No one likes paying too much, especially for insurance. Seems like everyone is constantly shopping for the best rates.
Nothing wrong with that. I always tell folks when you pay more you don't get more, you simply paid too much.
But it is also possible to pay too little for insurance. When you do, more often than not it comes back to bite you.
More often than not consumers would be wise to pay a few dollars more and get a plan without so many "gotcha's".
#PayingTooMuchForInsurance
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Monday, 20 April 2020
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"I was told this today...with an effective date of applications starting tomorrow. I have several folk 65+ who are trying to apply, and I have to say sorry, but I have more expensive options for you to look at.
Throughout the rapidly evolving pandemic, Mutual of Omaha has been continuously evaluating our underwriting and new business practices to support business continuity, deliver a consistently high level of service, and maintain our financial strength.
As a result, effective Thursday, April 16, 2020, we are implementing a temporary change. We will not be accepting LTC applications for individuals age 65 and older. All LTC cases not already approved or issued will be postponed and processed as an incomplete application.
We will continue to prequalify applicants 64 and younger. The prequalification will be good for 60 days. If the health of the client changes or the prequalification is past 60 days, you will need to prequalify the applicant again."
I then confirmed this with FoIB Randy G, who added:
"MOO, TransAmerica, NGL, and Thrivent are not accepting any applications for those over the age of 65.
They say temporarily….
Reason is that individuals over the age of 65 will require a home face to face interview.
The nurses who conduct those interviews don’t have sufficient PPEs to enter homes.
Anyway, that’s the story I got.
The companies will still accept applications for those 64 and under. However, there are restrictions to this as well."
Thanks, Herman and Randy!
Oh, my take?
I think it's bullcrap: have none of these carriers ever heard of Skype?
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Insurance Tips and trik auto insurance, auto insurance quotes, auto insurance companies, auto insurance florida, auto insurance quotes online, auto insurance america
"I was told this today...with an effective date of applications starting tomorrow. I have several folk 65+ who are trying to apply, and I have to say sorry, but I have more expensive options for you to look at.
Throughout the rapidly evolving pandemic, Mutual of Omaha has been continuously evaluating our underwriting and new business practices to support business continuity, deliver a consistently high level of service, and maintain our financial strength.
As a result, effective Thursday, April 16, 2020, we are implementing a temporary change. We will not be accepting LTC applications for individuals age 65 and older. All LTC cases not already approved or issued will be postponed and processed as an incomplete application.
We will continue to prequalify applicants 64 and younger. The prequalification will be good for 60 days. If the health of the client changes or the prequalification is past 60 days, you will need to prequalify the applicant again."
Throughout the rapidly evolving pandemic, Mutual of Omaha has been continuously evaluating our underwriting and new business practices to support business continuity, deliver a consistently high level of service, and maintain our financial strength.
As a result, effective Thursday, April 16, 2020, we are implementing a temporary change. We will not be accepting LTC applications for individuals age 65 and older. All LTC cases not already approved or issued will be postponed and processed as an incomplete application.
We will continue to prequalify applicants 64 and younger. The prequalification will be good for 60 days. If the health of the client changes or the prequalification is past 60 days, you will need to prequalify the applicant again."
I then confirmed this with FoIB Randy G, who added:
"MOO, TransAmerica, NGL, and Thrivent are not accepting any applications for those over the age of 65.
They say temporarily….
Reason is that individuals over the age of 65 will require a home face to face interview.
The nurses who conduct those interviews don’t have sufficient PPEs to enter homes.
Anyway, that’s the story I got.
The companies will still accept applications for those 64 and under. However, there are restrictions to this as well."
Thanks, Herman and Randy!
Oh, *my* take?
I think it's bullcrap: have none of these carriers ever heard of Skype?
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Friday, 17 April 2020
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As we noted the other day, many auto insurance carriers have installed discount/refund programs as a result of the pandemic's stifling effect on driving:
"In general, insurers that represent four out of five auto insurance policies sold in the United States have offered to refund some portion of driver premiums."
