When you're recovering at home after a Hospital stay, you want to keep your self-reliance — stay in control of your health care choices — and get well quickly. But without a backup plan, you may find out too late that you can't afford the home recovery care you want. You could end up settling for home health care that's just not up to your standards.

You could use your savings or retirement income to help pay for home recovery care — or you can use AFSA's Short Term Recovery Insurance Plan.

This member benefit was designed and negotiated to help take care of what other plans don't. (Medicare/TRICARE covers a lot, but it was never meant to cover everything.)

With the AFSA Short Term Recovery Plan, you'll have the added protection you need—to help you stay independent and confidently make the home recovery care choices you want.

Plan Highlights

• Provides cash benefits: up to $1,450.00 per hospitalization stay and up to $8,000.00 each year* (up to $200.00 a day for 2 twenty day Benefit Periods per Accrual Year) for your recovery afterward. Covered services include physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, nursing care, companion services, home health, and homemaker services.
• Guaranteed acceptance¹ for AFSA members and their spouses age 65 and over
• Group rates for you and your spouse
• Your coverage cannot be canceled due to your health or age
• Portable coverage that goes where you go

¹This policy is guaranteed acceptance, but it does contain a Pre-Existing Conditions Limitation. Please refer to the additional website pages for more information on exclusions and limitations, such as Pre-Existing Conditions.

*At age 80, Home Recovery Benefit reduces to $4,000 a year.

Valuable Protection
The Short Term Recovery Insurance Plan pays cash benefits if you're admitted to the Hospital. Then, it helps pay for home health care expenses when you're recovering at home after the Hospital stay. You'll receive benefits for physical, speech, and occupational therapy. Nursing services by a Registered Nurse (RN) and Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) are also covered.

In some cases, you may need personal care after your Hospital stay as well. The AFSA Short Term Recovery Plan helps pay for a home health aide to assist you with items such as bathing and getting dressed. It even covers homemaker services if you need someone to help with the laundry, shopping, cleaning, and cooking.

Pays in Addition to Medicare and TRICARE For Life
Although TRICARE For Life (TFL) and Medicare are generous in what they pay for, they don't cover everything.

For example, Medicare only covers intermittent and part-time care. In addition, it does not cover 24-hour care or homemaker services. If you need more home health care than what Medicare covers, you either pay for it yourself — or go without it.

In most cases, you can't rely on your TRICARE For Life or Medicare supplement to pick up all home recovery costs, either. (This common misconception can really cost you if you're not careful.) TFL has strict criteria to qualify and does not cover home health aide, homemaker, or companion services at all.

If you're Medicare eligible, as long as Medicare approves just one home health care expense for you, the AFSA Recovery Plan pays.

Benefits You Can Count On
The AFSA Short Term Recovery Plan pays benefits for your hospitalization and your recovery afterward:

• AFSA Hospital and/or Skilled Nursing Facility Benefit: You'll collect $750.00 when you're admitted to a Hospital for at least one day, regardless of whether you need home recovery care later. If your Hospital stay exceeds 14 days, you'll get an additional $500.00. After 30 days in the Hospital, you'll collect another $200.00. That's up to a maximum of $1,450.00 per stay. Time spent as an inpatient in a Skilled Nursing Facility is also included for the purpose of calculating the Hospital benefit. Plus, your AFSA Hospital Benefit is unlimited in the number of times you can collect it as long as your Periods of Confinement are unrelated and separated by more than 90 days. For example, if you're hospitalized three times in one year, you're eligible to collect at least $750.00 each time.
• Home Recovery Care Benefits: You'll collect $200.00 a day for each day you incur a covered home health care expense. Benefits are paid for two benefit periods, up to 40 days per Accrual Year.* (There is a maximum of 20 days per occurrence.) That's up to a maximum of $8,000.00 per year for members under age 80 (up to $4,000.00 a year for members age 80 and over), you won't have to pay out of pocket for the home recovery care you need.

* At age 80, Home Recovery Care benefits reduce to 20 days per Accrual Year (one benefit period). The RecoveryCare benefit is still 200, but the length of time is reduced for Insureds over age 80.

Your Acceptance is Guaranteed
All AFSA members and their spouse who are age 65 or older are guaranteed acceptance into the Short Term Recovery Plan. This means that although you will not be asked to take a medical exam or answer medical questions at the time of enrollment, insurance benefits payable are subject to your policy's Pre-Existing Conditions Limitation.

