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Life and Health Insurance

Finding the right Life and Health Insurance products can be challenging in today’s insurance environment. Michelle Lebel Agency offers a complete line of individual health and life insurance products that are crafted to meet you and your family’s specific needs. We work with several different top-rated insurance companies and will place your account with the company that will provide you with the coverage and benefits you want.

Michelle Lebel Agency can help you make sound, informed decisions about issues affecting your life, health, and insurance needs. Our philosophy is to fully understand your objectives and then translate them into solutions that provide assurance and peace of mind.

For more information, you can read our Life Insurance FAQs below.

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Our life and health insurance policies include:

Final expense insurance helps families cope with the loss of a loved one by guaranteeing all funeral and burial expenses will be paid for. With so many different options to choose from, the cost for a service, burial plot, casket, and headstone can range anywhere from $1000 to $10,000, and the grieving period is no time to be making complicated financial decisions.

Final expense insurance is a perfect alternative to traditional life insurance because it is more affordable, no medical exam is required, and premiums will not increase over time. In addition, final expense insurance can provide funds to your family within 24-48 hours of your passing whereas traditional life insurance plans can take weeks to pay out. This instant, short-term monetary relief can be crucial for staying current with mortgage payments and covering day-to-day living expenses.

No longer a luxury, final expense insurance is a necessity. So what are you waiting for? Give yourself and your loved ones peace of mind today.

A fixed annuity can help you accumulate tax-deferred earnings as part of your overall retirement plan. Annuities offer the opportunity for lifetime payments and tax-deferred earnings and provide a guaranteed death benefit for your beneficiaries. All guarantees are backed by the continued claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company.

You may want to consider investing in an annuity as part of your long-term financial strategy if:

  • You’re in a higher tax bracket, and want to defer additional income.
  • You’ve reached your deductible limit on all your retirement accounts and wish to save more for retirement.

An annuity is different from most other retirement savings vehicles — it’s actually a contract between you and an insurance company. In return for making one or more premium payments, the insurance company agrees to provide you with an income stream — usually during retirement. You can elect to receive payment all at once or as a series of payments, even for the rest of your life.

Individual health insurance programs are designed for individuals and families who cannot obtain health insurance through an employer. Due to the continually rising cost of medical care, it has become more important to provide health insurance for you and your families.

Michelle Lebel Agency offers health insurance programs to individuals which offer extensive coverage as well as high-deductible programs which are designed to protect against catastrophic financial losses.

As an independent agency, Michelle Lebel Agency can provide insurance plans from numerous health insurance companies. With the health insurance market changing frequently, we are always on the lookout for quality, service-oriented insurance companies for our clients.

Individual Dental Insurance is available to individuals and families that are not covered on group dental insurance. For people without dental insurance, cost often stands in the way of getting the care they need to maintain the health of their teeth and gums. Even for routine preventive care, a trip to the dentist’s office could mean a substantial amount of money out of your pocket.

A freedom-of-choice plan allows you to see any dentist you wish. However, this plan does impose 6- to 12-month waiting periods for some services. This is not the best plan for an individual who needs comprehensive coverage within the first 12 months. However, if dental coverage is desired for a long period of time, and there is no rush to receive the major benefits, this plan may work for you.

Individual Disability Income Protection is a must for a business owner and highly recommended for executives. If you are a business owner, you should consider purchasing both group and individual policies, if possible. As an executive, you should be sure to obtain group coverage if it is available. Only forty-three percent of large companies provide group long-term disability insurance.

Your chances are even less likely to get long-term disability insurance if you work for a small company. The cost of a plan provided by your employer is usually less than you would pay for an individual disability policy and often you can get coverage automatically without having to qualify medically. If your employer doesn’t provide disability insurance then you may want to consider an individual disability policy.

Or, you may need a personal disability insurance policy to supplement an employer group plan. Be sure to check the group provisions carefully: How long does the group disability insurance coverage last? How much is the benefit? Does the disability insurance policy cover bonus and commission income? Will the coverage continue if you leave that employer?

A typical Individual Disability Income Protection plan starts to pay benefits after you have been off work for 1 to 6 months, and pays benefits for several years or until retirement age, depending on the policy.

