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 with idiopathic Paget’s Disease or Osteitis Deformans.

Questions that will be addressed will include:

• Can I qualify for life insurance if I have been diagnosed with Paget’s Disease or Osteitis Deformans?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been diagnosed with Paget’s Disease or Osteitis Deformans?
• 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 if I’ve been diagnosed with Paget’s Disease or Osteitis Deformans?

Yes, individuals who have been diagnosed with Paget’s Disease (formerly known as Osteitis Deformans) can and often will be able to qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. In fact, some who have been diagnosed with only a “mild” case may even be able to qualify for a no medical exam term life insurance policy!

The problem is…

Like make other pre-existing medical conditions simply knowing that someone has been diagnosed with Paget’s Disease isn’t going to be enough information for a life insurance underwriter to make his or her decision about an individual’s life insurance application which is why most (if not all) of the best term life insurance companies are going to want to know a lot more about one’s Paget’s Disease diagnosis before they’ll be willing to make any kind of definitive decisions.

Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been diagnosed with Paget’s Disease or Osteitis Deformans?

The main reason why a life insurance company is going to “care” if an individual has been diagnosed with Paget’s Disease is that at the end of the day, Paget’s disease is a chronic medical condition that currently isn’t “curable” and can cause some pretty significant damages to one’s bones over time (particularly when poorly treated).

Which is why…

We wanted to take a moment and describe what Paget’s Disease is as well as highlight some of the most common symptoms/complications that can arise as a result of this disease so that we can have a better understanding of exactly what a life insurance underwriter will be looking for when making his or her decision about your life insurance application.

Paget’s Disease (Osteitis Deformans) Defined:

Paget’s Bone Disease is a disease that interferes or inhibits one’s own body from being able to “recycle” new bone tissue as old bone tissue deteriorates. Over time, this “interference” will cause the affected bones to become fragile and deformed in some cases. The most commonly affected bones will include those in the pelvis, skull, spine, and legs.

Common complications may include:

• A decrease in bone density,
• Increased risk of bone fractures,
• Hearing loss,
• Nerve pain due to pinched nerves along the spine.

Fortunately, even though there isn’t a “cure” for Paget’s Disease, many patients may be able to minimize or slow the progression of this disease by using many of the same medications to treat Osteoporosis.

“Which brings us to an important point that we think we ought to mention.”

First…

If you think you have a medical issue, don’t use the internet to try and diagnose yourself. After all, if you do and you’re correct, you’re still going to need to see the doctor, and if you’re wrong, the time you spend being your own doctor could really harm yourself!

Second…

Nobody here at IBUSA is medically trained, and we’re certainly not doctors. All we ware is a bunch of life insurance agents who just happened to be really good at helping individuals find and qualify for the life insurance that they’re looking for. So please don’t mistake any of the medical information that we talk about as medical advice because it’s not!

We’re just…

Trying to “prep” you for what it might be like to apply for a life insurance policy after you have been diagnosed with Paget’s Disease… that’s it! This brings us to our next topic, which is…

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

Common questions you’ll likely be asked may include:

• When were you first diagnosed with Paget’s Disease?
• Who diagnosed your Paget’s Disease? A general practitioner or a specialist?
• What symptoms (if any) led to your diagnosis?
• How was your Paget’s Disease diagnosed?
• Have you had a bone density test performed?
• How often do you see your primary care physician?
• Have you been diagnosed with any other pre-existing medical conditions?
• Are you currently taking any prescription medications?
• Have you suffered from any recent (last two years) bone fractures?
• In the past two years, have you been hospitalized for any reason?
• 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?

As you can see, many factors can come into play when trying to determine what kind of rate an individual diagnosed with Paget’s Disease will qualify for. For this reason, it’s almost impossible for us to know what kind of “rate” you might qualify for without first speaking with you.

That said however…

There are a few “assumptions” that we can make about folks applying for a traditional life insurance policy after having been diagnosed with Paget’s Disease that will generally hold true. 

For example, if you are someone who has been diagnosed with a “mild” case or someone who has discovered your disease early on and are actively treating it so that it doesn’t become too “severe”, it is reasonable to assume that you may be able to qualify for a Standard or Better rate.

Which means that…

You may even be able to qualify for a Preferred rate should you also be able to meet all of the necessary requirements in order to qualify for such as rate.

Now as for…

Those who may not have discovered that they suffer from Paget’s Disease until after began to suffer from significant bone loss or actually fractured a bone, not all hope is lost, it just means that you probably won’t be able to qualify for a Preferred rate and you may end up having to settle for a “sub-standard” or “high risk” rate.

The good news is…

That regardless of your situation, we here at IBUSA can help because we have tons of experience helping folks with all sorts of pre-existing medical conditions like yours and are committed to helping all of our clients find the “best” life insurance policy that they can qualify for. This brings us to the last topic that we wanted to take a moment and discuss, 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 usually, the folks who seem to find 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 helping a more “challenging” case, they don’t have to rely on a…

“One size fits all approach!”

The good news is that this is exactly what you’re going to find here at IBUSA!

Now, will we be able to help out everyone who has been previously diagnosed with Paget’s Disease?

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 in the event that 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!