The purchase of insurance is a basic consideration in any good estate plan. The types of insurance important in planning can be separated into several areas: life insurance, health insurance, disability income insurance and long-term care insurance. Insurance equals protection from the unexpected and undesirable occurrences in life to which everyone is subject. A problem arises in trying to balance the amount of protection you would like with the amount of protection you can afford. As a result, insurance planning is a very individual matter. It is up to you to determine the balance between need and cost that best suits your circumstances.