Employer and protection
Critical illness and supplemental
Accident, hospital indemnity and critical illness policies that pay cash directly to you, sized against a real deductible rather than sold as a catch-all.
- Who it suits
- Both
- Carriers shopped
- The whole panel
- Cost to you
- $0
Overview
What this line actually does
Supplemental policies pay a fixed cash benefit when a defined event happens: a hospital admission, a covered accident, a first diagnosis of a listed condition. The money goes to you, not to the provider, and you can spend it on the deductible, the mortgage or the drive to Cleveland for treatment.
These products are useful and they are also over-sold. The honest test is arithmetic: if your medical plan has a $6,000 deductible and your emergency savings would not absorb it, a policy that pays a lump sum on a covered event is a reasonable purchase. If you have the cash and a low deductible, it usually is not.
On the employer side, voluntary supplemental lines cost the company nothing, enroll through payroll deduction, and give employees a way to soften a high-deductible medical plan without the employer funding it.
How it works
From first call to in force
Find the gap
Deductible, out-of-pocket maximum, and what your savings would actually absorb.
Decide if there is one
If the gap is small or covered by an HSA balance, we say so and stop.
Match the product
Accident, hospital indemnity or critical illness, depending on the exposure.
Read the limitations
Listed conditions, pre-existing limitation periods and benefit reductions by age.
Enroll
Individually, or through payroll deduction as a voluntary employer line.
What moves the number
Cost factors
| Factor | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Medical deductible | The gap these products fill. Without knowing it, nobody can size the benefit honestly. |
| Listed conditions | Critical illness pays only on conditions named in the schedule, at the percentage named. |
| Pre-existing limitations | Most policies exclude conditions treated in a lookback period before the effective date. |
| Benefit reduction by age | Many policies reduce the face amount at 65 or 70. Read that clause before you buy at 58. |
| Portability | Voluntary employer policies are often portable when an employee leaves, but not always at the same rate. |
Scroll the table sideways to see every column.
Related lines
Often looked at alongside this
Before you decide
Supplemental questions we hear most
If your question is not here, call the desk. Nobody will put you on a list for asking.
Often not. These policies are for deductible and income gaps. If your deductible is low and your savings would cover it, we will tell you to skip it.
No. It pays on the specific conditions named in the policy schedule, at the percentage named for that condition. We read the schedule with you before you buy.
Yes. Voluntary supplemental lines are employee-paid through payroll deduction. The employer's only cost is the administration, which we handle with your payroll provider.
No. Disability replaces a portion of income while you cannot work. Supplemental policies pay a fixed benefit on a covered event regardless of your income.
Bring us the file. We will bring the market.
Send a census or ask one question. Either way it costs you nothing and nobody will chase you.
Independent and multi-carrier. $0 cost to work with us. No pressure scripts.