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Insurance Abstract
The present invention relates to including the invention in Key-Person,
Term Life, or Critical Illiness Insurance policies to provide potential
life-saving and health enhancements in addition to the death benefits
covered under existing policies. The collection, processing and
cryo-preservation of adult stem cells from any adult source, taken
from peripheral blood, umbilical cord blood, bone marrow, adipose,
heart, muscle, skin, nasal, liver, kidney, pancreas, testes, or
other adult sources can also be used as a rider to insurance policies
or to the in-benefits for the sale of products or services. The
resulting method will substantially reduce the costs and extend
premium payments for insurance companies as payouts for death benefits
on Key-Person, Term Insurance, or Critical Illiness Insurance policies
will be markedly reduced as therapies extend the life of the insured.
Insurance Claims
1. A business method comprising: establishing a Key Person, Term
Life, or Critical Illness insurance policy program for selected
policy holders or beneficiaries by an insurance company, collecting
a premium to maintain said insurance policies for insured, and paying
a service company a predetermined fee in support of services performed
by said company on behalf of said policy holders regarding obtaining
biological material from said insured and preserving said biological
material during the term of said policies; and wherein said biological
material may be used to extend the life of one or more of the insured
during the term of the policy thereby reducing the likelihood of
a payout to the policy holder or beneficiary by said insurance company.
2. The business method set forth in claim 1 wherein said services
are continuing for the entire term of the insurance policies and
said fee is a periodic fee paid at least in part at discrete intervals
over said period of time.
3. The business method set forth in claim 1 wherein said policies
are key-person, term life or critical illness insurance policies.
4. The business method according to claim 2 wherein said continuing
services are for storage and preservation of biological materials
ancillary to said health insurance policy, in addition to initialization
services for collection, testing and processing biological material.
5. The business method set forth in claim 1 wherein said insurance
policy is a key-person health insurance policy and said company
stores biological materials ancillary to said insurance policy.
6. The business method set forth in claim 1 wherein said insurance
policy is a term life insurance policy and said company stores biological
materials ancillary to said life insurance policy.
7. The business method set forth in claim 1 wherein said insurance
policy is a critical illness insurance policy and said company stores
biological materials ancillary to said critical illness insurance
policy.
8. The business method set forth in claim 8 wherein said biological
materials are taken from the group consisting of adult stem cells,
umbilical cord blood, placental blood, DNA, peripheral blood, bone
marrow, adipose tissue and other adult tissue sources obtained from
said insured.
9. The business method set forth in claim 11 wherein said policy
holder is a corporation and said insured is an employee of said
corporation.
Insurance Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S.
Provisional application Ser. No. 60/710,376, filed Aug. 23, 2005,
which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
FIELD OF INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to including in Key-Person,
Term Life or Critical Illness Insurance policies to provide potential
life-saving and health enhancements in addition to the death benefits
covered under existing policies. The collection, processing and
cryo-preservation of adult stem cells taken from peripheral blood
or any other adult source can be used as a rider to insurance policies
or to the in-benefits for the sale of products or services. The
resulting method will substantially reduce the costs for insurance
companies as payouts for death benefits on key-person, term life
or critical illness policies will be markedly reduced as therapies
extend the life of the insured.
[0003] The present invention also relates to insurance policies
with high premiums which have a built-in stem cell storage clause
included within the policy. The clause can specify storage of stem
cells from the insured for any period of time, however, storage
of stems cells
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
[0004] Key-Person Insurance policies are sold to corporations,
businesses and individual clients for the purposes of obtaining
the services of a qualified replacement executive. In many instances,
the death benefits are used to buy out heirs or others who have
positions of equity in the company. Depending on the need for corporate
or individuals, the face value of these policies can run into many
millions of dollars.
[0005] Term life insurance policies can costs millions of dollars
in benefits, depending upon the policy. Most term life insurance
policies are in effect for 10 or 20 years, although policies of
shorter or longer duration are not uncommon.
[0006] The commissions paid to the selling agents can run into
hundreds of thousands of dollars for extremely large Key-Person
Life Insurance policies. Currently, all these policies pay upon
the death of the insured. Many companies now include critical illness
coverage where they will pay for many costly hospital procedures
such as bone marrow or stem cell transplants and organ replacements,
among other serious diseases. Obviously, any rider that can extend
life, enhance health, or mitigate protracted hospital stays would
be very important to the insurer, because such an approach may markedly
reduce the payout on the policy.