But that was just a small sampling. This time, FoIB Bill M tips us to a comprehensive list of many (most?) such programs. For example:
"In general, insurers that represent four out of five auto insurance policies sold in the United States have offered to refund some portion of driver premiums."
But that was just a small sampling. This time, FoIB Bill M tips us to a comprehensive list of many (most?) such programs. For example:
■ Amica: 20% credit on April and May premiums
■ The Hartford: 15% refund on April and May premiums (but only for policies in effect as of April 1)
■ Mercury Insurance: 15% credit on April and May premiums
And of course many others. Do click on over to see what your carrier's offering.
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Wednesday, 15 April 2020
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Is it OK to have an HSA plus Medicare? Can I still make contributions once I enroll in Medicare? How about my younger spouse? What else do I need to know?
When you enroll in Medicare Part A or B, you can no longer contribute to your Health Savings Account. When your Medicare begins, your account administrator should change your contribution to your HSA to zero. If you have a spouse who also has an HSA, money can be deposited for him or her. A Health Savings Account is a bank account, not insurance. HSA's have a single owner. Joint ownership is not an option.
You may continue to withdraw money from your HSA after you enroll in Medicare to help pay for medical expenses, such as deductibles, (some) premiums, copayments, and coinsurances. If you use the account for qualified medical expenses, its funds will continue to be tax-free.
If you sign up for Part A after turning 65, Medicare will automatically backdate your Part A effective date by up to 6 months. If you enroll in July, your Part A will be effective January 1 of that year but not before your 65th birthday.
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One of the side effects of the forced shut-down is that folks are driving less - a lot less. And this, in turn, has given auto insurers a good reason to refund at least some of our premiums (less driving = fewer accidents). As we've noted previously, some carriers have been pretty good about this:
"Allstate and American Family Insurance have begun discounting car insurance premiums since many drivers aren’t using their cars as much due to stay-at-home policies aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus."
But they're not the only ones and, in fact, some are even better about how they're handling this opportunity. FoIB (and P&C Guru) Bill M tips us to this list of the 10 Best such:
"In general, insurers that represent four out of five auto insurance policies sold in the United States have offered to refund some portion of driver premiums."
Nice!
Leading off in the #10 spot is MapFre, a carrier I've only recently heard of (our eldest is insured with, and speaks very highly of, them). I definitely recommend clicking through to see if your carrier is listed (and in what spot).
"Allstate and American Family Insurance have begun discounting car insurance premiums since many drivers aren’t using their cars as much due to stay-at-home policies aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus."
But they're not the only ones and, in fact, some are even better about how they're handling this opportunity. FoIB (and P&C Guru) Bill M tips us to this list of the 10 Best such:
"In general, insurers that represent four out of five auto insurance policies sold in the United States have offered to refund some portion of driver premiums."
Nice!
Leading off in the #10 spot is MapFre, a carrier I've only recently heard of (our eldest is insured with, and speaks very highly of, them). I definitely recommend clicking through to see if your carrier is listed (and in what spot).
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Tuesday, 14 April 2020
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We've written before about the evolution of coverage for Uber and Lyft drivers, but of course they're not the only ones active in the so-called 'gig-economy.' With social distancing a (hopefully temporary) way of life, more and more folks are turning to services like InstaCart to traverse the various aisles and endcaps, searching for wild game (or cans of soup and maybe a roll of TP or 6). What a lot of folks (myself included!) probably didn't know is that these folks rely on their own transportation to ferry their customer's merch their doorways.
One of our regular readers emails us me about the disturbing truth:
"I want to do some work for Instacart. They do not offer a master insurance policy the way Uber does, you have to provide your own coverage. I have two vehicles, one is covered by a commercial policy, the other is under a regular auto policy.
For the former, commercial coverage is written to cover one type of work, so I can't operate outside of that, thus I have no coverage for Instacart.
For the latter, my broker told me that many insurance companies covering personal vehicles are extending coverage for gigs such as Instacart, but not mine.
