Life Insurance for People With Congestive Heart Failure

Have you been diagnosed with congestive heart failure?  It can make applying for life insurance coverage becomes a bit difficult.

You may be able to get it approved, however, insurance companies will be concerned about offering you coverage because of your potentially serious medical condition.

However, it is still very possible to get insured with congestive heart failure. It doesn’t mean your heart has failed and stopped working, or you wouldn’t be reading this information.  It simply means it isn’t working as efficiently as it once did.

That being said, CHF, along with other heart diseases like heart attacks, congenital heart disease, and coronary heart disease, is the Number One cause of death of adults in the country.  This includes both men and women.

Since this is the case, trying to get life insurance approved can be a longer process than it would normally take.  This is because of additional underwriting requirements such as medical records having to be ordered.  If the doctor’s office is slow in getting medical records to the insurance company, it will just take longer to get approved.

This means the SOONER you APPLY for coverage, the sooner the process will get started. You can complete our brief form on this page to get the ball rolling.

If the condition is severe then your type of coverage will be impacted. First off let’s look at some underwriting guidelines for life insurance on how they relate to congestive heart failure. Hopefully, this gives you an idea of what is ahead of your application.

 

Understanding Congestive Heart Failure

Firstly, it’s essential to understand that congestive heart failure doesn’t mean your heart has completely stopped working. Instead, it indicates that your heart is not functioning as efficiently as it should. CHF, along with other heart diseases such as heart attacks, congenital heart disease, and coronary heart disease, ranks as the number one cause of death among adults in the country, affecting both men and women.

The Complexities of Obtaining Life Insurance with CHF

Due to the gravity of heart-related diseases, the process of securing life insurance with CHF can be more prolonged than for individuals with no underlying health conditions. This is primarily because additional underwriting requirements come into play, including the need to obtain detailed medical records. The speed at which you can secure approval depends on the efficiency of your doctor’s office in providing these records to the insurance company.

Taking Action: Applying for Life Insurance

To expedite the process, it is crucial to apply for coverage as soon as possible. The sooner you initiate the application process, the quicker the underwriting will begin. You can start by completing a brief form to get the ball rolling.

Life Insurance Underwriting for Congestive Heart Failure

Your agent, knowing you have CHF, will ask you some pre-qualifying questions when you first talk with them. Listed below are a few of them:

• When was your congestive heart failure diagnosed?

• Did any health issues contribute to your diagnosis of congestive heart failure?

• Do you have high blood pressure or hypertension?

• What tests have you done to evaluate your condition?

• Do you have high cholesterol?

• Is there any history in your family of heart disease or death in the family due to heart conditions?

• Tobacco user?

• Are you prescribed any medicine to help with your issues?

Even though you might take some medications, beta-blockers, inhibitors, or nitrates, for your condition, you still might be insurable as long as you don’t take multiples of each and have other issues that coincide with CHF.

When it comes to life insurance underwriting, the more information you can give the better. If your application doesn’t clearly describe your condition, your chances of a bad rating or rejection go way up. Make sure to fully answer all the application questions plus give any other details you think are important.

 

Life Insurance Quotes for People With Congestive Heart Failure

Congestive heart failure has a wide range of different severity levels. Your life insurance quote will depend on how serious your health issues are because of your condition. Insurance companies also do not accept applicants who have recently been diagnosed with congestive heart failure because they want some time to see how the condition develops.

To avoid rejections and get the best rate, it’s best to put off an application for twelve months after diagnosis. From there, your rate will depend on your condition plus your overall health.

It is even possible that you may have CHF and not even realize it because the symptoms usually don’t show up initially.  The reason they don’t is because your body and your heart can mask it at first, which is called compensation.  The symptoms will start showing up when the heart just can’t pump enough blood to the rest of your body.

Understanding Rating Classes

Insurance companies typically categorize applicants into rating classes based on their health and medical history. These are some standard rating classes that most life insurance companies use, though every carrier determines how you’d fall into each category, I’ll explain your chances with each class.

• Preferred Plus:  Generally impossible. Congestive heart failure is too serious a condition and carries too many health risks for applicants to receive the best possible insurance rating.

• Preferred:  Very difficult but not impossible. If your congestive heart failure has only mild health symptoms and you are in great health, you could get a preferred rating.

