Smokers Insurance Ohio

Reader’s Question:

How do I get started on a smoker’s insurance?

Desmond

Columbus OH

 

If this is the first time you have considered getting a life insurance of any sort, there are some things you need to consider before getting a smoker’s insurance. Basically, there are two types of life insurances for people who smoke. The first one is called a permanent insurance. This type of insurance provides death benefits as well as other forms of investments. The investment could be in the type of savings, retirement or endowment depending on how you would want your insurance to be designed. Also, a permanent plan provides coverage until death or until the age of 99. The second one is called a term insurance. Term is for temporary protection. The usual period of coverage is 10, 15, 20, 30 years. If you choose a 10-year term, that means you have life insurance for that period. Once it passes, you’ll need to get another one.

A smoker’s insurance can either be permanent or term. Before deciding on the type of life insurance, you should determine if cost is going to be a problem. In general, permanent insurances are more expensive than term life. In the case of a smoker’s insurance, a permanent insurance’s cost would be double or triple that amount. The same is true for a term insurance but the overall cost would still be lower. Usually, a substantial coverage, about $300,000 of term life will have a premium of $200. If a smoker will apply for the same coverage, it would go up to $400 to $600 depending on the insurance provider. Moreover, the premium rate will be affected by how often you smoke. That means, the more sticks you consume in a day, the higher will be the premium.

In order to understand more about the different quirks involved in life insurance, you should discuss it with an agent who is knowledgeable and connected to a lot of insurance providers.

Affordable Life Insurance For Senior

Reader’s Question:

What should I expect to pay if I buy life insurance for a senior here in Michigan?

Danina

Detroit, MI

Life insurance policies typically become more expensive as the insured individual gets older. So you should expect life insurance for senior adults to be a bit pricier. However, there are still a few ways to help you cut cost and find a good senior life policy while saving some much needed money.

Choose the Right Type of Policy

Getting the wrong kind of life insurance would mean throwing good money away for years to come. Understanding your goal or purpose for buying life insurance will help you identify if you need coverage for a specific period only (Term life), lifetime coverage (Whole life), or something that builds cash value faster (Variable/Universal life.)

Be Your Own Insurance Agent

Use life insurance comparison websites that offer free rate quotes to shop for the best senior life policies today. Not only do you save money by eliminating commission fees, you also get the latest rates coming from a wide-variety of life insurers with less time and effort.

Consider a Policy with No Medical

This is advisable for seniors with serious health or medical conditions that would otherwise be charged an arm and a leg if they take a medical test. A no-exam policy may prove more cost-effective for life insurance for senior adults.

Setup an Annual Payment Scheme

Paying a year in advance would usually cut 10% - 20% off your total life insurance expenses for the year.

Look for Life Insurance Specialists

There are many life insurers that specialize on seniors. They can probably give you more competitive rates than general insurers and may even give you better discount options.

Go for a Healthy Lifestyle

Living a happy and healthy life (no smoking, regular exercise, etc.) will do a lot to help keep your life insurance rates affordable in the long run.

Domestic Partners’ Health Insurance Missouri MO

Reader’s Question:

I work in a company here in Missouri that offers health insurance. I wonder if I can extend these benefits to my domestic partner of almost ten years.

Ray

Kansas City, MO

Generally, the answer to your question would be no. This is because no law mandates companies to offer any health insurance benefits either to their employees nor to the spouses, children or partners of their employees. And also, no law mandates employers to extend the health benefits that they offer their employees to the spouses, children or partners of their employees.

But what you have to do is consult with your company’s human resource personnel in order to be sure.

Recently, employers across the country have been giving their employees reliable health benefit packages to keep up with the competition of acquiring and keeping efficient employees. Large companies have been already doing this for years, and so small companies follow.

Anyway, to give you some idea regarding your case, if your employer does indeed allow extending your health benefits to a domestic partner, certain things still have to be considered. Different employers have different definitions of domestic partner. Some would consider same-sex couples, others would not. Some employers would only allow extension of health benefit for civil union partners only. This is what you will have to check with your company. But whatever the case is, usually the partners are asked to fill out an affidavit that states that the partners are in a loving and committed relationship. Also, the period of living together may also count.

Like what I have already said, check with the human resource department of your company. They should give you answers to your questions. Because, personally, I don’t know how things run there in Missouri.

Tags: health insurance, insurance, insurance advice

Gay Friendly Health Insurance Massachusetts MA

Reader’s Question:

My partner is asthmatic, so he regularly needs medical attention. The only problem is that the company where he works for here in Massachusetts doesn’t offer health insurance. Can I have him included in the health insurance that my company provides for me?

Josh

Boston, MA

Even though health insurance policies may be extended to spouses, generally it is not within the requirements that are mandated by law for companies to offer any form of health insurance policies to their employees and the employees’ spouses or domestic partners. This is according to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. At the same time, the companies are also not required to offer to extend to their employees’ spouses and domestic partners any form of health insurance even if they do offer this to their employees. Providing health insurance policies to employees is typically the company option. I believe this is also why before applying for a job, a person must check if the company gives competitive benefits to their employees.

Even though this is the case, a large number of employers have recently been offering health insurance policies as part of a competitive roster of benefits to attract more employees. We have to be reminded that in order for employers to attract and keep efficient employees, they will have to take good care of them. Hence, one of the steps they take in taking care of their employees is to provide not just a competitive compensation package but as well as health insurance that is sure to take care of their employees and their employees’ family. This coverage also includes unmarried partners.

Now, what you have to do in order to know if your partner can be included in your coverage is to ask people from the human resource department of your company there in Massachusetts. This people are the ones organizing your benefits, leaves and everything that has to do with the employees. I am sure that they can give you some information.

 

Tags: Gay Friendly Insurance, health insurance

Health Insurance Coverage Cambridge, Massachusetts MA

Reader’s Question:

My partner has health insurance coverage from the company where he works here in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Does this coverage also work for me even though we are not married?

Dante

Cambridge, Massachusetts

Dante, generally, employers are not required by any law to offer health insurance coverage to their employees, spouses and domestic partners. In the same way, those employers that offer health insurance coverage to their employees are also not required by any law to extend the health insurance coverage to the domestic partners. When I say domestic partners here, it includes same-sex couples and unmarried opposite-sex couples. These provisions are under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

It is always the prerogative of the employers whether they would offer health insurance coverage to their employees or not, or whether those that offer health insurance to their employees would extend the same coverage to their employees’ partners. But throughout the recent years, the number of employers who offer domestic partner benefits is already rising. I think this is to attract more employees with a competitive benefits plan.

Furthermore, in some states, there have already been laws passed which are in favor of the domestic partnership rights. There already are laws in some states granting same-sex couples almost all the benefits that married opposite-sex couples enjoy. But as far as I know, provisions governing health insurance are still in the process of being written, and no one knows yet what shall be under them.

For you to know if you are going to be covered as well by the health insurance offered to your partner by his company, I suggest that you tell your partner to discuss this with the people in his company there in Cambridge, Massachusetts, who are in charge of this benefit. I am sure they can give him answers.

 

Tags: health insurance