Brief Description of the Invention
[0007] It is known that stem cells can be expanded, programmed
or reprogrammed into other types of cells to treat diseases which
may currently be incurable. The present method is directed to the
inclusion of a rider or other clause in an insurance policy, and
is used to enhance the profitability of life or other insurance
policies of limited term (i.e. Key-person, term life including critical
illness insurance policies) where the extension of life or the reduction
in costs associated with the treatment of an insured is deemed desirable.
[0008] The insurance company actuaries could easily determine the
amount of the revenue the insurance company could derive for each
year of extended life. Obviously, the premiums would continue to
be paid if death benefits were delayed. With this unique business
method approach, the insurance company and possibly the agent (subject
to compliance regulations), could include the harvesting, processing
and long-term stem cell cryo-preservation as a part of the policy
or a rider to the policy.
[0009] The approach can apply to any stem cell which may be used
to extend the life of the insured, but will advantageously apply
commonly to adult stem cells from any adult source and in particular,
autologous (obtained from the insured) stem cells, which may be
obtained from the insured by any method well known in the art, purified
using standard cell purification techniques including flow cytometry,
cryopreserved, expanded, programmed and/or reprogrammed (the last
three steps being performed in any order), stored, restored and
used in an autologous treatment method. The stem cells may be used
to treat neurodegenerative diseases, numerous cancers, including
hematopoietic cancers, heart disorders, anemia, genetic defects
and to regenerate and replace depleted blood cells, among other
diseases and disorders.
[0010] The present invention provides a method for facilitating
the preservation of life-extending biological materials such as
stem cells from the insured. The well-established methods and apparatus
of the insurance industry provide a vehicle for financially supporting
and thereby promoting and advancing the preservation and storage
process. Moreover, the benefit could come at no or low cost to the
insurance industry-indeed, the approach is cash-flow positive as
it will extend the life of the insured, extend premium payments
to the insurance carrier and reduce the payout of the insurance
policy to the beneficiary. Thus, in the present method an insurance
company is provided with a reduction in cash benefits to be paid
to a beneficiary, a more favorable cash flow and a favorable marketing
concept to promote the sale of insurance policies. Other possible
benefits to the insurance company are described hereinafter.
[0011] The present invention is directed to a key-person, term
life or critical illness insurance policy having an ancillary service
which exists to extend the life of the insured. The invention contemplates
offering alone or as a service ancillary to the policy, the long-term
storage and preservation of cellular or other biological material
(whether tissue based, cellular or molecular, including DNA and
polypeptide) of a policy holder, a secondary insured or a third
party beneficiary for a fixed annual fee. Under the present method,
the preparation of the biological material for storage is performed
under standard procedures (generally, cryopreservation) well known
in the art and is paid for by the insurance company, incorporated
into the policy premium(s), or offered as a rider to the base policy.
The actual cost of the preparation in the present method is often
substantially less than the average savings to the insurance company
in the form of reduced payouts to beneficiaries of the insurance
policy and increased premium payments to the insurance carrier derived
from the policy holder.
[0012] After collection, testing and processing of biological material,
the cost of these initial preservation steps being preferably covered
by the insurance company (either through general cost savings or
from the cost of the base policy, or insurance policy rider), the
insurance company or policy holder will pay a periodic, e.g., annual,
fee to continue the storage and preservation of the biological material.
The periodic fee may be paid for directly by the insurance company
or may be drawn from the base insurance policy premium, from an
insurance policy rider or from the cash value of a policy or may
be paid directly to the preservation and storage company by the
policy holder. The cost of the preservation/storage fee will preferably
be a reasonable cost in order to induce the insurance company or
policy holder to continue to pay the storage costs. For example,
a fee of about $180-275 (typically, about $225) per year for processing
and preservation/storage by the third party would provide an acceptable
margin for the insurance company, especially given the savings to
be realized by employing the present method. The fee may be used
by the insurance company to pay for preservation and storage of
the biological material by a third party, or alternatively, the
insurance company may joint venture or split the fee with the storage
provider. In either case, a non-financial services company is paid
by the insurance company for the performance of non-financial services--for
the substantial benefit of the insurance company.
[0013] The value of the present method to the insurance company
is much greater than the cost to maintain/preserve the biological
material and greater even than the cost of therapy for the insured.
The resulting extension of life of the insured substantially reduces
the cost of policy payouts and increase policy premium payments
to the insurance carrier. The present invention therefore represents
a business approach which is heretofore nonexistent in the insurance
industry.
