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 having been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis.

• Can I qualify for life insurance if I have been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis?
• Why do life insurance companies care if I have been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis?
• What kind of information will the insurance companies ask me or be interested in?
• What “rate” 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 have been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis?

Yes, individuals who have been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis can and often will be able to qualify for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy. The only problem is that in most cases, individuals who have Bronchiectasis will not be able to qualify for a Standard or better life insurance rate .

Which means that…

In most cases, these individuals will “automatically” be considered a “higher-risk” applicant by most of the top-rated life insurance companies. 

Additionally, because most life insurance companies are going to be a bit “nervous” about anyone applying for a traditional term or whole life insurance policy with a previous diagnosis of Bronchiectasis, we’ll usually recommend that folks find themselves in this position avoid applying for a no medical exam term life insurance policy simply because these “types” of life insurance policies can often be more difficult to qualify for.

Why do life insurance companies care if I have been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis?

To better understand why a life insurance company is going to “care” if any individual has been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis, it pays to take a moment and actually define exactly what Bronchiectasis is and how it affects those who have been diagnosed with this pre-existing medical condition.

Bronchiectasis Defined

Bronchiectasis is a chronic pre-existing medical condition where the lungs’ airways or bronchi become damaged, causing them to become “thickened”. As a result, mucus is allowed to “build” up within the damaged airways, increasing one’s risk for infections. This “damage” to one’s airways can be caused by a wide variety of different conditions, including:

• A compromised immune system,
• Inflammatory bowel disease,
• A variety of different autoimmune diseases,
• Lung infections,
• Etc…

Symptoms of Bronchiectasis may include:

• A chronic cough which may or may not contain blood or phlegm,
• Difficulty breathing,
• Shortness of breath,
• Fatigue,
• Frequent respiratory infections,
• Etc…

Unfortunately…

While there may be palliative treatment options for those who have been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis, once the damage to one’s lungs has occurred, there isn’t any way to “cure” an individual of Bronchiectasis. This is why most (if not all)of the best life insurance companies who are willing to approve an individual for a traditional life insurance policy after having been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis will only do so at a “high-risk” classification.

Additionally…

Earning such a rating will usually only be possible after a life insurance underwriter has had an opportunity to ask an applicant a variety of different medical questions all designed to learn more about how “serious” your current condition is and what kind of “risk” you would pose to them should they decide to approve your life insurance application.

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 Bronchiectasis?
• Who diagnosed your Bronchiectasis? A general practitioner or a specialist?
• What symptoms (if any) led to your Bronchiectasis diagnosis?
• What symptoms (if any) are you currently experiencing?
• Has your doctor prescribed any medications for you to treat your Bronchiectasis?
  • If so, what are they, and have any of them changed in the past 12 months?
• Has your condition improved, worsened, or remained stable over the past 12 months?
• Has the “cause” of your Bronchiectasis been determined?
• Have you been diagnosed with any other pre-existing medical conditions?
• Have you ever suffered from a heart attack or stroke?
• In the past two years, have you been hospitalized for any other reason?
• 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?

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 just happen to be really good at helping folks with pre-existing medical conditions like this one, find and qualify for the life insurance coverage that they are looking for.

But…

Not so great if you’re looking for answers to any specific medical questions. In cases like these, we would recommend that you contact a true medical professional who has 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 “rate” can I qualify for?

Now, as you can see, there are a lot of factors that are going to come into play when trying to determine what kind of “rate” an individual might be able to qualify for after having been diagnosed with Bronchiectasis. 

This is why, it’s pretty much impossible to know for sure what kind of “rate” you might be able to qualify for without first speaking with you and being able to ask you a few pertinent questions.

That said however…

What we can say for sure is that it’s pretty unlikely that any individual would be able to qualify for a Standard or better life insurance rate regardless of how “mild” their case may be. Additionally, any individual who has used any kind of tobacco or nicotine products within the past 12 months, would almost certainly be denied coverage immediately!

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. Which 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 Bronchiectasis?

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 Top Rated Burial Life 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!