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 they have been prescribed Acyclovir, Sitavig, or Zovirax to treat a variety of pre-existing medical conditions, including:

• Cold sores (caused by herpes simplex),
• Shingles (caused by herpes zoster),
• Chickenpox,

As well as genital herpes as well.

Questions that will be addressed will include:

• Can I qualify for life insurance after I’ve been prescribed Acyclovir, Sitavig, or Zovirax?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been prescribed Acyclovir, Sitavig, or Zovirax?
• What kind of information will the insurance companies ask me or be interested in?
• What rate (or price) can I qualify for?
• What can I do to help ensure that 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 prescribed Acyclovir, Sitavig, or Zovirax?

One thing we can tell you for sure is that if you’ve been prescribed Acyclovir in the past or are currently taking it, there is a very good chance that you’ll be able to qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. This is because typically, Acyclovir isn’t a medication used to treat that many “serious” medical conditions.

Sure…

Nobody wants to contract the herpes virus, and anyone who has ever suffered through a bout of shingles will say it’s not something that they would on their worst enemy, but, at the end of the day, none of these conditions are “serious” enough for most top rated Life insurance companies to get too worked up about! In fact, it‘s safe to say that some folks may even be able to qualify for a no-medical exam life insurance policy at a Preferred rate!

That is, of course…

If the “outbreak” of the herpes virus is merely that and not an indication that an individual may have a compromised immune system that is causing them to develop infections or “outbreaks” that a “normal” healthy individual wouldn’t. For this reason, before being able to decide on your life insurance application, you may be asked some additional questions about “why” you’ve been prescribed Acyclovir.

Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been prescribed Acyclovir, Sitavig, or Zovirax?

When prescribed all by itself, Acyclovir isn’t a medication that causes a life insurance underwriter to get too nervous. That said, however, they will be looking for contributing factors that, in combination with having been prescribed Acyclovir, could indicate a more “serious” medical condition. This is why it’s not all that uncommon for an insurance company to want to know a few additional facts about your Acyclovir prescription before making any decisions about your application.

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

The first question that a life insurance underwriter might ask you with regard to your Acyclovir prescription will probably be…

“Why have you been prescribed Acyclovir?”

From there, they may choose to ask you some additional questions like:

• When were you first prescribed Acyclovir?
• And maybe, how well does Acyclovir help you manage your symptoms?

However, in most cases, most life insurance underwriters aren’t really going to care all that much that you have been prescribed Acyclovir unless it’s primarily being used to help you manage symptoms of another, perhaps more serious, medical condition.

You see…

Acyclovir is often prescribed to folks who are suffering from symptoms associated with a herpes breakout due to a compromised immune system. A compromised immune system that could be the result of:

• Stress,
• Exhaustion,
• Poor nutrition,
• Smoking,
• Excessive alcohol consumption,
• Use of certain medications,
• And disease.

And when it comes to folks suffering from a compromised immune system that is a result of excessive alcohol, use of certain medications and/or the presence of disease, insurance companies are suddenly going to take a great interest in the fact that you have been prescribed Acyclovir.

Not because…

You’ve been prescribed this medication rather because they want to make sure you aren’t suffering from some other “type” of a pre-existing medical condition, which requires the need for Acyclovir. 

This is why if it appears that your need for Acyclovir is related to some other “type” of medical condition, that “condition” will usually become the main focus of the insurance underwriter.  This brings us to our next topic, which is…

What rate (or price) can I qualify for?

In our experiences here at IBUSA what we have found is that provided you’re not currently experiencing an “active” Shingles outbreak, most applicants applying for life insurance while taking Acyclovir can and often will be able to qualify for a Preferred or Preferred Plus rate (provided that they would otherwise be able to qualify for such a rate).

Now…

For those who are currently suffering from Shingles, we should point out that once the “outbreak” is resolved, they too can and often will be able to qualify for a Preferred rate as well; only in most cases will the insurance company may require them to wait until their Shingles is healed/cured prior to approving their application.

Which leaves us…

Only those who are using Acyclovir as a supplemental medication to help them treat symptoms associated with a compromised immune system. 

In cases like these, the underlying medical condition that is causing the applicant to suffer from a compromised immune system will take “center stage” during the application process and will most likely be the main determinant with regard to the outcome of their life insurance application.

In some cases…

The cause of the “compromised” immune system may not be a permanent or serious condition (overwork, not enough sleep, sick from the flu, etc.…), in which case, once resolved, they may also be able to qualify for a Preferred rate. In other situations where diseases such as cancer or AIDS are causing the problem, qualifying for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy may prove impossible for the time being.

This brings us to the last topic that we wanted to discuss here today, which is…

What can I do to help ensure that I get the “best life insurance” for me?

In our experience here at IBUSA, it really doesn’t matter whether or not you’ve been diagnosed with a serious pre-existing medical condition or you’re in perfect health; make sure that you choose a great life insurance agent who has access to a ton of different life insurance products is almost always your best bet in being able for find the “best” life insurance policy that you can qualify for.

This is because…

If you have a great agent, he or she is going to be able to not only help guide you towards the best “type” of life insurance policy that is going to meet your needs but he or she will also be able to advise you on “which” life insurance company is going to be the “best” for you.

This latter part is…

Particularly important because sometimes some rather “strange” thing could be what ultimately has the greatest effect on the outcome of your life insurance application. And by “strange,” we mean things like your:

• Families medical history,
• Driving record,
• Hobbies,
• Travel Destinations,
• Occupation,
• Etc…

And this is where having a lot of options to choose from can come in handy because now you don’t have to put all your trust and faith into just one or two different options.

The good news is…

Here at IBUSA, we like to think that we only hire the best, and we work very hard and make sure that our agents have dozens of options to choose from. This way, when it comes time to help any of our clients, we’re sure to have something that meets their needs.

Now, will we be able to help out everyone who has been prescribed Acyclovir?

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 as well 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 you CAN qualify for.

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