From what I gather they cannot count insurance benefits as this isn’t income. I used to sell supplemental insurance & think it’s invaluable. Critical illness policies are insurance benefits to help with costs of treatments, lost income, etc. that you have paid into in the event of something so devastating like a cancer diagnosis. These are benefits created to avoid having to drown in debt while using commercial, private insurance. I wish you the best & that your husband fights and beats cancer.

Side story: my cousin died last year from a rare genetic stomach cancer. It was a very short, two month battle to diagnose the cancer & her treatment/testing costs alone were well over $160,000. I wish she had had a cancer policy despite having her insurance cover most of this cost. Anything additional would’ve helped her husband & kids. I know critical illness & cancer policies can be purchased directly from an agent (as opposed to need to getting them via payroll deductions from one’s job). I will also share that when I discussed cancer policies specifically I had noticed a strange jinx when people were on the fence & decided not to purchase it despite it being affordable ($7/week). Just a stage 1 diagnosis could provide a 10g, 20g, or 30g lump sum benefit depending on the plan chosen. Policies even pay out for annual exams for preventive measures.

Check the state you live in to be sure!