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Information about all aspects of finances affected by a serious health condition. Includes income sources such as work, investments, and private and government disability programs, and expenses such as medical bills, and how to deal with financial problems.
Information about all aspects of health care from choosing a doctor and treatment, staying safe in a hospital, to end of life care. Includes how to obtain, choose and maximize health insurance policies.
Answers to your practical questions such as how to travel safely despite your health condition, how to avoid getting infected by a pet, and what to say or not say to an insurance company.

My Survivorship A to Z Guide

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Note: This is a sample Survivorship A to Z Guide for a fictitious person we call Ellen. She is just diagnosed with Breast Cancer. To view a summary of her answers which led to this Guide, click here.

To get your own free, computer-generated A to Z Guide, click here.

Maximize benefits at work while you can: obtain life insurance if offered, maximize retirement plan savings and health insurance benefits, juggle time off, take other "what if" benefits if offered.

While you're working is the time to maximize your benefits, to take advantage of employer contributions, and of group rates.

Next time you have a choice about health insurance policies, consider which is best for you as a person living with [insertdiagnosis]. Your diagnosis will not affect your ability to change policies. Our Health Plan Evaluator can help you decide which policy is best for you.

Put as much money as you can into retirement plans. It may sound counterintuitive, but any money you put into a retirement plan now reduces your tax, increasing your net -- leaving the money available in case you need it in the future.

Do what you can to keep your disability income insurance in force. It's not likely that you would qualify for a disability income insurance policy on your own because of your medical history.

Obtain life insurance if you can. Many employers have an open enrollment period of time each year when employees can purchase life insurance or increase the amount they already have.

  • You qualify in spite of your health history because no medical questions are asked during this period.
  • This is one of the cheapest and easiest ways for you to get more life insurance.
  • If you leave work, you'll probably be able to take the life insurance with you, or convert it to an individual policy.

  • As you'll see in the Finances category, in addition to the traditional reasons to buy life insurance, you can sell your policy if you become very sick.

If you need time off, juggle your various entitlements to your maximum advantage. You're probably entitled to time off with pay for vacations, sick days, personal days -- and possibly as a reasonable accommodation. If you work for a large enough employer, you may also be entitled to time off without pay under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or similar state law. Your benefits will also continue. If time off is due to the FMLA, you will have to pay for your benefits.

The last thing you need is to lose the time and money from identity theft. If it's not covered in your homeowners policy, inexpensive insurance may be worthwhile. Alternatively, take 5 steps to protect yourself. [Tell me more]

Identity theft is a big problem in our country.

You may have protection against identify theft in your homeowners policy. If not, you can buy insurance to protect against this risk. If you can find inexpensive coverage, it may be worthwhile so you can concentrate your energies in other areas.

Otherwise, there are five steps to protecting yourself. Identity victims aren't liable for losses due to fraud, but you can lose a lot of time correcting the situation.

Five Protective steps to consider include:

Step One: Be stingy about giving out personal information.
Step Two: Check your monthly statements.
Step Three: Check your credit accounts several times a year.
Step Four: Put a freeze on new credit accounts, if permitted in the state you live in.
Step Five: Check your medical records and put a freeze on them as well.

We all face the possibility of becoming disabled and needing an income and/or long term care in a facility like a nursing home. There are steps you can still take. [Tell me more]

Because of your diagnosis of Breast Cancer you are not likely to be able to purchase Disability Income Insurance or Long Term Care Insurance to cover these risks. If this is of particular concern to you, you can:

  • Check with the Social Security Administration to find out if you have enough work credits to qualify for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). If not, start working on the short fall. It helps to know that you don't have to actually work four quarters to get four credits in a year. You only have to earn the required amount of money -- which you could do in one quarter.
  • Look for an employer that offers one or both of these policies to employees as a benefit.
  • Consider advance planning to qualify for Medicaid.
  • As a last resort, if you are really concerned and willing to move away from friends and family, consider moving to a state or even another country with the best social programs.

If you are considering applying for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits, keep in mind that only about one third of people who apply receive SSDI. That means two out of three people who apply do not receive it. To increase your chances, it's important to understand how the process works and what's behind the questions Social Security asks. For information, click here.