In this article, we wanted to take a moment to answer some of the most common questions we get from folks applying for life insurance after being diagnosed as legally blind.

Questions that will be directly addressed will include:

• Can I qualify for life insurance after I’ve been diagnosed as legally blind?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been diagnosed as legally blind?
• What kind of information will the insurance companies ask me or be interested in?
• What rate (or price) can I qualify for?
• How can I help ensure I get the “best life insurance” for me?

So, without further ado, let’s dive right in!

Can I qualify for life insurance after I’ve been diagnosed as legally blind?

Yes, individuals who have been diagnosed as legally blind can and often will qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. Some folks may even be able to qualify for several of the Best Medical Exam Life Insurance Policies available at a Preferred rate!

However, blind applicants could face some rather “unique” challenges when applying for a traditional term or whole life insurance that might not play a significant role in another “non-visually” challenged applicant.

Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been diagnosed as legally blind?

There are three main reasons why most top-rated life insurance companies will an individual have been diagnosed as legally blind.

Reason #1.

Life insurance companies are going to want to know whether or not your “blindness” is a symptom of some other kind of pre-existing medical condition such as:

• Glaucoma,
• Macular degeneration,
• Cataracts,
• Optic Neuritis,
• Tumors,
• Retinitis pigmentosa,
• Etc, etc…

Or whether it was something you were born with or just an unfortunate side effect of aging.

Reason #2.

If you were “blinded” by some accident, most life insurance companies (if not all) are going to want to know “how” this happened so that they can be sure that this horrific accident that caused you to go blind isn’t likely to happen to you again!

Reason #3.

Going blind is a traumatic event and one that not everyone can easily adjust to. This is why, if you were not born blind, most (if not all) life insurance companies would want to make sure that you are successfully adjusting to your new reality by not immediately approving your life insurance application until you have been considered “legally blind” for a minimum of one year.

Which is why, before being approved for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy, most life insurance companies (if not all) will want to ask you a series of medical questions before making any decision about your life insurance application.

What kind of information will the insurance companies ask me or be interested in?

• When were you officially diagnosed as “legally blind”?
• Do you know what caused you to go blind?
  • Congenital disability?
  • A symptom of some other illness?
  • Accident?
• Is there any chance you might regain your sight?
• Have you been diagnosed with any other pre-existing medical conditions?
• Are you currently working now?
• In the past 12 months, have you applied for or received any disability benefits?

Now, we’ll be the first to admit that there are probably a million other questions that one might want to ask to fully understand “why” someone has been diagnosed as legally blind. Still, it’s important to remember that here at IBUSA, we’re not medical professionals or doctors.

And since…

We’re not trying to diagnose or treat any illness. All we have to worry about is “how” a life insurance company is likely to “view” a life insurance application from a particular applicant. This is why we only need to know the answers to the questions listed above to get a “reasonable” understanding of what “kind” of life insurance policy you might be able to qualify for and what “rate” you might be given. This brings us to our next topic, which is…

What rate (or price) can I qualify for?

Understanding what “rate” an individual will be able to qualify for after they have been determined “legally blind” can be a bit tricky. This is because if having become “blind” is a horrible symptom of some other pre-existing medical condition, in most cases, that pre-existing medical condition will be the primary determinant guiding the “outcome” of your life insurance application!

In cases like these, without knowing “why” you have gone blind, we really won’t have any idea what kind of rate you might be able to qualify for.

Now, as for those…

Who have either gone “blind” due to some accident or due to a “natural cause” related to aging; what we have found to be true (most of the time) is that an individual will be considered “eligible” for coverage once a minimum of one year has transpired. From there, one’s life insurance rate will usually be determined by how “well” they adapt to their circumstances, with the “best” cases being eligible for a Preferred Plus.

The only problem…

We’ll usually encounter at this point that once an individual has been diagnosed as legally blind, their work status tends to change for apparent reasons. Unfortunately, “non-health” related issues can come into play when determining how much life insurance an individual can qualify for is their current pay status.

As a result, some individuals may find it challenging to qualify for huge life insurance policies once diagnosed as legally blind if this has affected their income levels. Still, it’s just one of the many things our experts here at IBUSA are always mindful of. This brings us to the last topic that we wanted to take a moment and discuss with you here today, which is…

How can I help ensure I get the “best life insurance” for me?

In our experience here at IBUSA, we have found that usually, the folks who seem to see the “best” life insurance policy for them are those that:

• Take their time reviewing their options.
• Ask a lot of questions.

And seek out those life insurance agents who not only have experience working with individuals who have been diagnosed with a wide variety of pre-existing medical conditions but also have access to dozens of different life insurance companies so that when it comes time to help a more “challenging” case, they don’t have to rely on a…

“One size fits all approach!”

The good news is that this is precisely what you’ll find here at IBUSA!

Now, will we be able to help out everyone who has been previously diagnosed as Legally Blind?

No, probably not. But what we can tell you is that in addition to offering a wide variety of different term and whole life insurance policies, IBUSA has also worked very hard to establish relationships with many of the Best Final Expense Insurance Companies so that if someone isn’t able to qualify for a traditional life insurance policy, chances are there may be some other “type” of product that they CAN qualify for.

So, if you’re ready to explore your options, call us!