Why healthy people need voluntary benefits

Voluntary benefits help to cover the financial costs for a range of medical expenses. Some voluntary benefits such as dental and vision insurance are good for regular check-ins and maintaining your health, but what about other voluntary products like accident, disability, hospital, critical illness or life insurance? If you’re a healthy person, you may have overlooked these options because you think you won’t need them. Don’t make that mistake! Here are few reasons why healthy people should still consider a range of voluntary benefit options.



1. Income protection
Think of all the things that depend on your paycheck – your family, your bills, your activities and hobbies. What would happen if you suddenly couldn’t work due to an accident or an illness? Disability insurance can help protect your income by replacing portion of your paycheck if you’re unable to work. Some carriers also cover maternity leave, so if you plan to have a family, disability insurance is a smart way to prepare yourself financially. 

2. Wellness incentives 
Dental and vision insurance aren’t the only benefits that can help you maintain your health and prevent future issues. Some carriers offer wellness benefits as part of their voluntary benefit products to promote good health. Wellness benefit features may include coverage for routine medical services, follow-up tests or screenings. These features offer a great value in helping to cover preventative health measures to avoid needing financial coverage for major health events down the road. They’re often found on products such as accident, hospital or critical illness insurance.

3. Financial security
As we know, the future is unpredictable. Even healthy people can suffer an accident or develop a serious illness, such as cancer. Hospital bills, cancer treatment and treatment for heart attack or stroke can come with devastating price tags. If you think these things won’t happen to you, consider that heart disease, cancer, accidents (unintentional injuries), and stroke are among the top 5 leading causes of death in the United States.¹ Voluntary benefits can help make sure your finances are protected should you experience one of these conditions.

Of course, there are a few things in life that we can predict – for instance, aging and eventual death. Voluntary benefits can help you plan for these expected life events with life insurance and long-term care. Life insurance helps financially protect family members after losing a loved one, giving you the peace of mind that they’ll be supported after you’re gone. 

Long-term care helps cover the costs of home healthcare, adult day care or assisted living, which can help take the financial burden off you and your loved ones’ shoulders in the future. Long-term care benefits are becoming more important, as people are living longer. In fact, by 2030, the U.S. will have more people over 65 than under the age of 18 for the first time ever.²  

Voluntary benefits aren’t made exclusively for those who expect to have health issues. In many cases, these policies help protect once-healthy people from the financial impact of unexpected accidents, illnesses or other health conditions. Life insurance and long-term care in particular are useful for healthy people who live long, full lives and have loved ones they want to protect and support for generations to come. The bottom line is that even if you’re healthy today, voluntary benefits could come in handy tomorrow.

¹Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Leading Causes of Death. 2020.
²The Caring Company. Harvard Business School. How employers can help employees manage their caregiving responsibilities. 2019.