Will my Policy Application be Denied if I Have a Non-terminal Chronic Illness?

You love your family, but how would they survive if you passed away? Well, that is why you are looking into securing a term life insurance policy. It just so happens, though, that you are one of the millions of Americans who is dealing with a chronic life-long illness. It may concern you to think about how you will get a policy to cover your family at all, or even for a reasonable enough price when defining beneficiaries.

The answer to this question all depends upon the determination of when an actuary that determines likely death dates for applicants thinks you will pass away. If you are applying for coverage, but have diabetes that you keep under control this may extend your projected lifespan well past the term of your life insurance policy. Thus, the truth is that the term life insurance policy may be made available to you. Yet, if the actuaries determine that you are likely to pass away sometime after the policy expires, then you may just pay a higher rate just in case.

On the other hand, if you have a chronic illness that sees the most deaths at age thirty eight, and you are thirty eight, they may just provide you a policy at an extremely high rate of coverage, or deny you in that case. The idea is that if you have a chronic illness, then you are likely just to pay higher rates for the premium than you would as compared to someone who has no chronic illness. Though, it is worth mentioning while on the topic, that even those with a terminal illness are not necessarily going to be turned down for a term life insurance policy.

Demystifying Insurance Rates

The truth of the matter is that every applicant is evaluated based upon their age, personal health history, family health history, biological sex, line of work, leisure time activities, income level, types of insurance you are seeking, and the reason you want insurance. Males may die younger than females, those who work as firefighters have riskier jobs than customer service agents, and thus such factors will be weighed to determine your rates. It is true that there are statistics that pretty much will define the rates, based upon all of these factors.

If you have a chronic illness, but are getting a policy because you have a young family, it is more of a normal reason to get insurance. If, however, you suddenly are seeking out term life insurance when your twins are sixteen it may raise flags and the underwriters may pay more attention to the application. They may look at your health more carefully to rule out the possibility that your condition has taken a turn for the worst. They may be vigilant about checking you for terminal illness as well.

Trust the Process

While you will never have a policy that is free of charge, there are ways to improve your rates. For starters, do not just accept the first term life insurance policy that comes along. It may take time for you to gather the courage to apply for coverage given your chronic illness, but know that you can get reasonable rates too. They may be higher than a perfectly healthy person, but the object is to make sure that your family is properly covered in case that you pass away. Your policy will not necessarily be denied if you have a chronic but non-terminal illness. It may take more leg work on your part to find affordable policies. Shop around for good deals.

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