Have questions about health or critical illness insurance? Maybe you'll find the answers here!
Below are the some of the questions (classified according to subject) submitted by visitors to our site, as well as our experts' replies.
Critical Illness Insurance
Do all critical illness insurance contracts cover the same illnesses? If not, can you tell me what is covered under your contract?
You have raised a very important point! Critical illness insurance contracts are not all the same. On the one hand, the list of covered illnesses is not always the same. On the other, the exact definition given to an illness may differ from one contract to the next.
Take cancer, for example. Although many contracts include it in the list of covered illnesses, each contract may be different as to the types of cancer covered, the criteria used, etc. When you are shopping around for a critical illness insurance contract, it is therefore important to look at the exact definitions used in addition to the list of covered illnesses.
As for Desjardins Financial Security's critical illness insurance, you will find all this information in the Serious Illness Guide.
If you would like to find out more, we invite you to contact an advisor assigned to your caisse or a Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network -SFL Financial Services representative.
What's the difference between a critical-illness policy and a disability-income contract?
Under a critical-illness policy, the benefit is a lump sum (for example, $25,000 or $100,000) paid out tax-free upon the diagnosis of a designated illness (such as heart attack, cancer, or stroke). Under disability-income policies, the benefit is paid out as monthly income if you qualify under the definition of "disability" (usually related to your capacity to perform your regular job or other types of work) stipulated in the contract.
We suggest you consult the Insurance Shopping Guide which contains a wealth of relevant information
I'm interested in critical illness insurance and would like to find out:
1) if there's an age limit for enrolment;
2) what the approximate premiums are for: (a) a healthy female, 54, homemaker, non-smoker, and (b) a healthy male, 57, employed, smoker.
Yes, there is an age limit that applies to health coverage, and it can vary depending on the plan. For instance, the age limit on a 10-year plan is 65. On the other hand, 50 is the maximum enrolment age for plans that terminate at age 65 with a premium-refund option at term. Other options are also available.
Our critical illness policies offer several options, including an amount varying from $25,000 to $2,000,000, payable while you are still alive, subsequent to the diagnosis of one of the 25 conditions or illnesses covered by some contracts, as well as a lump sum equal to a percentage of the face value covering four diagnoses and treatments or serious complications resulting from four infectious diseases. You can also top up your coverage and, under certain conditions, obtain a premium refund at term. Accordingly, it's difficult to evaluate your needs and those of your spouse without a thorough analysis. I suggest you contact an associate of our Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network.
As concerns your Critical Illness Insurance, once the diagnosis has been made and after the 30-day waiting period (or 90-day, in the case of cancer), is the benefit paid quickly and in a lump sum?
This non-taxable benefit is paid out as a lump sum. As for how quickly payment is made, everything depends on when we receive the diagnosis information, as well as the pertinence and accuracy of that information.
I'm interested in your Harmony+ Critical Illness Insurance. If I choose the lowest amount of coverage available ($25,000), which illnesses will be covered?
Our Harmony+ Insurance covers 25 illnesses, four diagnoses and treatments, and serious complications stemming from four infectious diseases. It provides for a lump-sum payment during your lifetime, which you can use as you see fit. The contract term can be ten years or be extended till age 65 or 75, with or without a paid-up option. As you can see, this product is extremely versatile! You'll find all the information on Desjardins Financial Security's critical illness insurance coverage in our Serious Illness Guide.
Do the premiums for this product increase every year?
Premiums are guaranteed for the duration of the contract.
For more details on Harmony+ and the products that best suit your situation and needs, go to the Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network site.
Dental Insurance
I'd like to know how much dental coverage costs.
Our Solo and Solo Health products provide dental and other types of coverage. Solo's five main options- life insurance, critical illness insurance, dental care, hospital insurance, and medical and paramedical coverage-are designed to meet the needs of different kinds of customers. Premiums depend on the options selected, personal information (age, sex, occupation and smoking status of the insured, etc.), and the coverage amount chosen. Solo Health provides a variety of plans and coverage types to which dental care coverage may be added.
Note : in Quebec, when someone doesn't have privately funded prescription-drug insurance, he or she must pay premiums under the public plan when filing annual income-tax returns
For more information, contact a Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network associate, who'll be able to explain product features, guarantees and options.
Eligibility for Group Insurance Coverage
I have two children, but do not live with their mother. Can I be insured under her employer's group insurance plan? Also, could you tell me what group-insurance provisions normally apply in this sort of situation?
Unfortunately, I can't give you a complete answer because I don't know which group-insurance carrier is involved. However, under most group-insurance plans, to be eligible for coverage under another person's plan, a person has to fit the definition of dependent child or "spouse".
The following is the definition of "spouse" given in some contracts:
The person who:
a) is legally married to or living in a civil union with the participant;
b) can prove to the Insurer's satisfaction that he or she has been living with the participant for at least 12 months and that they have not been separated for more than 90 days as a result of a breakdown in the relationship;
c) can prove to the Insurer's satisfaction that he or she has been living with the participant, that they have a child together, and that they have not been separated for more than 90 days as a result of a breakdown in the relationship.
For more information on your situation, have the person insured under the plan in which you wish to enrol consult her company's human resources department.
Please feel free to write again for additional information.
I'm planning to start my own company, which should be employing seven or eight people by the end of its first year of operation. As capital outlay, I plan to waive my own salary for the first three months. Will I still be insurable under a group insurance plan? In other words, will I be considered an employee even if I don't receive a salary?