My broker pretty much told me that I would have to buy a new commercial policy if I want to do Instacart. I probably won't. And can you imagine how probably 100% of people doing Instacart don't have proper coverage, if any?"
Thank you!!
One of our regular readers emails us me about the disturbing truth:
"I want to do some work for Instacart. They do not offer a master insurance policy the way Uber does, you have to provide your own coverage. I have two vehicles, one is covered by a commercial policy, the other is under a regular auto policy.
For the former, commercial coverage is written to cover one type of work, so I can't operate outside of that, thus I have no coverage for Instacart.
For the latter, my broker told me that many insurance companies covering personal vehicles are extending coverage for gigs such as Instacart, but not mine.
My broker pretty much told me that I would have to buy a new commercial policy if I want to do Instacart. I probably won't. And can you imagine how probably 100% of people doing Instacart don't have proper coverage, if any?"
Thank you!!
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Saturday, 11 April 2020
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Easter means many things to different people, and to some it has no meaning at all.
The colloquial view is bunnies, colored eggs, baskets, new "Sunday" outfits and of course, shiny new shoes. Patent leather if you are a girl.
Just as Passover (Pesach) is a tradition with deep meaning for observant Jews, Easter (Pascha in Greek) is significant to Christians.
Both Passover and Easter are 8 day celebrations excluding Lent which starts 40 days before Easter.
This year Passover and Easter holidays overlap for the first time since 2012.
Perhaps it is more than just a coincidence.
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The colloquial view is bunnies, colored eggs, baskets, new "Sunday" outfits and of course, shiny new shoes. Patent leather if you are a girl.
Just as Passover (Pesach) is a tradition with deep meaning for observant Jews, Easter (Pascha in Greek) is significant to Christians.
Both Passover and Easter are 8 day celebrations excluding Lent which starts 40 days before Easter.
This year Passover and Easter holidays overlap for the first time since 2012.
Perhaps it is more than just a coincidence.
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Friday, 10 April 2020
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Wednesday, 8 April 2020
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The archetypical celebration of freedom and redemption, Passover, begins this evening.
Because of the pandemic, we have been forced to cancel our traditional - and highly anticipated - seders this year. But we can still enjoy this musical interlude from the Israeli Philharmonic:
חג פסח שמח
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We spend a lot of time dunking on insurance companies for boneheaded, sometimes egregious behavior.
So it's nice to also point out examples of good corporate behavior, as well. Like the folks at Companion Life:
[click to embiggen]
And they're not the only carrier behaving well. Our friends at OneAmerica Life have announced their CV-19 lapsed policy stance:
"If a life insurance policy lapsed AFTER the policyowner’s resident state issued a moratorium on lapses, then:
1. OneAmerica is automatically extending coverage on these impacted life insurance policies until June 1, 2020.
2. No action is required by you or the policyowner. It is automatic."
Nicely done!
But wait - There's more!
"Allstate and American Family Insurance have begun discounting car insurance premiums since many drivers aren’t using their cars as much due to stay-at-home policies aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus."
It's important to note that this is entirely voluntary on the carriers' part, with Allstate estimating their contribution at $600 million, and AmFam's at about a third of that.
But wait - There's more!
"Allstate and American Family Insurance have begun discounting car insurance premiums since many drivers aren’t using their cars as much due to stay-at-home policies aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus."
It's important to note that this is entirely voluntary on the carriers' part, with Allstate estimating their contribution at $600 million, and AmFam's at about a third of that.
And please let us know about how other carriers are stepping up - Thanks!
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Tuesday, 7 April 2020
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This:
December: Do you want health insurance?— Greg Fann (@greg_fann) April 7, 2020
29 million people: No
April: The government will cover COVID-19 costs if you remain uninsured, & other services you would use insurance for will be considered 'elective' and will be postponed. Do you want health insurance?#ACA #Obamacare
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I know, I know, another Business Interruption post - enough, enough!
