potentially be out of work due to your illness; based on this number, you add up all the expenses that you would incur. For example, if you think that you might end up missing three months of work, add up how much you make in a three month period and increase this number by half to cover your expenses- this is a guide to how much payout you should look for in a policy. You should remember, though, that there is no exact number in this case, so it is always a good idea to have more coverage.

Ultimately, you should be sure that you have enough coverage to let you recover comfortably, and to make sure that the black cloud of debt doesn't hang over you and your family during this time. By using proper planning, you can make sure that both your lifestyle and your legacy will be maintained, no matter what life may throw at you.