Well.... Crap. I can think of many other words, but that sums it up. M and I are in the process of getting some of our financial things in order. I'm basically the bread winner. What the heck does that mean anyway? Did people enter contests to try to win loaves of bread? Same with bringing home the bacon? But I digress. It is my income that pays our mortgage and most of the bills. M most definitely contributes, but we could squeak by without her income, we can't even squeak without mine. So one of the items on my list of things to check out was something called mortgage disability insurance. This would pay the mortgage payment if some thing were to happen to me to keep me from working and being able to earn the income needed to pay it. Sounds good. Should be easy enough. I know M had a similar policy a few years back. So I stopped in to see our insurance agent. Uh Oh.... I have .... M. S. which apparently means I can't qualify to get any disability insurance. She apologied and said she was sorry, but that they can't write policies for that exclusion for any form of disability insurance or life insurance. Hmmm.... so I couldn't even get life insurance? Well... I currently have both life insurance and disability insurance through my work. Wonder if they are still valid? wonder how I would find out? or if I should even open the can of worms to ask? Sometimes it is nice to play ostrich and stick your head back in the sand.
From what I understand, those policies are still ok, but private insurance won't write policies for "our kind"... you know... the ones with .... M. S.
What a bummer. I know I have MS, but really, I'm relatively healthy otherwise. Ok, I have bad knees thanks to the osteoarthritis, and I'm over-weight. I am working on the weight thing tho, M & I both have been, counting points with weight watchers, working out, riding our bikes, using our wii. We are doing pretty good with it too. I've lost 14 lbs since beginning of July. Still have a lot to go, but that's an accomplishment.
So, hopefully things will continue, and I will still have a lot of productive working years ahead and we won't need to worry about how to pay that mortgage. The 66% disability from work's policy would be a significant pay cut. And it really isn't that we couldn't make it on less if we had to, but it would also mean making a lot of changes, downsizing, etc.
We will just have to look at the whole finance thing from all the angles and see where to go from here. This news doesn't really change anything, but it is still a bummer. Leaves a little more uncertainty hanging out there.
Well.... Crap!
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7 comments:
My husband, thanks to God, will support me. I have been a housewife, raising our children, but planned to go back to work this year. Just told I have MS. Do I tell any employer? I think my church will be okay. If you join a church they could help you. Christ sees us through. Love, Bette
We both had long term care policies. We had always been savers, planned on a nice downtown condo...one day. Now, it all goes to our illnesses. I was the bread winner too (bread used to have more value)--then she took over for 4 years and I got SS and nice pension. We are lucky. I worked 40+ hrs/week after my DX, and you will have time too, to sock money away. And remember, you may NEVER have to stop working. I telecommuted for years toward the end. Think outside the box. Together you will make it. You strike me as being very strong. Hey! Crap makes veggies grow! Ya know?
Bette - good luck to you. As for telling your employer, I've heard arguements for both sides. Only you can decide. I'd suggest you read some of the information on this subject that is on the National MS Society site. Personally I told mine. My boss is very supportive. And at the moment I'm healthy. I have MS, I have bad knees, but I can go to work, and I can do my job. My job isn't that physical, and my mental capacity and thought process hasn't appeared to have been effected as of yet. It is good that you have your church as your support system, as well as the support of your husband. I was raised as a methodist. I visit the church when I travel home to see my mother. I too have the support of my partner. We will work through it together whatever comes our way.
I don't feel the need to join a church here. I'm not actually worried about the future. But I think that that will be the subject of another post.
Diane, thanks for your kind words of support and encouragement. I love mushrooms - and they like crap :-)
And you are right I'm also strong. I've led a charmed life. I've cheated death more than once. The stories I could tell...
Also, I expect to continue to have a long future working. I could be wrong, but one never knows what the future will bring. We try to do the best that we can to prepare for that future. Which why the "crap" post- it was more of a "dammit, what next?" kind of thing. Sort of hit home, that yes, I have MS, and yes, the world, or at least insurance, sees me as a insurance risk, and that I fit in the category as uninsurable due to terminal illness. Damn, I don't feel terminal or all that unhealthy. At least not yet.
As for work, I'm a network engineer working for a medium size retail company supporting the network connectivity for about 300 stores across the northern states. What I do, can be done from anywhere. I work on network equipment - routers and switches and firewalls, and support VOIP systems. So I feel my future is still bright. Long as my brain holds up. So, yeah, I will do my best to continue to think out of the box.
Thanks again!
Your MS makes you no more "terminal" than the rest of mankind. We have a normal life expectancy, especially if we keep the rest of us healthy.
Diane - exacty! That was why I took exception to the idea that my insurance company couldn't write a policy on me because of my MS. Saying that they aren't allowed to write on policies when there is a "terminal disease or other exclusion". Ok, I can sort of get why they can't write a disability policy if the disability rate of MS patients is high. But mortality rates aren't any higher than any other part of the population, so why are people with MS excluded from being able to get a life insurance policy?
Oh well, it is what it is, and we go on from here. My focus at this point is to continue to work to become healthier, more fit by eating healthier, getting more exercise, getting more sleep and taking care of ourselves. As for the financial future, we will work to put $ away and make the best of things as they are. Right now we don't have anything to worry about so I wont borrow trouble.
Diane - exacty! That was why I took exception to the idea that my insurance company couldn't write a policy on me because of my MS. Saying that they aren't allowed to write on policies when there is a "terminal disease or other exclusion". Ok, I can sort of get why they can't write a disability policy if the disability rate of MS patients is high. But mortality rates aren't any higher than any other part of the population, so why are people with MS excluded from being able to get a life insurance policy?
Oh well, it is what it is, and we go on from here. My focus at this point is to continue to work to become healthier, more fit by eating healthier, getting more exercise, getting more sleep and taking care of ourselves. As for the financial future, we will work to put $ away and make the best of things as they are. Right now we don't have anything to worry about so I wont borrow trouble.
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