FINANCIAL COLUMN: Despite constant reports that the economy is on the road to recovery – and that the good times are just around the corner – there are still thousnads suffering financial woe and worry on a daily basis.
Financial expert Shona Chambers, who is an employee at John McColgan Financial Services will write a weekly column on finance for us at Donegal Daily.
This week, she focuses on the Health sector – and how expensive having cancer can be for the patient and their family.
“If you would know the road ahead, ask someone who has travelled it’”
At the beginning of the hit TV series ‘Breaking Bad’, chemistry teacher Walter White gets the shocking diagnosis that he has terminal lung cancer.
With his family already struggling to make ends meet, his thoughts turn to how his pregnant wife and his teenage son, who has cerebral palsy, will cope after he is gone.
In a desperate effort to build a nest egg before he dies, he uses his chemistry skills to embark upon a secret career manufacturing crystal meth for underground drug dealers.
White’s ‘solution’ to providing for his family is both far-fetched and highly illegal — but the underlying concerns are hardly the stuff of fiction.
Late last year, the Irish Cancer Society published a report entitled The Real Cost of Cancer, which estimated that the average cost to the patient and their family of going through cancer is €862 per month. This is before taking in account any loss of income.
This week, the Irish Cancer Society announced plans to close its financial support programme due to increased demand.
This decision met with strong opposition and outrage on social media and other news outlets, resulting in a U-turn on Wednesday, with the society announcing that it would reverse the decision for the families of children with cancer.
As I watched the furore unfold on social media about the cuts to the financial support programme, I realised that there are still a lot of people and families who aren’t aware that there are other ways to protect themselves and their families against the financial impact of a cancer diagnosis.
Cancer Cover is a type of life assurance policy that pays out a lump sum if you are diagnosed with cancer during the term of the plan.
You can take out Cancer Cover as part of a life cover policy, or you can take it out as a stand-alone policy.
Zurich Life assurance is currently the only company offering cancer cover, although other life assurance policies will offer cover for cancer under their serious illness policies.
These policies also cover additional specified illnesses such as cancer, heart attacks and strokes.
The types of cancer that would ordinarily be covered under the Zurich Cancer Cover policy include: breast cancer, lung cancer, gynae cancer, malignant melanoma skin cancer, prostate cancer, bowel cancer, testicular cancer and stomach cancer.
These include all the most common types of cancer. It is important to note, however, that if the cancer is caught in the early stages, you would not be eligible to claim under the plan.
Cancer cover is available to anyone aged between 18 and 60 (meeting underwriting requirements).
With premiums starting from as little as €15 per month, it can be an affordable way of protecting your finances and your family from the impact of cancer.
On average, 30,000 people are diagnosed with cancer every year in Ireland (Irish Cancer Social Annual Report 2012).
Based on the facts, cancer is something that WILL affect most of us, so it is strongly recommended that you protect yourself financially against the potential impact.
Contact Shona on 074) 9124366 to organise your free consultation today.
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