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Understanding Supplemental Insurance
No insurance policy covers everything, which is why supplemental insurance is there to fill in the gaps. These policies don’t replace your primary insurance but give extra benefits to ensure all your bases are covered. We’ll cover a few types of supplemental health insurance coverages in this article, and these plans are good if you have higher out-of-pocket costs under your primary insurance, have specific medical needs, or want extra protection from emergency costs.
Primary health insurance covers a wide range of preventative care services and protects you from the cost of getting seriously ill or injured. With healthcare spending continuing to rise year after year in the U.S., having that extra financial cushion can help if you have a longer stay in the hospital or help you cover everyday expenses while you recover from an injury and can’t work.
Types of Supplemental Insurance
Let’s learn about a few types of supplemental health insurance to give you that extra protection.
Recuperative Care Plans
Recovering from an accident or serious illness in the hospital can put a lot of strain on your finances, especially if you need to miss work to get better. With a recuperative care plan, if you fall victim to a covered accident or sickness, you receive daily benefits while hospitalized.
You can use the funds to pay for whatever you want. Not only for medical bills or prescriptions but also to help pay your rent, groceries, loan payments, childcare, or other insurance. With a recuperative care plan, you don’t have to stress about bills and can focus on getting better.
Critical Illness Insurance
Like recuperative care, critical illness insurance is another type of supplemental insurance that pays for out-of-pocket costs not covered by typical health insurance. The policy comes with a list of specific illnesses and conditions that it covers.
Where recuperative care plans focus on easing the financial strain of a long-term hospital stay, critical illness insurance is geared toward giving you financial support when you develop a covered medical condition or disease.
Critical illness insurance generally covers the following:
- Heart Attack
- Stroke
- Organ transplants
- Cancer
- Coronary bypass
- Coma
- Loss of hearing, speech, or vision
- Paralysis
If you have a family history of a certain disease, critical illness coverage is a great way to give you extra financial protection, and benefits can be used for treatment costs, lost wages, or other living expenses.
Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) Insurance
AD&D insurance pays benefits in case of accidents in which you are killed or seriously injured. Life insurance covers more causes of death but does not cover non-fatal accidents that may affect your ability to work. So, AD&D insurance and life insurance are similar, but AD&D focuses more on accidents rather than death. This can provide critical coverage when you are recovering from events that are harder to predict and plan for.
GNCU offers members $2,500 of no-cost AD&D coverage that’s easy to activate, and you can also purchase additional coverage for up to $300,000 worth of benefits.
We invite you to learn more about the differences between life insurance and AD&D.
Dental Insurance
Dental insurance helps cover the cost of taking care of your teeth. Though you can get this coverage separately, many employment benefits packages include dental plans along with health insurance.
While coverage details can vary, most dental insurance covers 100% of preventative care (like cleanings and checkups), 80% of basic services (fillings and pulling teeth), and 50% of major services (crowns and implants). Maintaining your teeth is an important part of managing your overall health, so dental insurance can help you make a long-term investment in yourself.
Visions Insurance
Vision insurance covers the cost of routine eye exams, glasses, and contact lenses, along with fittings. It’s good to note that eye diseases are generally covered through health insurance and not vision insurance.
Eye care insurance isn’t very expensive, but if you only go to the eye doctor for a yearly checkup, you may want to opt out of this type of insurance. However, if you have eye problems and need corrective lenses, vision insurance can save you money. Vision care is another insurance policy that is often bundled with other types of coverage in an employee insurance plan.
When is Supplemental Insurance a Good Idea?
Supplemental insurance may be a great fit for you if:
- You have a family history of certain types of diseases, such as cancer, heart disease, stroke, or other illnesses.
- You want extra financial protection for you and your family during an unexpected accident or illness.
Like other coverage plans, supplemental insurance is designed to provide peace of mind. When considering extra insurance, you may need to face the question, “What are you most worried about?”
Do you wonder if your family has the financial resources it needs if you were in a car accident? Do you have a family history of heart disease? Do you have a financial cushion to pay for expenses if you were in the hospital for a week?
Whatever keeps you up at night, you can usually find a policy that will provide financial support if you face your own nightmare scenario. When shopping for insurance, it’s important to read the policy details yourself so you are properly protected and know the limitations of your coverage.
Greater Nevada Insurance, a wholly owned subsidiary of GNCU, can help you get supplemental insurance, along with life insurance, auto insurance, home insurance, and pet insurance.