Except, well, not really:
To recap, Business Interruption coverage is supposed to help reimbursed lost revenue due to a covered, physical loss (such as a fire, or a flood, etc). The issue at hand is whether or not a business forced to close because of the current pandemic is entitled to such reimbursement, since the physical structure remains intact (and distinct from a claim arising from actual contamination). As we've previously mentioned, the answer would presumably be 'No,' but that has since morphed to 'potentially Maybe.'[LINK2]
/sigh
So there's been a loud hue and cry from affected businesses that are facing significant cash flow (as in, zero or very little) problems because they've been forced to close (or drastically pull back). And of course there's increasing pressure on The Powers That Be© to "do something."
But is this wise, let alone appropriate? What should the government's role in this conundrum be (if any)?
Well, let's set the Wayback Machine to almost eleven years ago:[LINK3]
"It’s still far from the norm, but governments around the world are becoming increasingly involved in providing terrorism reinsurance. In addition to catastrophe cover, some are addressing business interruption ... Government involvement has become necessary ... as private insurers and reinsurers would otherwise step back from these risks – either by reducing their exposure or eliminating it completely."
Please note that last: "eliminating it completely."
But is that what really happened?
Well, as our friend and P&C Guru Bill M tips us, pretty much:
"[M]ost companies will probably find it difficult to get an insurance payout because of policy changes made after the 2002-2003 SARS outbreak ... led to millions of dollars in business-interruption insurance claims ... As a result, many insurers added exclusions to standard commercial policies for losses caused by viruses or bacteria."
With the (predictable) result that carriers have what appears to be a bullet-proof claims-denial capability.
So, as with the airline and travel industries (among others), there's a concerted, vocal effort for government intervention:
"[P]roperty and casualty insurance companies are facing growing pressure to tap the industry’s $822 billion in cash reserves.
Lawmakers in New Jersey, Massachusetts and Ohio are considering forcing retroactive policy changes to cover coronavirus business-interruption claims."
Counter-balanced against that, of course, is the (inconvenient?) fact that such coverage was never underwritten, and for which no premium has ever been paid.
#WhatCouldGoWrong?
But is this actually necessary? That is, what if there already existed a policy to cover these circumstances? Surely these would sell like corndogs at the state fair, right?
"Pandemic business insurance — complete with virus coverage — is offered by the broker Marsh."
Oh, that's great! So problem solved, right?
Turns out, not so much:
"It launched its outbreak insurance in 2018.
A few companies in the hospitality and gaming industries showed interest.
But not a single policy was sold."
So, given that, is there some role for government here?
One more trip in the WMB:
"[T]he Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 to create a “temporary” federal backstop against catastrophic losses. This program subsidized private risk with public funds through a cost-sharing program for which the government does not receive any compensation."
So, government as BI backstop may yet be "a thing."
Guess we'll just have to wait and see.
Except, well, not really:
To recap, Business Interruption coverage is supposed to help reimbursed lost revenue due to a covered, physical loss (such as a fire, or a flood, etc). The issue at hand is whether or not a business forced to close because of the current pandemic is entitled to such reimbursement, since the physical structure remains intact (and distinct from a claim arising from actual contamination). As we've previously mentioned, the answer would presumably be 'No,' but that has since morphed to 'potentially Maybe.'[LINK2]
/sigh
So there's been a loud hue and cry from affected businesses that are facing significant cash flow (as in, zero or very little) problems because they've been forced to close (or drastically pull back). And of course there's increasing pressure on The Powers That Be© to "do something."
But is this wise, let alone appropriate? What should the government's role in this conundrum be (if any)?
Well, let's set the Wayback Machine to almost eleven years ago:[LINK3]
"It’s still far from the norm, but governments around the world are becoming increasingly involved in providing terrorism reinsurance. In addition to catastrophe cover, some are addressing business interruption ... Government involvement has become necessary ... as private insurers and reinsurers would otherwise step back from these risks – either by reducing their exposure or eliminating it completely."
Please note that last: "eliminating it completely."
But is that what really happened?
