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Living Benefits Overview

With increasing life expectancy rates, living benefits should become an important part of your financial plan. What will you do if you are faced with an accident or illness? Critical illness, disability, and long-term care insurance address these worries.

Senior patient in nursing home with helpful nurse in white uniform
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Critical Illness

If you’re faced with a severe illness wouldn’t you want to worry less about your finances and instead focus on your recovery?

What is critical illness insurance?
Thanks to modern medicine, more people survive serious illness. Unfortunately, the costs associated with recovery can place a strain on the financial resources of you and your loved ones.
Consider this sobering statistic: one in 2.2 men and one in 2.4 women living in Canada will develop cancer during their lifetime.1 However, 63 per cent of Canadians diagnosed with cancer are expected to survive.2

Want to understand more about your risk of experiencing a critical illness?
Take a moment now to use our handy risk calculator.

Critical illness insurance is a form of protection that can provide you with a tax-free lump sum payment to use however you need while recovering from a life-altering illness. You can use this money in whatever way you need while you recover.

Who is it for?
Critical illness insurance can be suitable for anyone seeking financial protection to help cover the costs associated with recovering from a life-altering illness. It can also be suitable for those looking to protect loved ones in the event they experience a critical illness.

How does it work?
You receive the tax-free lump sum payment if you meet the survival period requirement for a covered critical illness and are free to spend money as you choose — such as to help cover lost income, to pay for private nursing or out-of-country treatment, for medical equipment or even to pay off your mortgage. It can help you where you need it most so you can focus all your energy on recovering.

How does it benefit you and your family?
The physical and emotional strain of a critical illness like heart disease or cancer can be severe. When you combine that with the potentially damaging financial impact, the result can be devastating. You might face additional costs beyond maintaining your current lifestyle – things such as childcare, medication or home modifications. You need to assess how realistic it is to rely on options such as your spouse, your retirement savings, the sale of assets or even the government to help meet these extra expenses. There are additional benefits from critical illness insurance such as:

Receiving support services
We have services built into our policies that can help you cope during this difficult time. For example, ShepellTM provides counselling, while Best Doctors® gives you access to a network of 53,000 peer- nominated physicians who can provide you with an expert medical opinion about the right diagnosis and treatment.

Coverage for uncovered expenses
Canadians benefit from a stable, well-funded healthcare system. But it doesn’t cover everything. You may be required to pay for certain drug prescriptions, or other treatments out-of-pocket. Critical illness insurance can help offset some of those costs.

Getting your money back
We offer a return of premium option that could allow you to receive up to 100% of your money back if you don’t experience a covered critical illness.

Protecting your retirement
The costs associated with a critical illness can quickly eat into your retirement savings. You might have to retire with less and modify your lifestyle, or stay at work longer. Critical illness insurance offers financial relief that can help you keep your retirement plans on track. For example, you could use the lump sum payment from critical illness insurance to supplement lost income or cover private nursing costs, rather than dipping into your nest egg.

1 Canadian Cancer Society, Canadian Cancer Statistics, 2014.
2 Canadian Cancer Society Advisory Committee on Cancer Statistics, 2014.

Shot of a senior woman relaxing outside in the garden of a retirement home
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Disability

You protect things you find valuable, such as your homes and vehicles, but what are you doing to protect your ability to earn a living?

What is disability insurance?
Disability insurance can provide you with financial security by replacing a portion of your earnings if an accident or illness causes you to become unable to work or earn an income. Accidents and illnesses are a fact of life. They could occur at any time. Disability insurance provides income to help manage your expenses during the period you are unable to work.

  • Did you know that the likelihood of becoming disabled for 90 days or more before the age of 65 is one in four?1
  • You can understand more about your risk of experiencing a disability by taking a moment now to use our handy risk calculator.

Who is it for?
A disability can strike anyone regardless of their age, gender or occupation. In this sense, anyone who earns an income could benefit from the added protection provided by disability insurance. In particular, those looking to help protect their family and other loved ones from possible financial disruption associated with suddenly becoming unable to work due to illness or injury would be appropriate for this insurance.

How does it work?
If you are unable to work due to an illness or injury and thus are unable to earn an income, you will receive a monthly payment after a pre-determined waiting period has passed. You might already have disability insurance through your employer, but you should be aware that this coverage may not meet all your needs. Individual disability insurance can provide you with more flexibility and can also help protect more of your earnings.

How does it benefit you and your family?
Your financial commitments don’t just disappear if you are unable to work. Disability insurance works when you can’t, providing you with a monthly income to help cover your ongoing expenses such as mortgage payments and grocery bills.

Insure your paycheque
The ability to earn an income is one of your most valuable assets. Your ability to provide for yourself and your family could come under risk if you are unable to work. Disability insurance can help maintain your lifestyle until you are able to return to work.

Safeguard your retirement
If you are unable to earn an income for an extended period, it could affect your ability to save for retirement. You may even need to withdraw from these savings to make ends meet. Disability insurance replaces a percentage of your income, so you may avoid having to withdraw money from your savings while you are unable to work.

1 Canadian Institute of Actuaries (CIA) 86-92 & 2012 Society of Actuaries – Individual Disability Experience Committee table.

Female home caregiver talking with senior woman, sitting in living room and listening to her carefully.

Long Term Care

Considering the high cost of private care, this type of living benefit is an excellent way to protect your retirement savings and other assets. Long-term care insurance provides the necessary funds to pay for additional health care should you need assistance caring for yourself for an extended period. Funds are paid as a daily benefit to cover the cost of either home visits from a qualified individual or a room at either a public or private care facility.

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Health Insurance

Protect your health and your budget with health insurance.
Costs for health-related services can add up quickly, whether you’re filling a prescription, visiting the dentist, getting new glasses or mapping out a course of treatment for a critical illness. Health insurance helps you manage routine and unexpected costs, protecting your budget and your lifestyle.

Your Ontario health coverage (O.H.I.P.), the province’s health insurance plan, entitles you to basic health care services at no charge, including:

  • Medically necessary services provided by your doctor or administered in-hospital
  • X-rays, blood tests and other lab services requested by a physician
  • Certain specialist treatments deemed medically necessary
  • Emergency dental and oral surgeries administered in-hospital
  • Eye exams (if you are under 20 or over 64 years of age)


You’re probably not covered for:

  • Prescription drugs
  • Prescription eyewear
  • Routine dental care
  • Registered specialists and therapists

Emergency medical expenses when traveling abroad

Because of the many gaps in Ontario health coverage, more and more residents are turning to private health plans to help reduce out-of-pocket medical expenses.
Broaden your health horizon.
Don’t wait until bills for dental services, prescription drugs, vision care, etcetera, etcetera… are piling up.

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Health And Dental

Supplemental health care and dental insurance plans can help you pay many common medical expenses that are not covered-or only partially covered- by government health insurance plans.