Cancer Accounts for Majority of Critical Illness Insurance Claims

LOS ANGELES - April 21, 2020 - PRLog -- The majority of critical illness insurance claims result from a cancer diagnosis reports the American Association for Critical Illness Insurance (AACII).   Between half and nearly two thirds of claims were the result of a cancer diagnosis.

"This year 1.8 million Americans will hear the dreaded words you have cancer," reports Jesse Slome, AACII's director.   "Fortunately the majority will be treated and survive.  Unfortunately what may not survive is any savings, their home or other assets."

According to Slome roughly 500,000 Americans will file for bankruptcy in a typical year.  "The most common reason is health or medical conditions and surprisingly many of these good people had health insurance in place when the condition was first diagnosed."

Not all costs are covered by health insurance, Slome points out.  "Many have high deductible plans, face co-insurance payments or will want out-of-network care, all of which has to be paid for," he notes.  "At the same time, most people will need to take time off from work to undergo treatments and recover."

The Association is mounting a campaign to educate more individuals about the existence of cancer-only insurance as well as comprehensive critical illness insurance.  "Both pay a lump-sum amount upon diagnosis of a covered condition like cancer," Slome explains. Cancer-only insurance policies tend to be significantly less costly.  Learn more at
https://criticalillnessinsuranceinfo.org/cancer-insurance/ .

The critical illness insurance advocate recommends a simple way to estimate how much coverage to consider.  "Calculate the cost of rent or mortgage payments for between six and 18 months," Slome recommends.   "Those tend to be the biggest expenses we all face.  You'll be able to focus on treatment and recovery and not have to worry about where you'll be living."

The latest data for claims comes from the 2018/2019 U.S. Critical Illness Insurance Market Survey conducted by Gen Re.

To learn more about cancer insurance or critical illness insurance protection visit the American Association for Critical Illness Insurance website at https://www.criticalillnessinsuranceinfo.org or call the organization at 818-597-3205.