Well, as our friend and P&C Guru Bill M tips us, pretty much:
"[M]ost companies will probably find it difficult to get an insurance payout because of policy changes made after the 2002-2003 SARS outbreak ... led to millions of dollars in business-interruption insurance claims ... As a result, many insurers added exclusions to standard commercial policies for losses caused by viruses or bacteria."
With the (predictable) result that carriers have what appears to be a bullet-proof claims-denial capability.
So, as with the airline and travel industries (among others), there's a concerted, vocal effort for government intervention:
"[P]roperty and casualty insurance companies are facing growing pressure to tap the industry’s $822 billion in cash reserves.
Lawmakers in New Jersey, Massachusetts and Ohio are considering forcing retroactive policy changes to cover coronavirus business-interruption claims."
Counter-balanced against that, of course, is the (inconvenient?) fact that such coverage was never underwritten, and for which no premium has ever been paid.
#WhatCouldGoWrong?
But is this actually necessary? That is, what if there already existed a policy to cover these circumstances? Surely these would sell like corndogs at the state fair, right?
"Pandemic business insurance — complete with virus coverage — is offered by the broker Marsh."
Oh, that's great! So problem solved, right?
Turns out, not so much:
"It launched its outbreak insurance in 2018.
A few companies in the hospitality and gaming industries showed interest.
But not a single policy was sold."
So, given that, is there some role for government here?
One more trip in the WMB:
"[T]he Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 to create a “temporary” federal backstop against catastrophic losses. This program subsidized private risk with public funds through a cost-sharing program for which the government does not receive any compensation."
So, government as BI backstop may yet be "a thing."
Guess we'll just have to wait and see.
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Monday, 6 April 2020
Saturday, 4 April 2020
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Medicare supplement plan G 2020. Learn about Medigap G plan.
You don't have to be terminal to run up a lot of medical bills.
People with diagnosed diabetes incur average medical expenditures of $16,752 per year, of which about $9,601 is attributed to diabetes. On average, people with diagnosed diabetes have medical expenditures approximately 2.3 times higher than what expenditures would be in the absence of diabetes. In the US over 34 million have diabetes.
https://ift.tt/39pghGm
An estimated 22 million people in the US have CVD (Cardio-Vascular Disease). The annual direct cost of care per person is $18,953; for related care the total is $39,036.
https://ift.tt/2V5IT2g
This chart shows annual cost of cancer care for those 65 and over.
https://ift.tt/1Qx8hlV
Limit your out of pocket costs with Medicare supplement plan G.
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You don't have to be terminal to run up a lot of medical bills.
People with diagnosed diabetes incur average medical expenditures of $16,752 per year, of which about $9,601 is attributed to diabetes. On average, people with diagnosed diabetes have medical expenditures approximately 2.3 times higher than what expenditures would be in the absence of diabetes. In the US over 34 million have diabetes.
https://ift.tt/39pghGm
An estimated 22 million people in the US have CVD (Cardio-Vascular Disease). The annual direct cost of care per person is $18,953; for related care the total is $39,036.
https://ift.tt/2V5IT2g
This chart shows annual cost of cancer care for those 65 and over.
https://ift.tt/1Qx8hlV
Limit your out of pocket costs with Medicare supplement plan G.
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Friday, 3 April 2020
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News flash: ACA exchanges are open and all states have Special Enrollment Periods!In a day and age when 240 characters is our limit for reading news, it becomes very important that we don't overlook the facts within the story. Unfortunately our media outlets would rather garner clicks and scare people than provide a real understanding of what people can do.
Look at these headlines:
Trump Rejects Obamacare Special Enrollment Period Amid Pandemic - Politico
Trump Rejects Opening Obamacare Enrollment for Uninsured Americans - Fox Business News
Obamacare Markets Will Not Reopen, Trump Decides - New York Times
The list goes on: The Daily Beast, Salon, Business Insider, NBC, all have headlines that create fear.
This shameful tactic is bad enough during normal times, but playing on people's emotions during a pandemic where many are losing their jobs and their benefits is downright f'ed up.
