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 suffered from a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD).

Questions that will be addressed will include:

• Can I qualify for life insurance if I’ve suffered from a Ventricular Septal Defect?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been suffered from a Ventricular Septal Defect?
• 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 suffered from a Ventricular Septal Defect?

Yes, individuals who have been diagnosed with Ventricular Septal Defect can and often will be able to qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. In fact, some may even be able to qualify for some of the best no medical exam life insurance companies at a Preferred rate!

The only problem is…

Simply knowing that an individual has previously been diagnosed with Ventricular Septal Defect isn’t going to be enough information for a life insurance underwriter to be able to make his or her decision about the outcome of your life insurance application.

Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been suffered from a Ventricular Septal Defect?

Any time an individual has been diagnosed with a pre-existing medical condition that affects the heart, it’s a pretty safe bet that most (if not all) of the top life insurance companies are going to “care” about it. This is particularly true if the pre-existing condition in question can lead to heart failure when “severe” and left untreated.

This is why…

We wanted to take a moment and discuss what a Ventricular Septal Defect is as well as highlight some of the most common symptoms/complications of the disease as well so that we might gain a better understanding of what a life insurance underwriter will be looking for when making his or her decision about your life insurance application.

Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) Defined:

A Ventricular Septal Defect is a “defect” that affect the ventricular septum, which is the wall of tissue within the heart that divides the left and right ventricles form one another. The size of this defect can vary from just a “pinpoint” to the complete absence of a ventricular septum entirely with larger defects causing more problems/difficulties.

Common symptoms may include:

• Poor eating and failure to thrive in newborns,
• Fast breathing or breathlessness,
• Fatigue,
• Dizziness,
• Difficulty concentrating.

Serious complications may include:

• Aortic insufficiency,
• Damage to the electrical conduction system of the heart during surgical treatments,
• Failure to thrive,
• Heart failure.

Fortunately…

Not all Ventricular Septal Defects will be large enough to warrant surgical treatment, and for those that are, there are surgical treatments available whereby a trained professional can either “plug” or “patch” the abnormal opening between the ventricles thereby “curing” one of this disease or abnormality.

“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 are 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 a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD)… 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 a Ventricular Septal Defect?
• Who diagnosed your Ventricular Septal Defect? A general practitioner, a pediatrician, or a specialist?
• What symptoms (if any) led to your diagnosis?
• Have you had your Ventricular Septal Defect surgically treated?
  • If so, when?
  • If not, why has your doctor determined you don’t need surgery, or has he or she planned on in the near future?
• Have you been diagnosed with any other pre-existing medical conditions?
• Have you ever suffered from a heart attack or a stroke?
• Are you currently taking any prescription medications?
• What are your current height and weight?
• In the past 12 months, have you used any tobacco or nicotine products?
• In the past two years, have you been admitted into a hospital 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, there are many variables that can come into play when trying to determine what kind of “rate” an individual diagnosed with a Ventricular Septal Defect. This is why it’s almost impossible to know what kind of “rate” you might qualify for without first speaking with you directly.

That said, however…

Most individuals who have been diagnosed with a Ventricular Septal Defect will usually fall into one of three different categories that we can make some “assumptions” about that will generally hold true.

Category #1.

Will consist of those who have been diagnosed with a Ventricular Septal Defect, have had it surgically repaired, and don’t suffer from any other pre-existing medical conditions. Individuals like these will typically find that most life insurance companies aren’t necessarily going to use their previous VSD diagnosis as a reason to discriminate against them.

These will be…

The “types” of individuals that may be able to qualify for a Preferred rate in spite of their previous VSD diagnosis.

Category #2.

Will consist of those who have been diagnosed with a Ventricular Septal Defect, but due to its small size, have yet to have it surgically repaired. Their primary care physician may be “monitoring” their condition or may have already concluded that because their VSD is so small, it doesn’t pose a threat to their overall health.

In cases like these…

While it may still be possible to qualify for a Preferred rate, most life insurance companies will usually consider these folks a Standard or “normal” risk. In some cases, however, particularly if they suffer from any symptom at all, they may have to settle for a “substandard” or Table Rate (usually ranging around table A-H).

Table rates…

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

Category #3.

The last group that we’ll commonly encounter will be those who are either suffering from complications due to their VSD (treated or not) or have been diagnosed with some “other” pre-existing medical condition.

In cases like these…

What we’ll typically find is that most life insurance companies are going to determine that these folks are simply too great of a risk to provide a traditional life insurance policy. As a result, we’ll need to take a look at some “alternative” products, such as a Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance Policy should these “types” of applicants still want the ability to qualify for a life insurance policy.

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!