PEOPLE who are self-employed or work part time as artisans, vendors and tradespeople can find themselves not only facing huge medical bills if hospitalised for a couple of days but also failing to earn at this time.
If something bad happens, you can find yourself with a huge gap in your income, leading to financial stress, said Lee Bromfield, CEO of FNB Life.
“It is important to always plan ahead for emergencies as you never know when you will get sick or injured – especially if your job requires you to be healthy and physically present all the time.
“Even if you do have medical aid, a ‘health cash’ plan will still come in handy as it provides some sorely needed cash to help with any extra expenses caused if you are in hospital,” said Bromfield.
But he also said that a health cash plan policy should not be confused with a medical aid, but rather as complementary or additional insurance to cover expenses that would normally not be catered for by your provider.
For example, since the health cash plan benefits may be used for anything you want, someone who has lost two days of work – and the income for those lost days – can use the cash benefits to make up for the days lost.
“Also, it is important to read and understand the terms and conditions when taking out this policy to know exactly what you are covered for. For instance, many insurers will not cover you if illness, injury or the loss of days happens because of dependence syndrome – the result of abusing drugs alcohol or other substances.”
The bank now offers a health cash plan to all its customers, their spouses, up to eight children, four parents or parents-in-law, and up to seven extended family members in a contract.
