In this article, we wanted to take a moment and try and answer some of the most common questions we get from folks applying for life insurance after they have been prescribed Dilaudid or its generic form, Hydromorphone, to help treat moderate to severe pain.

Questions that will be directly addressed will include:

• Can I qualify for life insurance after I’ve been prescribed Dilaudid?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been prescribed Dilaudid?
• 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’ dive right in!

Can I qualify for life insurance after I’ve been prescribed Dilaudid?

Yes, individuals who have been prescribed Dilaudid in the past can and often will be able to qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. In fact, they may even be able to qualify for a no-medical exam life insurance policy at a Preferred rate (assuming that they are no longer taking it and the pre-existing medical condition that warranted its prescription has been resolved).

The only problem is this is not always the case, and even when it’s not, insurance companies are still going to be interested in “why” an individual was prescribed Dilaudid and whether or not they show any signs of having developed a “dependence” on it.

Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been prescribed Dilaudid?

Life insurance companies “care” that an individual has been prescribed Dilaudid because Dilaudid belongs to a class of powerful pain medications commonly referred to as opioid analgesics (AKA narcotics). Which are generally only used rather sparingly for individuals who are suffering from rather severe pain.

Pain…

That may be caused by a variety of different medical conditions or injuries which an insurance underwriter would certainly want to know about prior to making any kind of definitive decision about the outcome of one’s life insurance application.

But that’s not…

The only reason why a life insurance underwriter will be interested in the fact that an individual has been diagnosed with Dilaudid in the past. They’ll also be interested in the fact that an individual has been prescribed Dilaudid in the past because of the inherent addictive nature that Dilaudid and other medications of its kind have.

This is why prior to getting approved for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy, most (if not all) life insurance companies are going to want to know “why” an individual was prescribed Dilaudid as well as make sure that the applicant doesn’t appear to show any “signs” of a chemical dependence particularly if they just recently stopping using their Dilaudid.

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

Common questions you’ll likely be asked about your Dilaudid prescription may include:

• When were you first prescribed Dilaudid?
• Why were you prescribed Dilaudid?
• Who prescribed your Dilaudid?
• Do you still need to take medication to help you manage your pain? If so, when do you anticipate no longer needing to take your Dilaudid?
• Are you taking any other prescription pain medications?
• Have any of your pain medication prescriptions changed in any way over the past 12 months?
• How many different doctors have you seen in the past 12 months?
• Do you have any history of drug or alcohol abuse?
• Do you have any issues with your driver’s license?
• Have you ever been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor?
• Are you currently working now?
• In the past 12 months, have you applied for or received any form of disability benefits?

What rate (or price) can I qualify for?

Now for a lot of folks who may have been prescribed Dilaudid for a brief period of time when they were suffering from acute pain, this list of questions may seem intimidating or just a bit “overwhelming”.

“Which we totally understand!”

For folks like these, what you’re likely going to find is that assuming the medical condition that caused you to have to take Dilaudid in the first place has passed and isn’t some medical condition that could relapse, there will be a very good chance that whatever life insurance rate that you could have qualified for BEFORE being prescribed Dilaudid will be the same rate that you will be able to qualify for AFTER having been prescribed Dilaudid.

For example…

Let’s say that you suffered from some injury, and during that time, you were prescribed Dilaudid to help you manage the pain that resulted from it. Once you’ve recovered from this injury to a life insurance company, your Dilaudid prescription essentially won’t have any kind of “effect” on the outcome of your application.

That said, however…

If you’re currently taking Dilaudid at the time of your application, or you used your Dilaudid to help you treat pain that is the direct result of some kind of chronic pre-existing medical condition, what you may find is that you will either need to wait until you are no longer taking Dilaudid to be able to qualify for coverage or you may end up being denied entirely.

This is because most life insurance companies don’t like to approve an application while someone is currently undergoing serious treatment for a medical condition or injury like those who would be prescribed Dilaudid would be receiving, or they’re afraid to take on an inherent risk of insuring someone who may need to take Dilaudid indefinitely to maintain a “normal” pain-free lifestyle.

The good news is…

We here at IBUSA have lots of experience helping folks who have been prescribed Dilaudid in the past and know which life insurance companies tend to be more “lenient” in cases like these. This brings us to the last topic that we wanted to discuss here in this article, which is…

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

In our experience here at IBUSA, what we have found that works best for folks who have been diagnosed with a pre-existing medical condition where the “severity” of the condition is often “subjective” is for the applicant to make sure that they first find a true-life insurance professional who will work as an advocate for you. Such an agent who can help guide you through the application process and be perfectly “frank” with you about what options may or may not be possible for you.

From there…

You’ll also want to make sure that the very same agent you have chosen has access to dozens of different life insurance companies because, after all, it really doesn’t matter how “great” of a life insurance agent you might have if they don’t have access to the “best” life insurance policy for you! Now, does it?

Lastly, you’ll want to make sure that you’re completely honest with your life insurance agent prior to applying for coverage. By doing so, you will be helping him or her narrow down what options might be the “best.”

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

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. This way 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!