Everyone of us knows some facts about Autism but we can never know how they feel. A simple setting in Starbucks maybe relaxing for us but the crowd can lead to an serve anxietyfor them. A stroll down our usual way home can be difficult for them as the lights and noises are magnified many times for them.
I have friends and clients who have autistic child and I saw the challenges they faced. It can be mentally, physically and financially draining. Thus, I think 2nd April which is Autism Awareness Day is important not only to educate the public on Autism but also the challenger’s face by the caregiver. I can only share how we can help from the job as a financial planner.
A few concerns the caregiver have are
- Old Age or Death of caregiver
The caregiver usually parents will find it a challenge to take care of the child physically because as the child grows bigger and heavier, they grow older and weaker. The caregivers are worried what if they pass on and who can provide for the child.
One way the care givers do to avoid facing that situation is to create a Trust fund for the child. A trust fund is set up by a person known as a grantor, for the benefit of another person, known as a beneficiary with the main purpose of ensuring the financial security of a child or grandchild. In simple terms, the care giver leaves a property, cash or other assets to provide for the beneficiary financially. Most of us will not have that much money to be set aside for such purpose. Two simple ways to do is
- Accumulate as much money as you can to put in the Trust Fund
- Get a term plan and have the death payout of $1mil or $2mil to be paid into the Trust Fund
2. Getting insurance coverage for the child.
An autistic child may not be able to get any insurance coverage at all. A mild autistic child may be able to enjoy coverage with exclusion. And I always share this plan from NTUC Income that covers Autism but not many people heard of it. It is known as the SpecialCare (Autism) Insurance.
Have a look at the benefits and if you think it is useful, you can either get these plan that cost less than $1/day from NTUC Income or drop me a mail
| Benefits | Maximum benefit limits | |
|---|---|---|
| Plan 1 | Plan 2 | |
| For you (policyholder) | ||
| Accidental death and permanent disability of policyholder | Up to $30,000 in each insured person’s lifetime | Up to $60,000 in each insured person’s lifetime |
| Waiver of premium due to accidental death of policyholder | Amount of premium, up to 5 years in each insured person’s lifetime | |
| For your child/ward (insured) | ||
| Final expenses | $5,000 in each insured person’s lifetime | |
| Permanent disability of insured person | Up to $30,000 each policy year | Up to $60,000 each policy year |
| Outpatient expenses due to accident | Up to $200 for each accident, maximum $2,000 each policy year | Up to $300 for each accident, maximum $3,000 each policy year |
| Hospitalisation expenses due to accident | Up to $1,200 for each accident, maximum $5,000 each policy year | Up to $2,500 for each accident, maximum $7,500 each policy year |
| Medical expenses due to infectious disease | Up to $1,000 each incident | Up to $2,000 each incident |
| Daily hospital income | $50 each day, up to 60 days for each accident | $75 each day, up to 60 days for each accident |
| Ambulance fee | Up to $100 for each accident, maximum $500 each policy year | |
| Mobility aids | Up to $500 each policy year | Up to $1,000 each policy year |
| Physiotherapy and psychiatric therapy | Up to $100 per visit for each accident, maximum $1,000 each policy year | Up to $200 per visit for each accident, maximum $2,000 each policy yea |
| Personal liability | Up to $5,000 each policy year | |
| Additional benefits if your child/ward (insured) suffers from 50% or more permanent disability (Based on the scale of compensation) | ||
| Modifying your home | Up to $3,000 in each insured person’s lifetime | Up to $6,000 in each insured person’s lifetime |
| Training your caregiver | As charged (once for each accident) | |
| Lifetime limit | Up to $100,000 in each insured person’s lifetime | Up to $150,000 in each insured person’s lifetime |
My IFA@Sg 