You'll have protection for new health conditions right away. And any Pre-Existing health Conditions are covered after you've been in the Plan for 6 months, or when you've gone 6 months without treatment, whichever is sooner.

Please note: We're hopeful acceptance into the Short Term Recovery Plan will always be guaranteed. However, it's unclear whether health questions or other underwriting will be necessary in the future for you to qualify. This means now is the perfect time to get in on the Plan, when you can't be turned down for any reason.

You Pay Economical Group Rates
Thanks to the group purchasing power of more than 130,000 AFSA members, you can take advantage of the Short Term Recovery Plan at the economical rates listed below.

You'll be billed quarterly. All billing modes except annual will include a $2.00 billing fee. You cannot be singled out for a rate increase. Your rates will not be increased or decreased unless they are increased or decreased for everyone in your classification or age group. Rates are based on your attained age and increase as your enter a new age category.

* At age 80, Home Recovery Care Benefits reduce to $200.00 a day for up to 20 days per year.

Your Protection Can Start Right Away
Your AFSA Short Term Recovery Plan will start the first day of the month after we receive your Enrollment Form and first premium payment (subject to the Pre-Existing Condition Limitation.)

Your Protection Won't End Because of Your Health or Age
You can keep your AFSA Short Term Recovery Plan as long as you want. It won't end due to age, unlike many other insurance plans on the market. At age 80, home health benefits reduce from a $8,000.00 per year maximum to a $4,000.00 per year maximum. As long as the Master Policy remains in force, you only need to pay your premiums when due and remain an AFSA member to keep your protection in place. Your spouse’s coverage ceases when your coverage terminates; premiums are not paid; the Master Policy is no longer in force; or they become legally separated or divorced from you.

You Get Top-Notch Service
Whenever you have questions about your AFSA Short Term Recovery Plan, simply call our toll-free helpline at 1-800-882-5541. If you have a question like how to submit a claim or about your premium status, our phone system will handle it quickly and efficiently.

If you have a more difficult question, you'll talk to a helpful AFSA Short Term Recovery Plan expert. Our experts know the AFSA Recovery Plan inside and out and will make sure you get the answers you need.

Other Important Information About This Coverage

Pre-Existing Conditions Limitation
A Pre-Existing Condition means any injury or sickness, diagnosed or undiagnosed, for which medical care is received by a covered person within the 6-month period prior to the covered person's effective date of insurance.

For the purposes of this limitation, we will consider:
       a)  Medical care received when:
            1) a physician is consulted or medical service is given; or
            2) treatment is recommended or prescribed by, or received from a physician
       b)  Treatment to include but not be limited to, any:
            1) medical examination, test, attendance, or observation;
            2) medical services, supplies or equipment, including their prescription or use; or
            3) prescribed drugs or medicines, including their prescription or use.

All manifestations, symptoms, or findings which result:
       a) from the same or related accident or sickness; or
       b) from any aggravations of accident or sickness;
are considered to be the same accident or sickness for the purpose of determining a Pre-Existing Condition.

Conditions Prior to Effective Date: During the first 6 months of a covered person's insurance, losses incurred for Pre-Existing Conditions are not covered. This will not apply to a loss that the covered person incurs after being free of medical care for the condition for a 6-month period (ending any time on or after his or her effective date).

Exclusions and Limitations
This Plan does not cover intentionally self-inflicted injuries, suicide or attempted suicide, whether sane or insane (while sane in Missouri or Colorado).

A Hospital or a Skilled Nursing Facility does not mean any institution or part thereof used principally as a rest home, a home for the aged, or a place for custodial care; or a place for the care of drug addicts, alcoholics, or the mentally ill.

Confined or Confinement means being an Inpatient in a Hospital due to Sickness or Injury.

Periods of Confinement in a Hospital separated by less than 90 days and due to the same or related causes are considered part of the same Period of Confinement.

This website explains the general purpose of the insurance described but in no way changes or affects the policy as actually issued. In the event of a discrepancy between this website and the policy, the terms of the policy apply.  All benefits are subject to the terms and conditions of the policy.  Policies underwritten by the Hartford Life and Accident Insurance Company detail exclusions, limitations, reduction of benefits and terms under which the Policies may be continued in full or discontinued.  Complete details are in the Certificate of Insurance issued to each insured individual and the Master Policy issued to the policyholder.  This program may vary and may not be available in all states.