Insurance

Insurance should always feature in every investor’s financial planning. In fact, before you even attempt to make any form of investment in equities or gold, make sure you are adequately covered, in terms of unforeseen hefty medical expenses.

Because of my late father’s health condition, I started buying life insurances and protect my wealth with enhanced hospital shield plan. I see it as a form of responsibility to my family because I don’t want to be a financial burden to them when I am old and ill. I also urged my friends and blog readers to buy insurance policies when they are young and healthy. This is important because if you procrastinate, chances are, the insurers will likely to reject your application if you are not in the best of your health.

Lately, I chanced upon a fellow blogger, Lee Chin Wai’s article on his health condition and medical insurance. His article set me thinking whether I had really plan for the unexpected. In his article, he related how he has encountered unforeseen risk in his medical insurance. He had bought a private “as-charged” Medishield Plan B but did not buy any riders for deductible or co-insurance potions. In recent years, because of his poor health, he went to seek consultant at a private specialist and unwittingly “exposed him to the risk of being warded in a private hospital”. As such, his current medical coverage can only cover about half of his insurable medical expenses. He was thus caught in a situation whereby he might not be able to upgrade to a private shield plan, because this is subjected to the review of insurers.

While I had a similar shield plan as Lee Chin Wai, the difference is that I had bought riders to cover deductible and co-insurance. But what set me thinking is that if I ever to become ill one day, my current medical plan might not work if I opted for private specialist’s treatment at private hospital.

Just like Mr Lee, when I was young and healthy, I did not foresee that I would go for private specialists’ treatment and the first priority has always to get myself covered in a cost-effective way. My insurance agent has advised me to upgrade my private shield plan several times before, citing that if i purchased private shield plan but stayed in lower class ward, there would be reimbursement. But I always did not pay heed to his advice. Now that I am in my thirties, I can feel that my body is slowing down and I start to ponder whether my medical plan is adequate to cover myself when I am old and ill.

At this moment, I am still healthy and can change the course of my financial destiny by switching to a private shield plan. If I recall what my agent told me, the premiums would be much higher for the main policy but this can be deducted from my CPF OA. As for the riders, even though it would be slightly higher than a “B” plan, I think it is worth biting the bullet when I am young and have earning ability. Unfortunately, my medical insurance has recently just been renewed, so this agenda will be top of my next year’s financial resolution.

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Magically yours,

SG Wealth Builder