Why critical illness insurance is the best stroke coverage

According to the Mayo Clinic, a stroke occurs when the flow of blood to the brain – and the essential oxygen and nutrients that accompany it – is impeded or reduced. An ischemic stroke results from a blocked artery, while a hemorrhagic stroke occurs following a burst or leaking blood vessel³.

Depending on how long the brain lacks blood flow and which part of it was affected, a stroke can result in paralysis or loss of muscle movement; difficulty talking or swallowing; memory loss; or behavioral changes and the inability to care for oneself. 

Critical Illness insurance, also known as heart attack insurance, cancer insurance, stroke insurance or specified disease insurance, is a product designed to help lessen the financial impact of a serious disease. A South African surgeon, Dr. Marius Barnard, invented it when he saw his patients struggling with their finances after they recovered from major illnesses.

Although not every disease is covered, a critical illness insurance policy will cover many of the most common and financially disruptive conditions, often including strokes. It helps you deal with the financial consequences of serious illnesses and unexpected medical procedures by giving you the money you need for anything – making up for lost wages, funding extra time off work, covering medical payments and even traveling for treatment. That way, you can focus on getting well.

Learn more by watching our video. 

Critical illness insurance covers some of the most common serious illnesses and conditions. Depending on your critical illness insurance policy, it could cover a long list of rare events – but Assurity’s Critical Illness Insurance is simplified to cover some of the most common conditions and keep costs low for you. It pays a benefit for: 

• Stroke
• Cancer (invasive or non-invasive)*
• Heart attack**
• Advanced Alzheimer’s disease

Many critical illness plans reduce the benefit you receive after you pass age 65 to spread risk and keep their costs low – but that’s the time most people are most likely to suffer from a critical illness. Because we streamlined our critical illness product, you’ll receive the full benefit amount for any covered condition at any point in your life⁴. 

Critical illness insurance isn’t the only option for serious medical events like a stroke – but it is one of the best options to supplement your existing coverage. Below, we’ll compare some of the most common types of healthcare coverage and how they can help you pay for your treatment and recovery. 

Medicare and strokes: Medicare is a federal health insurance program available to people age 65 and older, and some younger people with disabilities. If you’re enrolled in Medicare, many parts of your treatment and rehabilitation following a stroke are covered – but not all. You’ll need to pay a monthly premium for Medicare Part B5, which includes doctor’s visits and services, medical supplies and outpatient care. You’ll also need to pay an annual deductible with Medicare, which is likely lower than the deductible for most health plans. 

Medicare does not cover:

• Room and board in assisted living facilities
• Long-term nursing home care
• Adult day care
• Medical food and nutritional supplements
• Services to help with activities of daily living like bathing and eating

Medicaid and strokes: Medicaid is a health insurance program generally for people with a low annual income. If you qualify for Medicaid, it will likely pay for the majority of your treatment and rehabilitation following a stroke, although you may still be required to pay some money out of pocket for copayments or deductibles depending on the state in which you reside. 

Affordable Care Act and strokes: The Affordable Care Act provides health plans through Healthcare.gov or through state healthcare exchanges. Eligible plans may have some differences, but there are base requirements that they all must meet. Any plan under the Affordable Care Act will cover your treatment following a stroke, but it behaves much like any other major medical insurance plan. You’ll still be subject to deductible and copayments until you’ve met your out-of-pocket maximum, which means you could still be left with a large bill. 

COBRA and strokes: COBRA is a federal law that allows you to keep health insurance coverage if you lose your employer-sponsored health coverage. If you’re eligible for coverage through COBRA, you can keep your existing coverage for a limited time period. During this time, however, you’ll likely have to pay more for coverage and will be subject to the same deductibles, copayments and coinsurance that you were before – meaning that if you have to pay for treatment and rehabilitation following a stroke during this time, it could be even more expensive. 

If you think a critical illness policy might be right for you, it’s time to go about finding the best possible coverage. Unlike many other types of insurance, there’s no easy formula to find out how much you need — each diagnosis will come with its own challenges and costs, and no two circumstances are alike.

What you should consider are the “knowns.” For instance, how much money do you have in your savings? How much is the deductible on your medical insurance? At the very least, you should have enough critical illness insurance to cover your out-of-pocket exposure – that is, your deductible and coinsurance up to your plan’s maximum. A larger policy might cover several years of out-of-pocket costs.

Since you can use the benefit from a critical illness policy to pay for whatever you want, you might want to factor in the costs of transportation or experimental treatments into your coverage. The first step to finding the best critical illness policy is to figure out what you’ll need the money for so you can figure out how much coverage you’ll need. For reference, typical coverage amounts range from $10,000 to $50,000. 
Once you’ve figured out how much coverage you need, you’ll need to find out how much it might cost – it may cost less than you’d think! You can get a critical illness insurance quote from Assurity as a baseline for how much your insurance may cost.