Instead of dwelling on a lost cause, I would like to share the facts. Not only the facts as it relates to Special Enrollment Periods (SEP) being available, but also the challenges an individual faces when signing up for coverage.
An SEP is an enrollment opportunity for individuals dealing with certain life events including losing health coverage, moving, getting married, having a baby, or adopting a child. Aside from an SEP, someone may also qualify for COBRA (likely high cost) or Medicaid/CHIP (income limits apply).
For now we will focus on losing health coverage.
When you lose your job you have 60 days before or 60 days following the event to enroll in a plan. To enroll you need to create an account at Healthcare.gov (or your state's exchange platform). When creating an account you are asked quite a bit about your demographics. Answering these questions are essential to your account and don't require much heavy lifting to complete.
The more challenging parts of the application process deal with providing your projected income, understanding your results, and uploading the proper documents to finalize your insurance.
During the application process you will be asked to provide your projected income for the year. This is the first challenge as nobody knows how much they will make in the future. It's important to note that many sources of income count including wages, tips, income from investments/rentals, Social Security, retirement/pensions, and unemployment. I highlight the last because it will likely be a focus for those losing employer based insurance.
Once you have completed the basic sections you will be able to "review your results". It is here where you find out if you qualify for a subsidy or not. Also in this document will be details on what you need to provide as proof you are losing insurance coverage. This document - once you receive it - will have to be uploaded and sent to healthcare.gov. Documents that can be submitted include a letter from the health insurance company, a letter from your employer, a letter regarding COBRA, or many others based on your situation.
From here you will determine how much of your subsidy you want to use on a monthly basis (we recommend all of it), review all plans and prices, make a plan selection, and then pay your initial premium.
It's important to remember that if you have already lost insurance that you must pick a plan within 60 days of losing coverage, submit documents within 30 days of picking a plan, and your new plan won't start until the first of the month after you have picked a plan.
This is a very cumbersome process for most and there are many pitfalls that come along with trying to navigate the website on your own. Above everything I would recommend finding a licensed agent in your area to help you through the process. In many areas there is no cost for this assistance as compensation is built in to the insurance premiums you pay.
One last note, if you are looking for insurance make sure you complete the process within the required timeframe. Failing to do so will result in you having to wait until open enrollment which doesn't start your coverage until January 1, 2021.
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Not all heroes wear capes.
Or even clothes, for that matter:
Or even clothes, for that matter:
"The British company MedFet, which describes itself as the "only online store 100% dedicated to medical fetish, kink, and roleplay," donated medical scrubs to a hospital to help its staff protect themselves from the virus while treating an influx of patients."
Here in the states, we're seeing company's like MyPillow making masks, and GM building ventilators, so this is definitely a bit ... er ... different.
Still, it speaks to the fallacy that nationalized, single-payer healthy "care" schemes are somehow better up to the daunting task than our admittedly flawed system.
#Medicaid4AllFail
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Thursday, 2 April 2020
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New guy on the block:
Looking for health insurance outside of Open Enrollment? @Decent's Chief Health Plan Officer @Molly23Moore explains your options. If you're self-employed in Austin, we have the only comprehensive plans for sale year round at https://t.co/8eZ1l17obM. Either way, we can help. pic.twitter.com/mPbsnyYhgl— Nick Soman (@nicksoman) April 1, 2020
On the surface, it's a (now) standard MEWA/AHP for self-employed Lone Star Staters, but also a hybrid of insurance & DPC.
The FAQ says doesn't price for pre-ex, which is nice, as well.
I reached out to their CEO, who assured me that:
"It’s not underwritten at all. We ask your age, your zip code, and whether you smoke. Our plans cover comprehensive EHBs too. You need to be self-employed to sign up"
And there's this: the versions of this that are available in my market require membership in an association or chamber of commerce, which can add substantially to the actual cost (one such runs $1,000/year in chamber fees!). Decent's differtent:
"You become part of the Texas Freelance Association, which is free to join, when you choose one of our plans."
