Critical illness cover and breast cancer: What do I need to know?
One of the critical illnesses that are primarily the concern of women is breast cancer. If you feel that you may have the possibility for contracting this dread disease and are thinking of getting critical illness cover, it is best to first carefully study the policy you will get. This is to avoid unpleasant surprises in the future.
Levels of Cancers
You see, critical illness policies will only cover cancers that fall under a certain level. It is important to note that some forms of breast cancer are not covered.
If you are diagnosed with an early stage of breast cancer, this may not be payable under the critical illness policy. This is because this type of cancer does not fall under the category of “critical” since the new medical technology can now provide you with effective strategies to treat the cancer. Thus, you have a high change of surviving this cancer.
This means that non-malignant tumours (which when undetected and untreated can become malignant tumours) may not be payable under the policy. This includes the form of breast cancer called ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), which is easily detectable and treatable.
The sad thing is that even with a non-malignant tumour, you will still have to spend a goodly amount of money on regular lab tests, medications and treatments. Thus, it is important to be aware of the level of coverage your policy can offer.
Read the Fine Print!
Before you even get your critical illness policy, you should make your own research and comparison among the different critical illness insurance policies in the market. Remember, various policies define various critical illnesses differently. Indeed, there are some insurance companies that will pay for non-malignant cancers.
You should also check whether your policy may pay partial lump sums for cancers that are not considered non-critical. The rationale behind this is that the insurance companies should consider paying a partial amount to ensure that the cancer does not worsen and become a critical illness.
Recommended useful information to read:
- Are you at risk? Critical Illnesses you may be susceptible to
- Things to consider before getting a critical illness insurance policy
- What you should know about Your Critical Illness Cover: The exclusions to your policy
- Save Up on Premiums: factors that affect Your Critical Illness Insurance premiums
- Dos and Don’ts When Making Critical Illness Insurance Claims
