Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an inflammatory lung disease that causes obstructed airflow from the lungs. If you’re one of the nearly 16 million adults in the U.S. living with COPD, you’ll have specific considerations to keep in mind when looking for life insurance due to your increased risk level in the eyes of life insurance carriers. Let’s walk through the ways in which having COPD may affect your life insurance rates and eligibility so you can better understand the options available to you.
How Having COPD Affects Life Insurance Rates and Eligibility
Having COPD can affect your life insurance rates and your eligibility for certain types of coverage. Individuals with COPD may face higher life insurance premiums due to the higher chance of premature death associated with the condition. Because carriers will view people with COPD as riskier to insure, they’ll typically assign them higher rates.
The cause, severity, and management of your COPD, as well as overall health and lifestyle factors, will all be factored into your eligibility and the cost of your premiums. For example, the most common cause of COPD is smoking. If your COPD is caused by smoking, the life insurance carrier will likely assign you a more expensive rate or may deny you coverage altogether. If your COPD has progressed significantly or is not being managed appropriately, you may have difficulty qualifying for traditional life insurance.
Best Life Insurance Options for People With COPD
The right type of life insurance for people with COPD will depend on the severity of your condition. For example, someone with only mild COPD symptoms who doesn’t rely on supplemental oxygen may still be able to qualify for traditional term life insurance or permanent life insurance. However, if you have severe COPD, you’re unlikely to qualify for traditional life insurance. In this case, you can explore final expense insurance, including guaranteed issue or simplified issue coverage, as these policies typically have limited or no medical exam requirements. Let’s walk through the different final expense policy types and their features.
Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance: This type of policy is just as the name implies: guaranteed. If you’re between the ages of 45-85, you can’t be denied guaranteed issue coverage. You also will not need to undergo a medical exam or answer questions about your health status or history, making it a good option for people with pre-existing conditions like COPD.
Simplified Issue Life Insurance: While simplified issue coverage isn’t guaranteed, it has far more lenient eligibility requirements than traditional life insurance. Simplified issue policies typically require a brief health questionnaire as part of the application, but they do not require a medical exam.
Critical Illness Life Insurance: Critical illness life insurance is a type of policy that provides a lump sum payment if the policyholder is diagnosed with a serious illness covered by the policy. This coverage typically includes illnesses such as cancer, heart attack, stroke, and organ failure. This type of coverage can help provide additional peace of mind if you’re facing the prospect of future health complications as a result of your COPD. Just like guaranteed issue and simplified issue life insurance, critical illness policies do not require a medical exam to qualify.
Let SelectQuote Help You Find the Right Life Insurance for Your Situation
Looking for life insurance with COPD may feel overwhelming and discouraging, but SelectQuote is here to help. Our experienced licensed insurance agents will take the time to learn about your specific needs and situation and then use that information to gather different life insurance quotes on your behalf. We’ll take the guesswork out of the process to help you find the right coverage for you so you can focus on your family and your health.