[0014] Another advantage of the present invention is that biological
material, in particular, adult stem cells, are becoming increasingly
valuable for medical/treatment purposes. During the period of the
insurance policy, the insurance company may maintain and store,
through a third party, a sample of stem cells which may prove therapeutically
beneficial for the extension of the insured's life. In certain instances,
as a condition pertinent to the base policy or policy rider, or
alternatively, if no such policy condition exists, then, after the
insured dies, an agreement can be made with the individual policy
holder's beneficiary(s) (e.g. a company, family member, or other
designated beneficiary(s) of an insured) to allow ownership of the
biological material to be: 1.) maintained by the beneficiary, with
the beneficiary then assuming responsibility for the annual stem
cell specimen storage payments, or 2.) the agreement can designate
that storage payments will cease to be paid and the stem cell stored
specimen can be transferred to a research facility for further medical
use and/or research, or 3.) payments to the third party stem cell
specimen storage company could be allowed to lapse, with the beneficiary(s)
relinquishing all rights to the stored stem cell specimen and ownership
of the stored specimen then reverting to the third party storage
company to dispose of in any manner it deems appropriate.
[0015] The present invention may be used by insurance companies
or related companies which provide insurance policies to corporations
and other policy holders and is not limited to the type of company
or individual providing the policy. For example, the present invention
may be used in key-person, term life or critical illness insurance
policies by providing for the storage and/or maintenance of biological
material (such as DNA, proteins and adult stem cells from any adult
source including from a mononuclear fraction of the blood of the
insured, which would contain stem cells, marrow cells, etc.) which
could be used in case the insured were to contract a debilitating
disease. This method would provide coverage ancillary to an insurance
policy such that the biological material could be used in the event
the insured (e.g. executive or other key person) was to be stricken.
This would allow the insurance company to reduce the likelihood
of a payout to the beneficiary of the insured inasmuch as the stem
cell preservation would likely be used therapeutically to extend
the life of the insured, in many cases, beyond the term of the policy.
The substantial reduction and/or delay in payout costs by the insurance
company would have a beneficial effect on the insurance company
cash-flow and profitability, without incurring substantial additional
costs. The insurance company could even charge additional fees for
the maintenance of the biological material, or alternatively, may
provide a basis to reduce the cost of the insurance policy to the
company or individual purchasing the policy for key employees.
[0016] The present method also derives benefit from the recognition
that the science of medicine and biology continues to advance, and
the present invention may provide individuals with an opportunity
to store biological material for the purpose of allowing future
science and developments to find a therapeutic use for that material.
[0017] The present invention contemplates that when the term policy
expires, the provision of the ancillary services terminate. At the
end of the insurance term, if desired, there may a retrieval and
delivery of the preserved and stored biological material under the
auspices of the ancillary service provider. In this event, the requester
is typically responsible for the costs of the retrieval and delivery
procedures. The transfer of the preserved materials generally, but
not necessarily, terminates the obligation of the insurance company
(and the policy holder) to make payments to the ancillary service
provider. Alternatively, the former insured policy holder, or the
beneficiary(s) of the policy upon the death of the insured may,
1.) Elect to maintain ownership of the stored stem cell specimen
by agreeing to continue paying annual stem cell specimen storage
costs to the third party storage company, or 2.) Choose to terminate
such ownership by deciding to not continue paying annual storage
fees to the third party storage company and may elect to donate
the stem cell specimen to a research facility for further medical
use and/or research, or 3.) Cease annual storage payment with the
third party storage company and, in so doing, relinquish all rights
to the stored specimen, with ownership of the stored specimen then
reverting to the storage company to dispose of in any manner it
deems appropriate.
Definitions
[0018] The following terms, in certain instances, shall be used
in describing the present invention.
[0019] BONE MARROW--The milky-like substance found in the center
of bones which produces all of the body's blood cells.
[0020] PERIPHERAL BLOOD--Blood circulating through the veins and
arteries.
[0021] STEM CELL--The vital cell produced in the bone marrow of
all vertebrates which is capable of reproducing itself or developing
into other types of blood cells and/or other adult stem and tissue
cells.
[0022] UMBILICAL CORD--The strand of tissue connecting the fetus
to the placenta. It contains the blood vessels that supply nutrients
to the fetus. During the gestation period nutrients are brought
to the baby and waste materials are disposed from the fetus through
the umbilical cord blood.
