The concept of critical illness protection was developed in 1983 by Dr. Marius Barnard, who with his brother, Christian Barnard, performed the first successful heart transplant. Dr. Barnard saw an overwhelming need for an insurance policy that paid a “living benefit”. Barnard conceived the idea for critical illness insurance when he found his patients “didn’t lose their life, they lost their life savings” after surviving once fatal illnesses such as cancer, stroke or heart disease.

Dr. Barnard states that “before the age of 65, the chances of suffering a condition keeping someone off work for more than six months are 15 times higher than that of dying. With the increasing life expectancy…, we have a greater chance of experiencing a serious illness and surviving longer.”

While fairly new to the United States, critical illness insurance is one of the most widely purchased insurance products in South Africa, Japan, Australia, Ireland and the UK. Since its introduction in Canada in 1994, critical illness coverage has rapidly grown to a $200 million dollar market. This is evidence of the consumer need for critical illness insurance and the need for financial security in life as well as death. As Dr. Barnard says, “Critical illness insurance gives you financial independence when you need it most. You need insurance not only because you are going to die but because you are going to live.” This is a product designed to give you CHOICES…