What Does Critical Illness Insurance Cover? 
Critical illness insurance is a special kind of health insurance policy . Once referred to as `` dread disease '' plans , someone finally wised up and decided to give them a different name . CI policies come in two flavors . One is a health insurance policy , the other is a rider to a life insurance policy . The policies normally pay a predetermined lump sum amount upon first diagnosis of a list of illnesses including cancer , heart attack , stroke , etc. . Read your policy carefully . Some are quite good but most are a waste of money . 