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 Quadriplegia or Tetraplegia.

Questions that will be addressed will include:

• Can I qualify for life insurance if I have been diagnosed with Quadriplegia or Tetraplegia?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been diagnosed with Quadriplegia or Tetraplegia?
• 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 if I’ve been diagnosed with Quadriplegia or Tetraplegia?

Yes, individuals who have been diagnosed with Quadriplegia can and sometimes will be able to qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy.

The only problem is…

Because suffering from Quadriplegia is such a traumatic event that can affect so many different aspects of one’s life, most life insurance companies are going to “automatically” consider someone who has become Quadriplegic a “high risk” applicant regardless of their overall health status.

This is why you may also want to consider avoiding applying for a no medical exam term life insurance policy as well, seeing how these policies tend to be more challenging to qualify for after someone has been diagnosed with a pre-existing medical condition like Quadriplegia.

Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been diagnosed with Quadriplegia or Tetraplegia?

There are many different reasons why a life insurance company will “care” if an individual has been diagnosed with Quadriplegia. These include its effect on one’s ability to perform daily tasks, such as caring for oneself and working a full-time job, and many potential medical complications that can occur weeks, months, or even years after one loses one’s ability to move.

For this reason, we wanted to take a moment to briefly discuss Quadriplegia and highlight some of the most common symptoms/complications of this disease/injury so that we may gain a better understanding of what a life insurance underwriter will be looking for when deciding your life insurance application.

Quadriplegia Defined:

Quadriplegia or Tetraplegia is a medical condition characterized by partial or total paralysis of all four limbs and torso caused by illness or injury. In such cases, paralysis usually includes sensory and motor control loss.

Common symptoms may include:

• Flaccid quadriparesis or limp muscles,
• Spastic Quadriplegia, unusually stiff or tight muscles,
• Inability to walk,
• Loss of bladder control,
• Depressed reflexes,

Life-threatening complications may include:

• Increased risk of infections, including Pneumonia,
• Increased risk of Asthma,
• Bradycardia.

Common causes include:

• Motor vehicle accidents,
• Falls,
• Victim of violence,
• Sports or hobbies,
• Diseases such as:
  • Polio,
  • Muscular Dystrophy,
  • Cerebral Palsy.

Now, at this point…

We usually like to take a moment and remind folks that nobody here at IBUSA has any “official” medical training, and we’re certainly not doctors. All we are is a bunch of life insurance agents who are really good at helping folks with pre-existing medical conditions like this one find and qualify for the life insurance coverage they are looking for.

But…

This is not so great if you seek answers to specific medical questions. In such cases, we recommend contacting an actual medical professional with the training to help. For everyone else, you’re in luck because now we’re going to get into some of the “nitty-gritty” about what you may or may not be able to qualify for.

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

Typical questions you’ll likely be asked may include:

• When were you first diagnosed with Quadriplegia?
• What caused your Quadriplegia?
• Do you retain any mobility, or do you have complete paralysis?
• Have you been diagnosed with any other pre-existing medical conditions?
• Do you require the use of a ventilator?
• Are you currently taking any prescription medications?
• 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 variables can come into play when determining what kind of “rate” an individual diagnosed with Quadriplegia might qualify for. This is why knowing what kind of “rate” you might qualify for is almost impossible without first speaking with you directly.

That said, however, it’s safe to say that if you have been diagnosed with Quadriplegia, chances are it’s going to be pretty difficult to qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. Even those eligible for coverage can only do so at a very high Table Rate.

Table rate Defined:

Table rates are life insurance rates typically reserved for “higher risk” applicants. They range from Table A, which would be considered the “best” or least expensive table rate, to Table J, which would be considered the “worst” or most expensive table rate.

Now, when it comes to folks with Quadriplegia, you’ll generally find that most life insurance companies don’t consider anyone with this condition eligible for anything better than a Table I. This means that in addition to being somewhat difficult to qualify for coverage, it will probably be pretty expensive if you do qualify.

This is why…

Once we exhaust all of our “traditional” life insurance options, we like to have our clients look at some of the guaranteed-issue life Insurance policies they may qualify for to decide which option is best for them.

The good news is that regardless of your situation, we here at IBUSA can help because we have tons of experience helping folks with pre-existing medical conditions like yours. We are committed to helping all our clients find the “best” life insurance policy they can qualify for. This brings us to the last topic that we wanted to take a moment and discuss, 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 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 top-rated 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 precisely what you’ll find here at IBUSA!