In this article, we wanted to take a moment and try to answer some of the most common questions we get from folks applying for life insurance after they have received an Organ Transplant.

Now, it’s important to understand that there are a lot of “types” of Organ Transplants that one can receive, which is why, in this article, we wanted to focus on those that will generally all be viewed and/or treated the same way by most of the top life insurance companies.

Different Organ transplants such as:

• Heart transplant,
• Lung transplant,
• Liver transplant, and
• Pancreas transplant.

For those who have received some other type of Organ Transplant, such as a Cornea, Skin, or Kidney, we would encourage you to either call us directly or look at our Pre-existing Medical Conditions page for more information.

Questions that will be directly addressed in this article will include:

• Can I qualify for life insurance if I have received an Organ Transplant?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I have received an Organ Transplant?
• What kind of information will the insurance companies ask me or be interested in?
• What options might be available to me?
• How can I help ensure I get the “best life insurance” for me?

Can I qualify for life insurance if I have received an Organ Transplant?

Unfortunately, when it comes to those who have had an Organ Transplant like a heart, liver, or lung, what you’re generally going to find is that most (if not all) life insurance companies are going to automatically decline anyone applying for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy.

Which means that…

Suppose you’ve received such an Organ Transplant and still want to purchase a life insurance policy. In that case, chances are you will need to consider purchasing an alternative product that won’t require one to meet certain “health” requirements to qualify for coverage.

Why do life insurance companies care if I have had an Organ Transplant?

The main reason why a life insurance company is going to “care” if you’ve needed to receive an Organ Transplant like a heart, liver, or lung, chances are it’s because you suffer from a pretty serious medical condition, one that most life insurance companies probably won’t want to insure even if it didn’t progress to the point where you were suffering from organ failure.

And while…

It’s possible that you’re Organ Transplant has essentially “cured” you of this pre-existing medical condition; there now exists the possibility of any number of other complications, including transplant rejection, that an insurance company would have to consider. And this is why it’s pretty much a given, regardless of how healthy you may now be since your transplant, that most (if not all) life insurance companies are still going to REJECT your application automatically.

What kind of information will the insurance companies ask me or be interested in regarding my organ transplant?

You’re generally going to find that once a life insurance company determines that you have previously received an Organ Transplant (like a heart, lung, or liver), there really isn’t much more they will need to know before denying your life insurance application. After all, if you have had to receive an Organ Transplant like a heart, lung, or liver, the reasons behind “why” you needed to aren’t really going to matter all that much to a life insurance company.

This is mainly because…

Most life insurance agencies will usually be “geared” towards helping those who can qualify for a traditional term life insurance policy and won’t spend much time focusing on alternative insurance products.

The good news is here at IBUSA, we spend an incredible amount of time creating relationships with dozens of different life insurance companies to minimize the number of times we apologize to clients for not having any options they can qualify for.

This is why…

Whereas other agencies may inform you that you can’t qualify for a life insurance policy because of your transplant, we prefer to ask you three simple questions that could determine whether or not you might just be able to qualify for a Guaranteed Issue Life insurance policy.

Those three questions are:

• #1. Are you a US Citizen?
• #2. Are you between the ages of 40 and 85?
• #3. What state do you live in?

What options might be available to me if I have Had An Organ Transplant?

Now, at this point, don’t get too excited because, while it is true that some folks may be able to qualify for a Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance policy, or maybe even an Accidental Death Policy, it’s important to understand that just because you “can” qualify may not mean that you’ll “want” to qualify. This is because while these “types” of products may meet the needs of some, they will have some disadvantages that may be a “deal breaker” for others.

Accidental Death and Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance Policies Defined

Accidental Death Policies

Here at IBUSA, we tend to think that when appropriately explained, Accidental Death Policies are a bit easier to understand than Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance Policies, so we want to begin by discussing exactly what an Accidental Death Policy is.

The problem is…

Often, these types of products aren’t fully explained, or more commonly, aren’t explained in a way that specifically points out what these types of policies won’t provide coverage for. This is why we want to begin our discussion of an Accidental Death Policy by explicitly stating that these types of policies are NOT TRUE LIFE INSURANCE POLICIES. More specifically, an accidental death insurance policy is not going to provide you with any coverage if you die of a “natural” cause of death.

Now, at this point, you may be asking yourself…

“What do you mean by NATURAL CAUSE of death?”

