Legal & General Critical Illness
Legal & General (L&G) has added two new services to its Critical Illness policies that are sold through intermediaries.
The first is the Legal & General Nurse Support Service, which enables customers to benefit from practical advice and emotional support delivered by a team of qualified nurses, when they are diagnosed with a serious physical illness. It will also extend to support for mental health conditions, trauma and bereavement as well as eldercare and carer support for the customer and their close family members.
To promote the product, Legal & General has created new videos and product animations to help advisers understand how the new service will benefit policyholders.
There are six pillars of support available, for:
Serious illness – support on diagnosis of a serious physical illness.
Mental illness – support with mental health conditions from chronic depressions, stress through to bipolar, schizophrenia and psychosis.
Second medical opinion – access to over 20,000 consultants for a second medical opinion, and guidance before and after the consultation.
Help at home – support after a hospital stay including bespoke recovery plans and practical help.
Eldercare support – advice and guidance if the policyholder is caring for an elderly relative, including medical advice as well as support in understanding care funding and State benefits.
Carer support – support for those caring for a loved one with a long term health condition or disability which includes wellbeing support for the carer themselves.
The service is tailored to the needs of each individual and will often be a combination of the above areas. The dedicated RedArc nurse then determines the best possible course of action through the service model, comprising:
long-term practical and emotional support
help in understanding the condition, medical terms and its implications
explanation of options for treatment
preparation for medical appointments and support in navigating NHS services
research and sign-posting employees to specialist charities and self-help groups
suggesting coping mechanisms
helping employees make decisions about work, including discussing return-to-work options with their employer
clinical review and provision of a range of resources, including factsheets, books, CDs and DVDs
arranging an assessed course of therapy or counselling
sourcing equipment and medical aids.
Support is available for as long as the patient believes it to be beneficial and the whole service is included within the cost of the policy.
In addition, and at the extra cost of £3.25 a month, is a virtual GP service, called Legal & General GP24. This service is provided by Healix Health Services and Medical Solutions UK Ltd and gives customers a 24/7 virtual GP that can be accessed by phone, Skype or an app. There is also a Private Concierge Service where a specialist consultant is found for private or NHS appointments and treatment (although the customer pays). The GP service is available to customers and their family, with an unlimited number of consultations.
Comment: The RedArc service is one of those benefits that can have a relatively small value to many people upfront but a huge value when it is actually needed. To some extent that is changing as more case studies emerge, and indeed, the 7 Families initiative also highlighted its value. L&G has set out just how comprehensive the service is, which should help.
The second initiative is interesting too, not least because it costs more – albeit just £3.25 a month. Against a background of declining GP numbers and concerns over NHS primary care service, a virtual GP service will also be invaluable to many, especially when combined with the concierge service.
Should such additional benefits be charged for? You can argue this both ways but sometimes charging a little extra actually helps highlight a service’s value, so it will be interesting to see whether others follow L&G’s lead.
Plus points: Two new services – RedArc and GP24; RedArc is included free: GP24 costs little but has a high potential value for customers; L&G is the market leader.
Not so plus points: Some may resent having to pay for GP24; No changes to conditions covered.
Website: http://www.legalandgeneral.com.
Rating (max 10): Innovation: 8. Overall: 8. Gold
Tags: CI; L&G