OBTAINING MEDICAL INSURANCE DESPITE MEDICAL PROBLEMS
Henry Montag, CFP, CLTC | October 4th, 2009can a person aged 60-85 that has had various medical problems ranging from high blood pressure heart disease osteo-arthritis diabetes and even cancer still obtain life insurance or long term care care insurance?
The answer is yes depending on which insurance company an application is turned into.
Often times I hear the following questions from the 30-40% of the into one of the following 2 categories:
THOSE THAT HAVE ALREADY APPLIED FOR COVERAGE AND BEEN TURNED DOWN
THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN RELUCTANT TO APPLY FOR COVERAGE BECAUSE THEY THINK THEY WILL BE TURNED DOWN.
Here are some general rules Id strongly suggest you use if you want a successful outcome in your attempt to obtain the coverage you want.
Keep in mind that you only have one opportunity to make a good first impression. So if you at all suspect that your medical history might put you at a disadvantage in obtaining life or long term care coverage then make certain that you retain the services of an experienced Broker that represents several different Life Ins companies.
This is not the time to let a family friend or relative or even a general Ins agent get their experience while practicing or handling your medical underwriting negotiations for you . Remember an agent represents and works for 1 company and his obligations are to that company while a Broker represents several different companies and their allegiance is to you their client.
There are hundreds of Life Insurance companies and they all have different underwriting philosophies.
Some look more favorably at one specific type of illness than another . Some will Accept or Reject you while others will perhaps accept you with a rating. A rating is an increased premium based on your particular medical condition and it is subject to negotiations between your Agent/ Broker and the underwriter . The experience of the Broker representing you can result in anywhere from a 25 % to a 100% increase in premium There is no one company that’s good for all different medical situations some are better with one illness than another and a knowledgeable broker will submit your application to the most appropriate company.
If you’re Not sure about the qualifications of the person you’ve chosen to represent you ask him/her about their experience in negotiating successful outcomes with an underwriter . Ask about the number of years they’ve been in the business of underwriting that particular line of coverage. A person with 10 years of experience in life insurance that’s never written a Long Term Care application has 0 years of experience in that field. Ask how many applications they’ve written . The point is don’t let someone that’s inexperienced practice on you..
A truly experienced professional Broker will collect all pertinent facts both good and bad and then use their skills and an underwriting letter to properly accentuate the positives while providing all the information. He /she will avoid any unpleasant surprises such as an increase in premium or a denial of coverage by communicating with the underwriter thereby knowing what to expect before ever submitting a formal application. In some cases it may even be necessary to deal directly with the Medical Director of the Insurance Company.
Once we know the medical facts as well as the lifestyle of the Insd , Family history , the philosophy , Quality Rating and price of the Insurance company then and only then can we first properly select the correct Insurance Carrier. Anything short of this procedure will result in a missed opportunity to properly serve our client.
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Tags: health care, health coverage, health insurance, henry montag, life insurance, medical insurance
About the Author: Henry Montag is an Independent Certified Financial Planner as well as a CLTC. He’s been in practice since 1976 with offices on Long Island, New York. He is a contributing writer for The Moneypaper, a national financial publication, been my sourced by Investors business Daily, Long Island Business News, Newsday, Wall St Journal, The Moneypaper,Investment News, Senior Lifestyles and has held insurance and securities licenses for over thirty years.
