Life Insurance for Symbicort users.

In this article, we wanted to take a moment and answer some of the most common questions we get from folks applying for life insurance after they have been prescribed Symbicort or its generic form Budesonide/Formoterol to help treat or prevent breathing difficulties most commonly associated with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) or Asthma.

Questions that will be directly addressed will include:

• Can I qualify for life insurance after I’ve been prescribed Symbicort?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been prescribed Symbicort?
• 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 Symbicort?

Yes, individuals can and often will qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. In fact, in some cases, they may even be able to qualify for a Preferred rate! The problem is that for a vast majority of individuals, this will not be the case, and having been prescribed Spiriva in the past will most likely complicate one’s life insurance application right from the start.

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

Life insurance companies “care” that you have been prescribed Symbicort because its “presence” on a prescription database check provides them with immediate insight on your overall health. You see, Symbicort isn’t a medication that would be commonly prescribed to someone who suffers from the “occasional” breath difficulties that one might associate with seasonal allergies or a common cold.

Which means that…

By having been prescribed Symbicort in the past, the insurance companies know that they’re going to ask you a few questions about “why” you’ve been prescribed Spiriva and how “serious” the underlying pre-existing medical condition was or is that’s being treated.

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

The first thing that most (if not all) life insurance companies are going to want to know about your Albuterol prescription is…

 “Why have you been prescribed Symbicort?”

From there, they’ll want to narrow down exactly how “serious” your condition might be so that they can get an accurate idea about what “kind” of risk you may pose to them, the insurance company.

Common questions for those suffering from asthma may include:

• When were you first diagnosed with asthma?
• Is Symbicort the only medication that you’re using to treat your asthma?
• How often do you take medications to treat your asthma?
• In the past 12 months, have any of the medications that you use changed in any way?
• When was the last time you suffered from an asthma attack?
• In the past 12 months, how many asthma attacks have you suffered from?
• Have you ever needed to be hospitalized due to an asthma attack?
• Are there certain environmental “triggers” that cause you to suffer from asthma attacks?
• In the past 12 months, have you used any tobacco or nicotine products?
• Are you currently working now?
• In the past 12 months, have you applied for or received any form of disability benefits?

Common questions for those suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD):

• When were you first diagnosed with COPD?
• Because COPD is a term often used to describe a wide variety of lung diseases, have you also been given a more specific diagnosis?
• Do you know what may have caused you to develop COPD?
• Aside from Spiriva, are there any other prescription medications that you’re using to treat your COPD?
• How often do you take your Symbicort?
• Are you also receiving oxygen in addition to taking Symbicort?
• In the past 12 months, have any of the medications that you use changed in any way?
• Have you ever needed to be hospitalized due to your COPD?
• In the past 12 months, have you used any tobacco or nicotine products?
• 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?

Individuals who have been prescribed Symbicort in the past will generally find that they will still be eligible for a wide range of rates based primarily on the underlying pre-existing medical condition which caused them to be prescribed Spiriva in the first place. From there, the “severity” of the underlying condition will then be examined to “fine” tune what rate you may qualify for.

That being said, however…

What we can tell you is that if you’ve been prescribed Spiriva to treat asthma, in theory, you may be able to qualify for a Preferred rate provided that you:

• Are not currently using your Symbicort on a daily basis,
• Have never been hospitalized due to your asthma (some carriers will overlook this based on the original diagnosis and the number of years that have passed since your last hospitalization).

And by all accounts, they seem to have what most medical professionals would consider a “mild” case of asthma.

Now for those…

Who may be using medication(s) daily to treat their asthma or may have been hospitalized within the past year or two; not all hope is lost because there is a very good chance that these individuals may still be able to qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. Heck, they may even be able to qualify at a Standard or “Normal” rate. The only problem is that they are going to need to be much more “selective” with whom they decide to apply for coverage.

As for those…

Who are using their Spiriva to treat their COPD, what you’re generally going to find is that most (if not all) life insurance companies are pretty much going to automatically assume that you represent a “higher risk,” which is why it is unlikely that you will be able to qualify for a Preferred or Standard rate. As a result, during your search for life insurance, you will want to focus on companies that will provide you with the “highest” or “most affordable” table rate.

The good news is that we here at IBUSA have plenty of experience helping folks who have been diagnosed with a pre-existing medical condition like asthma and/or COPD, so finding “those life insurance companies” isn’t all that difficult!

Lastly… 

Since we have gone over quite a few topics here in this article, we did want to take a moment and specifically discuss how a life insurance company will view any tobacco use combined with a diagnosis of asthma or COPD. Because the truth is, in most (if not all) cases, continued use of tobacco after one of these diagnoses will typically cause your life insurance application to be immediately denied.

Which is why…

Suppose you have been diagnosed with either asthma or COPD and you do currently use or have used any form of tobacco or nicotine within the past 12 months. In that case, you’ll want to make sure that you are completely honest with your life insurance agent from the start so that he or she can help advise you what your best bet is when it comes to applying for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. In some cases, this may even mean postponing your application until which point we will know whether or not your application will even have a chance.

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

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 see what options might be available to you, just give us a call!