Most say they'll never get seriously ill

• Tweet

COLUMBUS, Ga., April 8 (UPI) -- Sixty-two percent of U.S. employees say it's not likely they or a family member will be diagnosed with a serious illness like cancer, a survey indicates.

The Aflac WorkForces Report, a survey of nearly 1,900 benefits decision-makers and more than 6,100 U.S. workers, also indicated 55 percent said they were not very or not at all likely to be diagnosed with a chronic illness, such as heart disease or diabetes.

Audrey Boone Tillman, executive vice president of corporate services at Aflac, a provider of supplemental illness and accident insurance, said Americans might be overly optimistic when it comes to thinking a serious illness or accident is a remote possibility.

The American Cancer Society, Cancer Facts & Figures 2012, said 1-in-3 women and 1-in-2 men will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives, and the National Safety Council, Injury Facts 2011 edition, says more than 38.9 million injuries occur in a year requiring medical treatment.

The American Heart Association, Heart Disease & Stroke Statistics 2012, said 1-in-6 U.S. deaths were caused by coronary heart disease, Tillman said.

Almost 60 percent don't have a financial plan to handle the unexpected, the survey indicated.

The survey conducted in January and February by Research Now. The first 3,151 worker interviews were nationally representative, while the remaining 3,000 interviews were conducted among the Top 30 designated market areas. No margin of error was provided.