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Total and Permanent Disability And That Plan Called ElderShield

When you buy any life insurance plan, the basic benefits are that you are covered against Death and Total and Permanent Disability. So do you what does this insurance term – Total and Permanent Disability – mean to you?

The General Definition of Total And Permanent Disability (TPD)

It would practically mean that the loss of a pair of limbs (inclusive of eye sight) and being unable to work continuously for six month and thereafter. This, of course, must be certified by a certified Medical Practitioner. If the definition here differs from what you should know, please do refer to the Product Summary of your life insurance and it’ll be explained there.

The General Exclusion For Total And Permanent Disability

Do you know that, in Singapore, the coverage for TPD will cease the moment you have reached 65 years old whereas the rest of the coverage like Death or against the 30 Critical Illnesses will still continue.

So Is Having The Coverage For TPD Important?

Life is full of uncertainty and you’ll never know when such an unforeseen circumstance like a stroke will hit you to be permanently disabled – you lose your job permanently, loss of income for your family, you are very much alive and there’ll be a definite financial difficulties as long as you are alive.

Therefore, having a coverage for TPD (some insurance companies will pay a lump sum whereas others may pay a certain limit per month or per year) is beneficial in making sure that you have enough financial assistance to take good care of yourself while you are down.

So Why Does Total And Permanent Disability Cease To Continue After Age 65?

This is a very good question that I, myself, do not have an accurate answer. In my personal opinion (I may be wrong) is that, the health risk for people to have Stroke or Alzheimer’s Disease (Total and Permanently Disabled) is tremendously high, which could have a serious financial impact on insurance companies to sustain this risk. Therefore they decide to have this general clause of having it till age 65.

Stroke And Alzheimer’s Disease Are On The Rise, So How Do I Get Myself Covered After Age 65?

The ElderShield Plan

If you are concerned about getting covered after the age of 65, there is an initiative taken by the CPF Board to help take care of Singaporeans in terms of severe disability, that is the Eldershield Plan, which is offered automatically to Singaporeans and PRs who are CPF members and have turned 40 years old.

The premium is made annually through your Medisave Account. You can also use also use your Medisave savings to pay the ElderShield premiums for your parents, spouse, grandparents and children.

What You Need To Know About The Premium Payment and Coverage Term?

Once you are into this plan at the age of 40 or before 56, you’ll just need to service the premium till the age of 65. The premium that you went in, according to your age at that time, will be locked in, which means that you will pay the same premium throughout, unless you choose to upgrade your plan.

If you go in after the age of 56, you will be servicing a 10 year premium term.

If you are interested to know the premium rates, you can click on to know more >> Eldershield

Once you have finished servicing the premiums, you will be covered for the rest of your life!

Under this plan, there are two choices of plan which you can get covered for:

  • $300 per month for 60 months or
  • $400 per month for 72 months

And you will entitled to the payout when you are unabled to meet at least 3 out of the 6 activities of your daily living like:

  • Washing : The ability to wash yourself in the bath or shower (including getting into and out of the bath or shower) or wash by other means.
  • Dressing : The ability to put on, take off, secure and unfasten your garments and, as appropriate, any braces, artificial limbs or other surgical or medical appliances.
  • Feeding : The ability to feed yourself food after it has been prepared and made available.
  • Toileting : The ability to use the lavatory or manage bowel and bladder function through the use of protective undergarments or surgical appliances if appropriate.
  • Mobility : The ability to move yourself indoors from room to room on level surfaces.
  • Transferring : The ability to move yourself from a bed to an upright chair or wheelchair, and vice versa.

Hey… Wait… It Seems Like It’s Quite Hard To Meet At Least 3 Out Of The 6

This is the most common concern that I get from the clients that I have met. It’s true in some sense as you need to be severely disabled in order to get the benefits. But on the other hand, if the benefits are so easily obtainable, will any insurance companies be willing to take on this risk? There has to be a balance somewhere. Do you agree?

The Positive Comment From A Client

As hard as it is to convince many others on the benefits of having the Eldershield Plan, it’s good to have a client who is very positive about the idea of having the ElderShield Plan and even upgrading the Plan by adding on the Eldershield Supplements.

Her positive comment is that:

“Life is unpredictable… You’ll never know what will happen. Life is so stressful nowadays. You can easily get stroke and alzheimer’s diseases nowadays (she gave me the idea to type this post). Once you get those, you will have loss of income and you will need people to take care of you for life… where to find the money to support that? Eldershield is a good plan as it offers a monthly benefit. Eldershield Supplements are good as they enhance additional payouts and even extend the payout term. I am all for it!”

Those words really touched me! I even asked her about the high premium rates that she’ll be going in. Her answers are simply that if something really happen, all these premiums are well paid. If not, at least she knows she is healthy all this while and all the premiums are paid for a good peace of mind.

Well said indeed!

So are you ready to be covered in Eldershield and be covered against Total and Permanent Disability after the age of 65?

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