Carruthers Financial is with you at every stage of life with excellent financial solutions customized to your needs, that suit to your means, reflect your dreams for the future of your loved ones and you. Please see below to review the broad range of services and products to meet the diverse needs of our clients.
If you have any questions about any group insurance products not listed above please contact our office.
Accidental Death & Dismemberment
- provides a portion of the overall coverage amount in the event an eligible employee suffers a loss specified in the policy due to accidental injuries
- benefit paid is usually a percentage of the AD&D benefit based on type of injury
- can select an amount that matches life insurance or is a lesser amount
- minimum is usually $25,000
- provides nominal life insurance to spouse and children of employee
- Spouse Amount generally between $5000 to $25000
- Child Amount is usually 1/s of spouse's amount and typically starts from the 15th day following a live birth
EXTENDED HEALTH
- cover eligible medical expenses that are not reimbursed by provincial health care program
- generally provided on a co-insurance basis where the employee pays a certain predetermined percentage of the cost or benefits are payable at 100% after the employee has first paid a deductible
- semi private or private hospital can be selected
- most plans will cover either all or a portion of the following benefits
- ambulance
- acute/convalescent care
- private duty nursing (annual maximum selected during design)
- medical supplies
- hearing aids
- orthopedic shoes
- Paramedical practitioners: chiropractors, naturopaths, osteopaths, speech therapists, dieticians, acupuncturists, massage therapist, chiropractors, physiotherapists, psychologist, social workers
- out of country coverage usually included and covered at 100%
- select a vision benefit that will provide $100, $150, $200 or $250 every 24 months per person
- select prescription drug coverage with either manual reimbursement or drug card
for either generic or brand name drug coverage, can also select unlimited prescriptions or an annual drug limit
- for drug coverage can have a deductible, co-insurance, or have employee pay a certain amount per prescription
LONG TERM DISABILITY BENEFITS
- provides disability protection for employees who are off work for longer periods of time with a disease or injury
- for most groups will be able to apply up to a certain level without providing any medical information
- waiting period options of 90, 120, 180 or 365 days
- disability definition can be based on own job at first and then any job after a certain period of time
- taxable benefit formula = 66.67-75% of earnings
- non taxable 60-66.67 of earnings + graded formulas
- can select benefit periods from 2 years, 5 years or to age 65
- can include cost of living adjustments to protect benefit from being eroded by inflation
- usually include a conversion privilege
- may have a pre-existing condition exclusion for a limited period (usually 90 days)
DENTAL COVERAGE
- depending on size of group may be able to select between basic, major and orthodontic benefits
- BASIC: typically covers oral exams, x-rays, fluoride, sealant, fillings, extraction, endodontics, periodontics, oral surgery, injections and anaesthesia
- MAJOR: typically covers crowns, onlays, dentures, bridgework and denture related surgery
- ORTHODONTICS: usually covers diagnostic orthodontic services and orthodontic appliances for children under 18, in some circumstances may be able to add adult orthodontic
- usually institute an annual maximum of $1000, $1500, $2000, $2500 per person per year
- recall can usually select between every 6, 9 or 12 months for routine dental recall
- usually institute a deductible and various co-insurance levels for the different types of dental coverage
COST PLUS BENEFIT
- a tax effective way to top up your group insurance coverage for employees or certain key employees using pre-tax business dollars
- most group insurance programs either offer this benefit automatically on their contracts or the employer can request it to be added with no additional charge
- there is no additional monthly cost added to the group insurance premium for this benefit instead there is an administration charged by the company at the time of claim submission and this charge is a tax deductible expense to the client
- the employer can offer this benefit to all employees or to specific classes of employees such as senior staff
- this benefit once instituted will also extend to the eligible dependants of a person covered for Cost Plus
- expenses reimbursed via Cost Plus must meet the definition of eligible medical expenses (Please see Revenue Canada document) and not be reimbursed through another means
- can also use this benefit for the portion of an expense that is not covered through the group insurance program, for instance an item that is only covered at 50% you can Cost Plus the 50% that was not reimbursed
- the benefit that the employee receives is not taxable
- the total benefit amount, including the administration fee and associated taxes is tax deductible as business expense
CRITICAL ILLNESS INSURANCE
- can offer a basic lump sum benefit, usually a percentage of life insurance or AD&D benefit
- will pay a lump sum within a certain period after a person has been diagnosed when a critical illness
- covered conditions usually include: heart attack, stroke, life threatening cancer, kidney failure, Alzheimer's disease, blindness, coma, coronary artery bypass surgery, deafness, loss of speech, major burns, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, organ transplant, paralysis, Parkinson's disease
- the payment can be used by the insured in any manner they wish, for instance they can use the money to alter their home, seek special medical treatment or pay off debts