Life insurance from Michelle Lebel Agency can help you secure your family’s financial future by providing the funds they need to: cover burial expenses, uninsured medical bills, pay off your mortgage and other outstanding debts, and maintain a comfortable standard of living.

There are a variety of life insurance policies that we can provide. The kind of policy you choose depends on your needs:

Term Life Insurance

Term Life Insurance is a low-cost way of providing maximum coverage for your family. Protection is provided for a limited number of years. The insurance expires without value if the insured lives beyond the policy period, usually 5 to 20 years. Other policy life periods are available, including 1-year annual renewable term.

Term insurance premiums will not increase during the guaranteed policy time period (term) you select. Term Life Insurance pays a death benefit only if you die during that term. Term insurance generally provides the largest insurance protection for your premium dollar.

Term Life Insurance remains in force for as long as premiums are current, provided there are no misrepresentations on the application. The insurance coverage terminates if you discontinue your premium payments.

Universal Life Insurance

Universal Life is characterized by great flexibility. Policyholders can determine the amount and frequency of premium payments – i.e., the more you pay, the less time you will need to pay. Your premiums cover the insurance part also the savings or investment element and the expense part. The stated interest on the investment portion changes along with movement in interest rates; moves in 1/4 % interest steps are typical as banks and other financial institutions make similar moves.

Whole Life Insurance

Whole Life Insurance provides permanent protection for the whole of life – from the date of policy issue to the date of the insured’s death, provided that premiums are paid. Premiums are set at the time of policy issue and remain level for the policy’s life. Unlike term insurance, whole life combines insurance protection and savings or cash value which builds over time. Cash value build-up may provide a source for living benefits, for example, helping pay off a mortgage, or a child’s education, or cash surrender value if the policy is ever canceled.

These products are continually changing and we can provide you with the latest information and policies available!

Long Term Care is the type of care received either at home or in a facility, when someone needs assistance with activities of daily living, such as bathing and dressing due to an accident, an illness, or advancing age.

Rising life expectancy means that the potential need for “long-term care” grows with every passing year of your life. The likelihood is that you or a member of your family will need long-term assistance due to a prolonged illness, a disability, or general deterioration of your health and ability to perform routine daily activities.

Most long-term care expenses are not covered by Social Security or Medicare, Medicare Supplement (“Medigap”), or private health insurance. Medicaid pays for nearly half of all nursing home care, but you must meet federal poverty guidelines and may have to “spend down” most of your assets on health care.

Vision insurance provides coverage for services relating to the care and treatment of the eyes. It typically covers services delivered by an optometrist or ophthalmologist. Depending on the specific plan, some or all of the following services may be covered:

  • Yearly eye exams – glasses (with an annual limit).
  • Contact lenses and fitting (with an annual limit).
  • Glaucoma screening.

Some vision insurance plans may provide more extensive coverage (such as certain eye surgeries), while others may limit coverage to “reasonable and customary” charges incurred during routine eye exams. Reasonable and customary charges generally do not include the cost of glasses and contact lenses.

For most homeowners, the mortgage is the single largest source of personal debt. Mortgage protection insurance is a specialized life insurance policy designed to pay off that debt in the event of your death.

Imagine the worst-case scenario. A fatal accident today would force your loved ones to immediately experience financial hardship. On top of your final expenses, the mortgage is due, but your family has no way to pay it without your income. They haven’t even had enough time to grieve and now they have to deal with the impending tragedy of foreclosure.

Like most life insurance, mortgage protection insurance eases the financial burden of your loved ones. It is an affordable way of ensuring that your home is paid for no matter the circumstances. Cancer, stroke, heart attack, injury, death… your family will never be in jeopardy of losing its home as long as you put a custom mortgage protection insurance plan in place.

Read our Life Insurance FAQs

If you died tomorrow, how would your family pay for your funeral and burial costs, outstanding medical bills, and any other outstanding debts? How would they pay for their own ongoing living expenses such as food, utilities, and a mortgage?

Life insurance is a safe, simple way to guarantee that the people who depend on you now will be taken care of after you’re gone. Beneficiaries receive a tax-free cash payment that ensures their standard of living and way of life does not suffer. Please, don’t make a tragic situation even worse by failing to plan now. If you are the primary earner in your household, life insurance is not an option. It’s a responsibility.