Nice!
And I also like that they do use agents/brokers for marketing.
I do have some concerns about the product labeling, but not a huge deal.
Will be interesting to see if this catches on.
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Maybe, maybe not:
Earlier this week, we pondered how (and/or if) off-label uses of certain meds might be covered. I reached out to one of our carriers (whose rep was willing to at least kick this up the food chain for me). In the meantime, a commenter points out:
"The FDA issued an emergency-use authorization late Sunday for chloroquine and its next-generation version, hydroxychloroquine, as treatments for the novel coronavirus"
So it will be interesting to see how that plays out.
Oh, I have now heard back from my "inside source," who offers this helpful perspective on the general subject:
Earlier this week, we pondered how (and/or if) off-label uses of certain meds might be covered. I reached out to one of our carriers (whose rep was willing to at least kick this up the food chain for me). In the meantime, a commenter points out:
"The FDA issued an emergency-use authorization late Sunday for chloroquine and its next-generation version, hydroxychloroquine, as treatments for the novel coronavirus"
So it will be interesting to see how that plays out.
Oh, I have now heard back from my "inside source," who offers this helpful perspective on the general subject:
"Once a physician writes a prescription and the member has it filled by a pharmacy, the pharmacist won’t know specifically what is the patient’s diagnosis, or whether or not the physician prescribed something for the patient that is prescribed for an off label use.
Many specific drugs have programs such as Prior Approval and Step Therapy associated with them. The latter will require the physician to submit to Anthem for a prior authorization, indicating why a member needs a specific medication - or in the case of Step Therapy, the patient would have to try a medication in that same class, before what is written can be filled. The latter typically halts the use of “off label” prescribing for most of the higher cost brand medications."
Thank you!
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Wednesday, 1 April 2020
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No, not at all, but a conversion opportunity nonetheless.
Many folks choose term life products as a biggest-bang-for-the-buck life insurance option. These plans feature lower premiums than their permanent coverage brethren (eg Whole and Universal, etc), and the premiums are guaranteed for a specific number of years, after which the rates tend to sky-rocket. By then, of course, many (most?) folks no longer need all that coverage, and at least a few who do need it no longer qualify health-wise for a new plan.
What to do?
Well, one really helpful feature of most term life plans is their convertibility feature, which allows one to purchase a like amount (or less, if desired) of permanent insurance with rates that are guaranteed for the rest of one's day's on this mortal coil. Yes, they can be a bit pricey, as well, but there are some unique benefits, as described by FoIB Brian D:
"So, what can you do when you realize you need all or a portion of your life insurance to last beyond the initial length of your term?It means that any time after the first policy year, you can change from a limited-time benefit to a permanent one without answering health questions, having bloodwork or any other physical examination. In most cases, the death benefit for the new permanent policy will be in force until age 121, providing you with lifelong coverage."
Highly recommended reading (no foolin'!).
Many folks choose term life products as a biggest-bang-for-the-buck life insurance option. These plans feature lower premiums than their permanent coverage brethren (eg Whole and Universal, etc), and the premiums are guaranteed for a specific number of years, after which the rates tend to sky-rocket. By then, of course, many (most?) folks no longer need all that coverage, and at least a few who do need it no longer qualify health-wise for a new plan.
What to do?
Well, one really helpful feature of most term life plans is their convertibility feature, which allows one to purchase a like amount (or less, if desired) of permanent insurance with rates that are guaranteed for the rest of one's day's on this mortal coil. Yes, they can be a bit pricey, as well, but there are some unique benefits, as described by FoIB Brian D:
"So, what can you do when you realize you need all or a portion of your life insurance to last beyond the initial length of your term?It means that any time after the first policy year, you can change from a limited-time benefit to a permanent one without answering health questions, having bloodwork or any other physical examination. In most cases, the death benefit for the new permanent policy will be in force until age 121, providing you with lifelong coverage."
Highly recommended reading (no foolin'!).
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