Time to find a good life insurance policy to look after your loved ones? Sometimes, it can be a difficult task to find life insurance for bad health if you look in the wrong places or choose the wrong policy type. In this article we are going to get you the inside scoop on how to get the best insurance policy you can qualify for even with multiple pre-existing health problems.
Term Life Insurance For Bad Health
What is the goal you are trying to accomplish with your life insurance policy? Are you planning for your inevitable final day or do you just need something for a few years, in case you pass unexpectedly due to your health problems?
The reason I ask, temporary life insurance or Term Life Insurance is best for those who need financial protection for a defined number of years. The term may be 5, 10, 20 or even 30 years. These are the lowest cost policies but are harder to qualify for. For someone with bad health needing life insurance, you will be rated up.
How much?
This depends. How “bad” is your health, according to the insurance company’s review, combined with your age at application will determine how much the cost per month will be. Each insurance company will use their own formula to underwrite or evaluate your application. Pricing can be wildly different from one to another based on the pre-existing condition(s) you have. Some insurers may even decline you do to your overall health profile.
For someone who may need term life insurance with bad health, we often send an anonymous test case to carriers we work with to see who would give you a good offer. For example, if you have diabetic issues, we often send requests for a pre qualification to Foresters Financial. They tend to be more “liberal” for diabetes in general. For asthma issues, we see favor with Banner Life and/or Cincinnati Life. If we receive an “offer” you like, then we make an official application to that carrier so they can officially “underwrite” your case.
If you happen to be on disability, need life insurance and have bad health, I would suggest the next option below.
Permanent Life Insurance For Bad Health
For those who need permanent life insurance and easier qualification, Whole Life Insurance is going to be your best bet. While there are other permanent life insurance types, I’m not going to complicate this article and talk about other permanent life insurance products like Indexed Universal Life that are more complicated in nature. Give us a call if you would like more information.
Whole life insurance policies have more relaxed underwriting standards than term life. They are the old stalwart and sometimes, the only alternative for someone who needs life insurance with bad health issues. These policies often accept conditions that term life insurance will “rate up” or even decline. With whole life insurance, your premium will never go up nor will the benefits ever go down.
It is not hard to find companies that offer whole life without a medical exam, even with bad health. With that said, sometimes it is best to actually to apply for a policy that does require a paramedical exam. This is especially true if your bloodwork is pretty good yet you are medically diagnosed with some health issues. The exam is arranged for you. Either your broker/agent or the insurance company will send a nurse to your home or office at a time of your choosing. There is no cost to you for this.
For most people, who need less than $50,000 in whole life insurance, I suggest a no exam whole life policy. We’ve been able to get people to age 90 insured for first day, lifetime protection even with pre-existing conditions like heart attack, diabetic neuropathy, stroke, previous cancer history, COPD, chronic asthma, kidney disease and even congestive heart failure (CHF). Now, if you are lying in a hospital bed, we’ll have to see what we can do other than put you on a guaranteed issue whole life policy. These policies cover people with very poor health as they are designed for high risk life insurance applicants.
The Takehome
Having some health problems is not going to stop you from obtaining life insurance. This is not to say that there won’t be any challenges to overcome. All life insurance companies underwrite their policies different. While some companies would not make a good offer to you, there may be others who would offer you better coverage with a lower price. Just be sure you are working with people who know what they are doing and have access to a good dozen or more companies…to find the right policies for your health struggles. Let us know if we can be of any further help. 269-244-3420