Our company's group insurance plans have various eligibility criteria. To find out if you are insurable under such a plan, you need to answer the following question: Are you planning to offer group insurance coverage to all your employees? If so, to be eligible yourself, you need to be considered an employee, which by definition means receiving a salary and working a certain number of hours a week. If you don't meet these criteria, we can provide a group insurance plan for your employees with a rider covering your particular situation. If you'd like more information on this subject, we suggest you visit our "Groups and Businesses" section.
Moreover, if you're interested only in coverage for yourself, you can always get individual insurance that will meet your needs. Desjardins Financial Security offers many different options, including the SOLO Health insurance plan.
For further information on our products, or assistance in evaluating your insurance needs and selecting the product that suits you best, I suggest you contact an associate of our Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network.
Health Insurance
I'm 48 years old, in good health, and presently covered by the government prescription-drug insurance plan. I want to take out life and health insurance that won't cost the earth, because I'm only making minimum wage.
As regards health insurance, are you more interested in critical illness or complementary healthcare coverage (dental care, vision care, paramedical insurance)?
Desjardins Financial Security offers a broad spectrum of products able to meet your needs. For example, you could bundle life and critical illness insurance (cancer, cardiovascular disease, etc.) or life and complementary healthcare insurance. To answer your question properly, we' have to analyze your situation, requirements and budget more closely.
A financial security advisor can help you determine those requirements. Contact a financial security advisor at your Desjardins caisse or Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network Financial Centre.
Do you offer prescription-drug insurance like the kind available under the Quebec government plan, but that also includes dental and vision care? If so, what are the costs of family coverage?
As you are doubtless aware, in Quebec, when someone doesn't have privately funded prescription-drug insurance, he or she must pay premiums under the public plan when filing annual income-tax returns.
We therefore do not provide an individual prescription-drug plan; however, we do offer dental, paramedical, hospital, and critical illness coverage. As these plans all come with various options, we can't give you a hard-and-fast price.
To properly assess your needs and choose the product that's best for you, contact a Desjardins caisse financial security advisor or a Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network Financial Centre associate.
Insurance for Individuals Without Employer-Provided Group Insurance
I'm self-employed and need insurance. I've got two options: take out a full plan for myself, or enrol in spousal coverage under my husband's group plan and add on individual disability coverage. Aside from the costs involved, which one of these alternatives is better?
First, you have to analyze your coverage requirements. As a self-employed individual, which of the following do you need: life insurance, disability insurance, critical illness insurance, accident insurance, hospital, medical and paramedical coverage, dental insurance, or business expense insurance?
Once you've determined your needs, you'll be able to compare your spouse's plan with another private plan and choose the one that suits you best. However, if you're a Quebec resident under 65 and have access to drug-insurance coverage (such as that of your spouse's group plan), enrolment in that plan is mandatory.
I suggest you meet with a financial security advisor to go over our product line and get a quote.
I don't have group insurance at work, and would like to know if I can enrol in prescription-drug insurance other than the government plan.
Our Solo and Solo Health products offer insurance coverage to which you can add a prescription drug benefit. However, Quebec residents are not eligible for this benefit, as you are no doubt aware, when someone doesn't have privately funded prescription-drug insurance, he or she must pay premiums under the public plan when filing annual income-tax returns.
However; we do offer dental, paramedical, hospital, and critical illness coverage. As these plans all come with various options, we can't give you a hard-and-fast price.
For further details on the Public Plan, go to the RAMQ site or consult the brochure entitled Prescription Drug Insurance Plan.
I'm a 20-year-old fulltime CÉGEP student. My parents don't have a dental plan at work. Is it absolutely necessary to be employed to get this kind of insurance, or are there other ways to get coverage?
Dental coverage can be obtained under an employer-provided plan or on an individual basis. Individual coverage often comes bundled with other insurance such as life or disability coverage, with a certain maximum amount applying to attendant expenses.
You can purchase individual dental coverage by meeting with a financial security advisor.
I've Just Left My Job. What Will Happen to My Group Insurance?
I'm currently insured under my employer's group insurance policy. If I lose or leave my job, can I transfer my health insurance to an individual plan?
In general, life-insurance coverage offered by a group-insurance plan can be converted into individual coverage during a predetermined period of time. Other types of coverage, such as complementary health care (which includes drug and disability insurance), are usually not convertible. Please refer to your contract provisions in this regard.
If you can't convert your coverage, you can obtain individual coverage from an insurer. Desjardins Financial Security offers various options that could meet your needs, including the Solo Health plan. For more information on our products, contact an associate of our Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network.
I've been informed that I may no longer be working for TNT Logistics North America. If this is so, can I purchase my health coverage from you directly? I require this insurance for myself and need to know how much it would cost. Please advise by return email. Thank you.
Should you no longer be working for TNT Logistics North America for reasons other than retirement, you can't continue your coverage under your employer's plan, even if you wish to pay the premium.
You can, however, purchase similar coverage by taking out a complementary healthcare package. Solo Health offers a wide range of options, including life, travel, critical illness and dental care insurance, as well as coverage for prescription drugs, hospitalization, vision care, and alternative practitioners. (N.B.: Prescription-drug coverage is unavailable in Quebec, as Quebec residents must enrol in the Public Prescription Drug Insurance Plan if they don't have access to a private plan.)
For more details or if you would like a quotation, I suggest you contact an associate of our Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network.