Critical illness cover protects you in the event of a life threatening illness or permanent disability. This insurance coverage allows you to pay your medical bills, as well as your mortgage, after a heart attack, stroke, cancer diagnosis or other devastating medical news. The feature is often included in insurance policies today at no additional charge. However, to ensure you get the best value from your critical illness insurance, there are a few facts to keep in mind.

How Critical Illness Insurance Works
Critical illness insurance covers your bills after you are diagnosed with an insurable illness. It will kick in at the time you choose when you select your policy. Most plans begin within a certain number of weeks after your diagnosis. The longer you wait for the insurance to kick in, the cheaper your premiums. You can also choose a basic policy, which only covers a handful of diagnoses, or a comprehensive plan that includes many more illnesses. Some individuals also add permanent disability coverage to their critical illness insurance policy to cover them in the even they become permanently incapacitated.

Benefits of Critical Illness Insurance
There are many reasons to consider adding critical illness coverage to your basic life insurance policy. Benefits include:

• Ability to pursue the best medical care possible
• Allowance for a spouse to take time off to care for you during recovery
• Prevention of financial hardship as a result of medical challenges
• Provisions for child care, in-home nursing care or other forms of assistance
• Modifications to your home to make it more accessible to you after your illness
• In the event of a terminal illness, insurance allows you to pursue activities you love at the end of your life

When you have critical illness insurance, you can concentrate on dealing with your illness without the worry of how to pay the bills.

Common Features of Critical Illness Insurance
Critical illness insurance varies slightly from policy to policy, but there are a few common features with most critical illness plans. These include:

• A lump-sum payout within a set period of time after a diagnosis
• Payouts are not dependent on your ability to work; merely on your medical diagnosis
• Can be purchased alone or with a basic life insurance policy
• Individuals can customize their policies based on the amount and period of coverage

Critical Illness Insurance is a popular addition to many insurance policies today. this coverage provides you and your family with peace of mind in the event you become seriously ill or incapacitated.