[0023] ANCILLARY SERVICES--Services provided by a non-insurance
company to an insured person or a third-party beneficiary of an
insurance policy to further the interests of the insured in taking
out the insurance policy. Typically, the services are to be performed
either continuously or periodically during the term of the insurance
policy or a portion thereof. Exemplarily, where the insurance policy
is Key-person or Term life or Critical Illness insurance, the ancillary
services may be the preservation and storage of biological material
such as adult stem cells from any adult source, umbilical cord blood,
placental blood, DNA, peripheral blood, bone marrow adipose and
other tissue sources for possible future use during the term of
the policy. Alternatively, the ancillary services may be directed
to the performance of preventive health measures, which are not
typically covered directly by conventional health insurance.
[0024] INITIALIZATION COSTS--Charges incurred to start the providing
of ancillary services. Where the ancillary services are the preservation
and storage of biological materials, the initialization costs cover
the collection of one or more specimens, the testing of the specimens,
for instance, for viability and purity, and the processing of the
specimens, for instance, by adding a cryopreservative and reducing
the temperatures of the specimens pursuant to a known schedule.
These initial services are performed in part by third-party service
providers including hospitals and testing and stem cell processing,
testing cryopreservation and storage laboratories. The initialization
costs may also include incidental expenses, for example, bookkeeping
and documentation costs incurred in setting up an account. These
costs are born by insured/beneficiary of the insurance policy or
the costs are incorporated into the cost of the base insurance policy
or policy rider, depending on the insurance policy. Preferably the
costs are incorporated into the costs of the insurance policy and
administered by the insurance company, to make it more likely that
payments always will be made.
[0025] BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS--Any organic matter useful for medical
and diagnostic purposes. Organic matter tends to decompose in naturally
occurring processes and thus requires special preservation to insure
viability at a later time. Biological materials include adult stem
cells from any adult source, umbilical cord blood, placental blood,
DNA, peripheral blood, bone marrow, adipose and other tissue sources,
but may also include tissue samples and organ parts or wholes of
any useful type. Other specific kinds of biological materials which
are possibly useful in carrying out the method of the present invention
include corneas, vascular tissues, skin, nasal, muscle, kidneys
and kidney tissues, liver, pancreas, testes, etc.
[0026] PRESERVATION AND/OR STORAGE COMPANY--A corporation whose
business includes preserving and storing biological materials.
[0027] POLICY HOLDER--A natural or legal person who establishes
a contract with an insurance company for a key-person, term life
or critical illness policy for receiving financial services in return
for one or more monetary payments to the insurance company. The
financial services are typically of a contingent nature and are
paid out or performed only if an event occurs as provided for in
the contract. In the present invention, such an event is typically
the death of the insured. The insured is the person insured by the
policy, who may or may not be the same person as the policy holder.
[0028] BENEFICIARY--A person designated by a holder of an insurance
policy as a recipient of benefits under the policy. A beneficiary
is typically a person who is not customarily named as a secondary
insured on an insurance policy and may even be someone unrelated
to the policy holder.
EXAMPLE
[0029] The cost of providing the stem cell collection, processing,
testing, cryopreservation service and 10-20 years of cryo-storage
could be in the range of $1,800 to $5,500 (i.e. more typically in
the range of $2,250 to $4,500 for 10-20 years) proportionately more
for longer term storage, including insurance carrier and third party
ancillary services stem cell processing, testing, cryopreservation
and storage company.
[0030] This invention will greatly enhance the sale of key-person,
term life and critical illness insurance and other policies. It
will now provide the stem cell technology benefits that can help
the insured during his or her lifetime in addition to coverage in
the event of death.
[0031] This will provide the insurance company much "goodwill"
and potential sale for the protection of the insured families.
[0032] As a matter of implementing the invention, immediately upon
the purchase of the policy, the insured would be given a certificate
covering the harvesting, processing, and cryo-preserving for 10-20
years (or possibly more). A phlebotomist or perfusionist or any
technician licensed to draw blood will be dispatched to the insured's
place of business, home, or a qualified lab or repository for the
drawing of a unit of blood.
[0033] The successful use of stem cells for treatment of numerous
diseases is constantly being reported by the media. Most people
are aware of the potential medical benefits of storing their own
(autologous) stem cells, which will be a perfect match for the donor.
The autologous use of the insured's stem cells would eliminate rejection
and graft vs. host disease at time of transplant to alleviate or
cure a medical problem for which stem cells might have application
as science and technology advance to the point of allowing potential
transplant of the stored stem cells.
[0034] It is the goal of this invention to assist in the education
of everyone as to the significant medical benefits to stem cell
perseveration.
[0035] This invention can benefit the insured and possibly the
population at large, since the value of stem cell preservation is
now being highly publicized.
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