When we use the term “natural cause of death,” we’re referring to an “illness-based” death like you would experience as a result of:

• Heart disease,
• Cancer,
• Stroke,

Or from some complications that one might experience as a result of complications due to receiving an Organ Transplant.

These types of products…

You are only going to provide a death benefit to your family if you die from an accidental cause of death.

Examples that would typically qualify as an Accidental Cause of death would typically include:

• A motor vehicle accident,
• A slip-and-fall accident
• A natural disaster,
• Victim of crime.

Which is nice, but typically, this isn’t what someone is looking for after they have had an organ transplant. On the plus side, an accidental death insurance product is generally pretty affordable. It will allow someone to purchase a large amount of ACCIDENTAL death insurance for a relatively small amount of money. This brings us to our next possible option, which is a…

Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance

A Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance policy, on the other hand, is A TRUE LIFE INSURANCE POLICY.

Which means they will ultimately provide an individual with true-life insurance coverage. Now we say “ultimately” because when you purchase a Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance Policy, you’re buying a life insurance policy that has a “catch” to it. 

And…

In our experience here at IBUSA, we’ve found that the best way to discuss these types of life insurance policies is by analyzing the three major disadvantages that these “types” of life insurance policies have aside from the fact that you generally have to be over the age of 50 and live in a state where these types of life insurance policies are available. So, let’s dive right in…

Problem #1.

Guaranteed-issue life insurance policies will only provide a limited amount of life insurance coverage and will usually “cap out” right around 25,000 dollars in coverage. This means that if you want to purchase more than $25,000 in coverage, a guaranteed issue life insurance policy might not suit you!

(Yes, individuals can purchase several different guaranteed issue life insurance policies from several companies, but as we will now discuss, this can get really expensive).

Problem #2.

Dollar-for-dollar, guaranteed-issue life insurance policies aren’t always the most affordable compared to other “types” of life insurance policies.

Now, we don’t want to imply that these “types” of life insurance policies are going to cost a fortune; it’s just that if you can qualify for another “kind” of life insurance policy, that coverage will usually cost less dollar for dollar than a guaranteed issue life insurance policy will.

Problem #3.

Guaranteed-issue life insurance policies contain a clause commonly called a Graded Death Benefit.

Graded Death Benefit Defined:

Graded Death Benefits are “clauses” written into most (if not all) guaranteed issue life insurance policies, which state that a guaranteed issue life insurance policy won’t begin to cover an individual from “natural causes” of death until a certain waiting period has elapsed.

This “waiting period” will usually last 2 to 3 years and is designed to ensure that someone who knows they are very close to death can purchase these “types” of life insurance policies.

And while…

This may seem incredibly unfair, but it’s important to remember that a guaranteed life insurance policy doesn’t require you to take a medical exam or answer any health-related questions. So, at the end of the day, a graded death benefit is the only thing that allows an insurance company to offer one of these “types” of life insurance policies.

The good news is…

While you may have to wait 2 to 3 years for one a Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance policy to provide you true life insurance protection, these “types” of life insurance policies will provide immediate coverage for any “accidental causes” of death. They may also offer some “return of premium” to the beneficiaries of insured applicants who do end up dying from natural causes before their Graded Death Benefit expires.

So, it’s sort of like buying a small Accidental Death Policy that will ultimately “turn into” a true-life insurance policy after a 2-3 year “waiting” period.

Have we confused you yet?

If so, don’t fret. The purpose of this article wasn’t to try to make you an insurance expert; it was to give you an idea of what questions you’ll want to pursue before making any decisions. This brings us to the last topic we wanted to discuss here in this article, which is…

How can I help ensure I get the “best life insurance” for me?

In our experience, what we have found that works best for folks who have been diagnosed with a pre-existing medical condition where the “severity” of the condition is often “subjective” is for the applicant to make sure that they first find a true-life insurance professional who will work as an advocate for you. Such an agent that can guide you through the application process and be perfectly “frank” with you about what options may or may not be possible.

From there…

You’ll also want to make sure that the very same agent you have chosen has access to dozens of different life insurance companies because, after all, it really doesn’t matter how “great” of a life insurance agent you might have if they don’t have access to the “best” life insurance policy for you! Now, does it?

Lastly, before applying for coverage, you’ll want to ensure you’re completely honest with your life insurance agent. By doing so, you will be helping them narrow down what options might be the “best” for you based on your specific circumstances.

So call us today to see how we can help you find the best life insurance policy.