Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the health conditions insurers ask about when individuals apply for burial insurance, as it does impact rates. However, burial insurance can still be affordable for those afflicted with COPD.
What Determines My Rates?
Anything that impacts life expectancy will impact burial insurance costs. This includes age, whether you’re male or female, medical conditions, and lifestyle choices. The longer you are expected to live, the cheaper your rates will be, because this translates to you being able to pay premiums for a longer period of time.
The health questions directly impact your future costs by assigning the following types of plans:
- Preferred – no medical problems; lowest cost; no waiting period
- Standard – mild medical problems; more expensive than preferred; no waiting period
- Graded – significant health issues; more expensive; two-year waiting period (beneficiaries receive partial death benefit if policyholder dies during waiting period)
- Modified – dire health problems; most expensive; two-year waiting period (beneficiaries are only refunded premiums if policyholder dies during waiting period)
How Will COPD Affect My Coverage?
It is possible to get a lower-cost burial insurance policy without a waiting period if you have COPD. Your condition must not be serious enough to require you to use oxygen equipment. If you were on oxygen equipment in the past, you must either go a full year without using it, or go more than a year without possessing oxygen equipment.
If you use oxygen equipment, you’ll have to join a policy with a two-year waiting period and pay higher rates, as you’ll either qualify for a graded or modified plan.
What Is An Example Of What Someone With COPD Would Pay For Coverage?
As an example, here is what someone would pay per month based on $20,000 of coverage:
- Age 45 – $60.97 (male); $49.57 (female)
- Age 55 – $81.13 (male); $64.64 (female)
- Age 65 -$129.24 (male); $95.08 (female)
- Age 75 – $266.39 (male); $183.87 (female)
- Age 85 – $557.59 (male); $400.88 (female)
Beyond health, age has the most dramatic impact on rates. That’s why if you have COPD, it’s imperative to get insured as soon as possible.
How Do Insurers Know If I Have COPD?
Insurers look beyond your answers to application questions. In the application, it will either ask if you’ve ever had, been diagnosed with, or treated for COPD, or if you’ve been diagnosed with it within the last two years. Answering “yes” will result in higher rates, with the possibility of having a waiting period.
They can further verify your condition by assessing your prescription history and seeing if you’ve taken medications such as Advair, Spiriva, Flovent, and Symbicort.
Don’t Let Your Condition Keep You From Coverage
At Senior Life Services, we’re here to get you the burial coverage you need no matter what health problems you have. If you have COPD, you can get affordable burial insurance when you contact us. Call us today at (800) 548-3249.
