Obtaining life insurance for diabetes patients can be quite challenging but not impossible. In all cases, an applicant has two choices: Traditional Life Insurance Plans and No Medical Life Insurance Policies.
All things being equal, an insulin-dependent diabetic will pay a higher premium than those who don’t depend on insulin. Many insulin diabetics are declined or heavily rated for Traditional Life Insurance, but No Medical Life Insurance is available for them. It might help some diabetics to have a Mediband Plus to improve the ability for emergency services to better identify what their medical condition is in times of extreme diabetic hypoglycemia.
We work with 20 various insurance companies to find the best insurance option for you. Find out more about your options below.
Get your quote for life insurance for diabetes patients
Examples of life insurance policies for diabetes patients
Person:
44, female, non-smoker, diabetes type II, non-insulin-dependent, diagnosed 5 years ago, stable blood sugar reading, Term 20 policy, $250,000 coverage
Estimated monthly rate:
$56.43
Person:
38, male, non-smoker, diabetes type I, insulin-dependent, diagnosed 7 years ago, stable blood sugar reading, Term 20 policy, $500,000 coverage
Estimated monthly rate:
$123.48
Person:
51, female, smoker, diabetes type II, non-insulin-dependent, diagnosed 10 years ago, stable blood sugar reading, Term 10 policy, $200,000 coverage
Estimated monthly rate:
$93.69
The above insurance consultants are independent brokers and not employees of nomedicallifeinsurance.ca / LSM insurance.
Insulin dependent vs not insulin dependent diabetes
The Canadian Diabetes Association reports that over 9 million Canadians are diabetic or prediabetic and 5 to 10% of those with diabetes have type one, which means they’re insulin dependent. The rest, (90 to 95%) have type two and are not insulin dependent As mentioned above, all things being equal, an insulin-dependent diabetic will pay a higher premium than those who don’t depend on insulin. Insulin dependent diabetes is considered a chronic disease that usually begins in childhood, but it’s not the most common form of diabetes. The result is that many insulin diabetics are declined or heavily rated for traditional life insurance, but there are other insurance options available if that is the case.No Medical Life Insurance for diabetes patients
No medical life insurance is life insurance without a medical test. Guaranteed issue plans have no medical tests and no health questions, but simplified issue policies have no medical tests and a short series of health questions. Most simplified issue policies ask if the insured person has been declined. If they have been declined, coverage may still be available, but likely on a deferred basis, which means the death benefit is limited in the first two years for non-accidental deaths. Most simplified issues plans have a diabetes related question, but not all of them and some only ask about insulin dependent diabetes.Other variables that impact an underwriters decision in diabetes cases:
- The age when the insured was diagnosed – Younger diabetics are usually underwritten more carefully than older diabetics. In fact, diabetics 50 and over, with no other health issues, can qualify for the same standard rates as non-diabetics.
- Duration of diabetes – Once diabetes is under control, you should work to obtain life insurance as soon as possible, since it can lead to other extraneous health issues that can make it even more difficult to obtain life insurance later.
- Renal damage – If you have renal damage as well, applying for insurance will be much more challenging. We can’t stress enough how important it is to apply for life insurance as early into your diagnosis as possible.
- Height and weight – Traditional insurance is normally unavailable if you’re diabetic and overweight.