• Standard:  The likely best rating for most applicants. Applicants who only started having heart failure at 60 or older, are in good health, and have waited at least a year after being diagnosed to apply can get a standard rating.

• Table Rating (substandard):  Many of you will end up in this class due to the health issue.

• Declines: Most applications within 3 to 6 months of a diagnosis of congestive heart failure.  And other persons who deal with many health issues combined with the history of health.

Exploring Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance

If there is a situation where you do find that due to your medical condition, you are declined for traditional life insurance, then our next recommendation is to look at a guaranteed issue life insurance policy.  This type of life insurance application only asks a few health questions, not to decline your application but to determine how much and when the death benefit would be paid out.

Improving Your Chances

As you are thinking about applying for life insurance, you may also try to improve your chances of getting the best rate by doing some of the following:

• Lower your sodium intake

• Lower your cholesterol

• Stop smoking

• Exercise more often

• Eat a healthier diet

• Keep all other medical conditions under control by responsibly taking medications

• Continue with proper medical care by your medical professionals

These recommendations are common sense, and your doctor may have other activities and guidelines.  Even though there isn’t a cure for congestive heart failure, the above lifestyle choices can minimize the degree of your heart deterioration, and allow you to get a lower life insurance rate.

Other Considerations When Applying for Life Insurance

This is common sense, but if you haven’t thought about it, now is the time to be thinking about how much death benefit you are looking to buy.  Since you have a serious medical condition, you might not be able to afford what you want, so be realistic in also considering how much money you have to budget for a monthly life insurance payment.

Also, how long a period will you need life insurance?  Although typically no one knows for sure when their beneficiary might be filing a claim on the policy, you will need to consider whether to buy a term life insurance plan or a permanent life insurance plan.  We can help you with making this decision.

Lastly, it would be a good idea not to drop or cancel any life insurance policy you presently own.  As you get older, the premiums increase.  So if you are comparing an old policy vs a new policy, the rates on the new policy will probably be higher than what you are paying now.

 

Congestive Heart Failure Life Insurance Case Studies

It’s important to understand how filling out the application can hinder or help your approval percentage. Below are instances of how to and how not to go through the process.

Case Study: Female, 63-year-old, non-smoker, diagnosed with congestive heart failure at age 61, taking Beta Blockers and Ace Inhibitors, no other health issues.

This applicant was only showing mild signs of congestive heart failure and was otherwise in very good health. She had no other health issues and no family history of heart disease. However, because of her condition, she was only receiving expensive, rated life insurance offers. We advised her to request an EKG to prove that her condition was under control. With this extra information, an insurance company gave her a much less expensive standard policy.

Case Study #2:  Male, 54-year-old, diagnosed with congestive heart failure at 51, father died young from heart disease, former smoker, improved health and weight since the diagnosis

This applicant had a very poor lifestyle before his heart failure diagnosis. He was smoking, overweight, and had high blood pressure. This combined with his family history of heart disease led to him being rejected from all his life insurance applications. However, since his diagnosis, this applicant dramatically improved his lifestyle. He lost a good deal of weight and quit smoking which made his condition much less severe. Since his health had improved we let him know it would be smart to get a written referral from his doctor stating how much healthier he is now. By reapplying with this extra certification, this applicant was able to receive a rated policy despite his relatively risky profile.

While congestive heart failure is quite serious, it is not enough to prevent you from taking out life insurance. You just need to handle your application well. To make sure the process goes smoothly, it helps to work with expert brokers who understand this condition.

Conclusion

Securing life insurance with a diagnosis of congestive heart failure (CHF) is challenging, yet attainable with the right approach. This article meticulously guides individuals through the intricate application process, emphasizing the importance of early application and comprehensive medical disclosure. It offers a detailed view of the underwriting process, rating classes, and the potential impact of lifestyle changes and medical compliance on securing a favorable policy. Utilizing case studies, the piece underscores the transformative impact of proactive health management and strategic application preparation.

While acknowledging the hurdles posed by CHF, the article illuminates a path forward, fostering empowerment and clarity for applicants. With expert guidance and a committed approach to health improvement, individuals with CHF can navigate the life insurance landscape more confidently, increasing their chances of successful coverage.