Critical Illness Insurance Need Calculator

It pays a lump-sum cash benefit ($10,000-$500,000) on diagnosis of covered conditions like cancer, heart attack, stroke, or kidney failure. Useful as a supplement to health insurance to cover deductibles, lost income, and non-medical costs (childcare, travel for treatment).

Core covered conditions include invasive cancer, heart attack, stroke, coronary bypass, kidney failure, and major organ transplant. Many policies add ALS, paralysis, and Alzheimer's. Read carefully - early-stage cancers often pay only 25% of face amount.

A healthy 40-year-old can get $25,000 of coverage for $15-30/month. Premiums rise sharply with age - at 60, the same coverage may cost $60-100/month. Group employer plans are often the cheapest option.

Aim for 12 to 24 months of essential expenses plus a 15-20% cushion for out-of-pocket medical costs. Most households land between $50,000 and $150,000: enough to get through the acute phase without over-insuring.

No, if you pay the premium with after-tax dollars. The upside is that the benefit paid on diagnosis is tax-free. If the premium runs through a group employer plan, the benefit may be taxable: check the plan documents.

Almost all policies pay only once per condition. Some modern policies allow multiple claims for unrelated conditions with a waiting period between events. If you have a family history of several covered illnesses, look for that feature.