With all this knowledge in hand, it’s time for the final step – getting a critical illness insurance policy. You can check out Assurity’s Critical Illness Insurance to get a quote, and for more information, resources and examples.

¹ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Stroke Facts, 2021
² Disability Benefits Help, Stroke and Social Security Disability, 2022
³ Mayo Clinic, Stroke: Symptoms and Causes, 2022
⁴ Non-invasive cancer diagnosis pays 25% of the policy benefit amount.
⁵ Medicare.gov, What’s Medicare?, Accessed 2022

Additional disclosure information 

LIMITATIONS AND EXCLUSIONS (may vary by state) 

Pre-existing Condition. Pre-existing condition means a sickness or physical condition for which, during the 12 months before the issue date or last reinstatement date, the insured person received medical consultation, diagnosis, advice or treatment from a physician or had taken prescribed medication. No benefits will be paid for a critical illness that is caused by a pre-existing condition unless the date of diagnosis is after the policy has been in force for 12 months from the issue date or last reinstatement date. 

Waiting Period. Waiting period means the 30 days following the issue date or ten days following the last policy reinstatement date. The date of diagnosis of a covered critical illness must be made while the coverage is in force and after any waiting period. No benefits will be paid if a diagnosis or a medical consultation that leads to diagnosis of invasive cancer or non-invasive cancer occurs during the waiting period. If cancer is diagnosed during the waiting period, benefits will be paid for a subsequent diagnosis of cancer if the insured person is symptom- and treatment-free for at least 12 consecutive months and in complete remission prior to subsequent diagnosis. 

Misstatement of Age and/or Gender. If the insured person’s age and/or gender has been misstated, an adjustment in premiums, coverage or both will be made based on the correct age and/or gender. If, according to the correct age, the coverage provided by the policy would not have become effective or would have ceased, Assurity’s only liability during the period in which the insured person was not eligible for coverage shall be limited to a refund of premiums. 

Misstatement of Tobacco Use. If, during the first two years of the policy, the tobacco status of the insured person has been misstated, Assurity will revise the policy’s benefit amount to the amount the premium paid would have purchased using the correct tobacco status on the issue date. 

The policy will not pay benefits for losses that are caused by or are the result of an insured person: 

• being exposed to war or any act of war, declared or undeclared;
• actively serving in any of the armed forces or units auxiliary thereto, including the National Guard or Army Reserve, except during active duty training of less than 60 days;
• engaging in hang-gliding, hot air ballooning, bungee jumping, parachuting, scuba diving, sail gliding, motor vehicle racing, parasailing, parakiting, mountain or rock climbing, B.A.S.E. jumping, sky diving or cave diving;
• being addicted to drugs or suffering from alcoholism;
• being intoxicated (as determined by the laws governing the operation of motor vehicles in the jurisdiction where loss occurs) or under the influence of an illegal substance or a narcotic (except for narcotics used as prescribed to the insured person by a physician);
• committing or attempting to commit a felony;
• being incarcerated in a penal institution or government detention facility;
• engaging in an illegal occupation;
• intentionally self-inflicting an injury; or
• committing or attempting to commit suicide, while sane or insane. 

Policy Form No. I H1820 underwritten by Assurity Life Insurance Company, Lincoln, NE. 

Policy Form No. I H1820 DTC (NY) (Specified Disease) underwritten by Assurity Life Insurance Company of New York, Albany, NY.

IMPORTANT NOTICE— CRITICAL ILLNESS INSURANCE PROVIDES LIMITED BENEFIT COVERAGE. It is not a comprehensive major medical plan or Medicare supplement policy and does not satisfy the requirement for minimum essential coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). It is not a substitute for major medical insurance and may not be appropriate for Medicaid recipients.  

This policy may contain reductions of benefits, limitations and exclusions. Click here for standard Limitations and Exclusions. Product availability, features, rates, limitations and exclusions may vary by state. The state specific policy form is the ultimate authority for any questions about this product. 

*In some states, diagnosis of cancer during the first 30 days following the policy’s issue date results in a significant benefit reduction or policy cancellation. The percentage benefit amount payable for invasive and non-invasive cancer combined cannot exceed 100%. 

**Heart attack does not include established (old) myocardial infarction occurring prior to the issue date, sudden cardiac arrest, cardiac arrest or cardiopulmonary arrest.  

Assurity reserves the right to order, at the company’s expense, evidence of insurability which the company feels is necessary for the prudent evaluation of the risk. 

Assurity is a marketing name for the mutual holding company Assurity Group, Inc. and its subsidiaries. Those subsidiaries include but are not limited to: Assurity Life Insurance Company and Assurity Life Insurance Company of New York. Insurance products and services are offered by Assurity Life Insurance Company in all states except New York. In New York, insurance products and services are offered by Assurity Life Insurance Company of New York, Albany, NY. Product availability, features and rates may vary by state.