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 with Von Willebrand’s Disease (VWD) or Angiohemophilia.

Questions that will be addressed will include:

• Can I qualify for life insurance if I have been diagnosed with Von Willebrand’s Disease or Angiohemophilia?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been diagnosed with Von Willebrand’s Disease or Angiohemophilia?
• 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 Von Willebrand’s Disease?

Yes, individuals who have been diagnosed with Von Willebrand’s Disease 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!

Why do life insurance companies care if I’ve been diagnosed with Von Willebrand’s Disease?

The only real reason why most of the top-rated life insurance companies are likely to “care” if someone has been diagnosed with Von Willebrand’s Disease is that some individuals may experience more significant symptoms/complications due to their Von Willebrand’s diagnosis, which in combination with other factors or pre-existing medical conditions could potentially impact one’s life insurance application.

This is why we wanted to take a moment and briefly describe what Von Willebrand’s Disease is as well as highlight some of the most common symptoms/complications of this disease 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.

Von Willebrand’s Disease Define:

Von Willebrand’s Disease (VWD) is a genetic disorder that is caused by either a missing or defective gene, which is responsible for producing the “Von Willebrand factor” blood-clotting protein. This Von Willebrand Factor (VWF) is used to help bind factor VIII, a key clotting protein, to platelets within the blood vessel walls, which helps form what is called a “platelet plug” during the clotting process.

Symptoms may include:

• Frequent and prolonged nosebleeds,
• Unexplained bleeding from the gums,
• Longer and/or heavier menstrual periods,
• Excessive bleeding from cuts,
• Easy to bruise.

More serious complications may include:

• Anemia,
• Swelling and/or pain within one’s joints and soft tissue due to abnormal bleeding.

Fortunately…

Von Willebrand’s Disease is a treatable condition typically treated with desmopressin (DDAVP), recombinant von Willebrand factor (rVWF), or Willebrand factor/factor VIII (vWF/FVII) concentrates.

“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 cause great harm to 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 Von Willebrand’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?

Because most folks suffering from Von Willebrand’s Disease will be able to live a normal life and usually won’t find themselves discussing the condition with most doctors unless of course, they have a pending surgery planned or have suffered from a severe injury, most questions a life insurance company is going to ask will usually just focus on “when” you were diagnosed, and “How” you’re treating it.

The remainder of the questions…

Will typically sound very much like the questions they would ask of anyone, only now, they’ll also be looking for “clues” to see if your Von Willebrand’s Disease has led to any additional medical complications for you. So, with that out of the way, let’s now focus on what questions you might be asked.

Common questions you’ll likely be asked may include:

• When were you first diagnosed with Von Willebrand’s Disease?
• Who diagnosed your Von Willebrand’s Disease? A general practitioner or a specialist?
• What symptoms (if any) led to your diagnosis?
• Have you been diagnosed with any other pre-existing medical conditions?
• Are you currently taking any prescription medications?
• In the past two years, have you been admitted to a hospital for any reason?
• Do you currently participate or plan on participating in any dangerous hobbies or activities?
• 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?

As you can see, there are a lot of variables that can come into play when trying to determine what kind of “rate” an individual who has been diagnosed with Von Willebrand’s Disease. This is why it’s pretty much impossible to know what kind of “rate” you might be able to qualify for without first speaking with you directly.

That said, however, most individuals who have been diagnosed with Von Willebrand’s Disease will usually fall into one of two different categories that we can make some “assumptions” about that will generally hold true.

Category #1.

The first group of folks that we’ll commonly counter with Von Willebrand’s Disease will be those who have been diagnosed with this condition almost by accident. They really don’t seem to suffer from any significant complications from their disease, and it’s just something that they need to let their doctor and/or dentist know about “just in case.”

Individuals like these…

Will usually be able to qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy and will have the “best” chance at being able to qualify for a Preferred rate.

Category #2.

The second group of folks that we’ll commonly encounter is those who have been diagnosed with Von Willebrand’s Disease along with some “other” type of pre-existing medical condition. In cases like these, what we’ll usually find is that if their Von Willebrand’s Disease exacerbates or complicates this “other” condition, insurance underwriters will simply treat one’s Von Willebrand’s Disease as “just another symptom” of this other underlying pre-existing medical condition.

To learn more about…

How this “other” underlying pre-existing medical condition may be treated or viewed by the life insurance industry, we would encourage you to check out our Pre-existing Medical Conditions page.

The good news is…

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, 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 help 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 Von Willebrand’s Disease (VWD)?

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 explore your options, just give us a call!