Contact your Michelle Lebel Agency agent to discuss your life insurance options today.

There is no “one size fits all” policy that is right for everyone, because no two people have exactly the same needs. An elderly widow who only wishes to pay for her own burial expenses would require a much different policy than a 40-year-old who is the primary earner in a family with children.

While experts disagree on the exact formula for income replacement, most estimate that, at a minimum, a person needs coverage equal to six times their annual income. Ultimately, the only “wrong” answer is no coverage at all.

Contact your Michelle Lebel Agency agent today, and they can assist you with balancing future needs with your current financial capabilities.

Term Life insurance is the most affordable type of life insurance because it only provides coverage for a limited period of time. Policies vary, though, and can range from five years up to thirty years. As long as the policyholder dies within the time period specified in his or her policy, the insurer is obligated to pay the benefits in full.

The risk with buying term life insurance is that the policy holder may “outlive” the coverage. When this happens, the policy terminates, and you are given the option to renew. However, the new premiums will most certainly be higher, because you have aged. Still, term life insurance is an attractive option for many people, because it allows them to buy coverage at a lower cost and when it’s needed most.

Permanent life insurance, on the other hand, offers lifetime protection as long as you continue to pay your premiums. All age groups can take advantage of the security and peace of mind that permanent life insurance offers. Retirees can guarantee that their loved ones will be provided for after they are gone, and young people looking to start a family can take advantage by buying early and locking in a great, low rate.

In some instances, a combination of both term life and permanent coverage is desirable. Contact your Michelle Lebel Agency agent today to determine which solution is best for you.

While the primary reason for purchasing life insurance is to provide financial security for your loved ones after your death, many policies offer benefits that can be used by the policy holder during their lifetime.

Accelerated Death Benefit
Terminally ill patients can forgo their death benefit in exchange for a payment equal to the life insurance policy’s face value.

Portability
Take advantage of group rates and the convenience of direct billing by taking your life insurance plan with you when you retire or switch careers.

Waiver Of Premium
This feature allows you to keep your coverage even if you become seriously ill or disabled and are unable to pay your premiums.

Cash Accumulation
By paying in excess of your regular premiums, some policies allow you to increase the amount of your death benefit. Likewise, cash accumulation can also be used to increase the loan amount available to policy holders while they are living.

The ability to borrow money is one of the biggest differences between term life and permanent life insurance. Only permanent insurance allows the policy holder to take out a loan against the cash value built up in the policy. Policy holders are required to repay this loan including interest, and any outstanding balances owed at the time of death will be deducted from the death benefit.

Term life insurance policies, on the other hand, do not have a loan option available, because they do not accrue cash value. This is why these types of policies are commonly referred to as “Death Benefit Only” policies.

Currently, there are no laws restricting the number of life insurance policies one person can hold. Individuals are also allowed to purchase policies from as many different companies as they want. Frequently, a person will purchase an individual life insurance policy to supplement the one they receive through their employer. No policy cancels another policy out, and all effective policies will be paid concurrently at the time of death.

Who you choose as your beneficiaries is one of the most important decisions a policy holder makes. You will have the option to designate one primary beneficiary or multiple ones. If multiple beneficiaries are designated, you will need to decide how the death benefit is allocated between them. Beneficiaries are not required to be actual people. Legal entities such as foundations, charities, or trusts can are also eligible.

As a precautionary measure, you will also need to designate “contingent” or secondary beneficiaries in the event that you outlive your primary beneficiaries. You should take the time to review your beneficiaries annually as they can be changed throughout the life of the policy for any reason.

If you have additional questions regarding the process of choosing your beneficiaries, please contact your agent, and they will be happy to assist you.

Not all life insurance policies require a physical examination. However, policies that pay a high death benefit usually do. This physical is typically performed in your home by a paramedic or licensed health care worker. Most exams consist of a height and weight check, blood and urine samples, and an EKG. You will also need to be prepared to answer questions relating to your medical history. In some instances, additional documentation such as a credit history and even your driving record is required.