Who offers life insurance with Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma?
Life insurance with Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma can be more difficult to obtain. But, if you work with an insurance agency who specializes in finding coverage for those with pre-existing medical conditions, it can be much easier to find.
You see out of the more than 1,000 life insurance carriers in the United States, only a handful do specialized underwriting. Underwriting is the evaluation of a particular risk. Specialized underwriting takes it one step further. These companies underwrite more aggressive on conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, MS, race car driving, etc.
Life insurance with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma falls into the special risk underwriting category.
Is life insurance with Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma underwritten the same as Hodgkin’s?
Lymphoma’s are a heterogeneous group of cancers of the immune system. They are usually divided into Hodgkin’s disease and Non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas.
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is much less predictable than Hodgkin’s disease and has a far greater likelihood of spreading to extranodal sites. The staging is similar to that of Hodgkin’s disease, but most cases are already in an advanced stage of disease when diagnosed.
There are several grades of disease that underwriters look at when determining the risk for life insurance with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma:
- Low Grade
- Intermediate Grade
- High Grade
Low grade progresses slowly but is in an an advanced stage when diagnosed and many will relapse after treatement. Intermediate and high grade non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma have more rapid growth but are more likely to respond to chemotherapy.
Underwriting class for life insurance with Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
Life insurance companies typically use a rating scale of table ratings and flax extras when a risk is above the standard rate class.
The table rating scale is typically something like this: Table A, Table B, Table C, Table D, etc. Each table rating is a 25% increase in premium above the company’s standard printed rate class.
A flat extra surcharge is an additional premium amount added on top of the standard risk class or the Table rated risk class. An example of this would be $5.00 flat extra per thousand of death benefit. So, if a company added a $5.00 per thousand flat extra for say 5 years then you are talking about an additional $500 in premium for a $100,000 policy. ($5 x 100).
I tell you this information for one reason. Many people will go online an check for life insurance rates. Typically, a life insurance website will only quote the classes of preferred best, preferred, standard plus and standard.
Therefore, if your risk assessment is above the standard risk class, you have no way of knowing what your actual rate would be by just checking online with one of the big quoting sites.
You must use an expert agent. Your agent can give you a much more accurate assessment of what your actual rate will be. And, in my experience unless it has been 10 years since last treatment, most life insurance with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma risks are typically rated or have a flat extra added to the standard premium.
Typical underwriting considerations for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
Stage 1, 2 and 3 are typically postponed until after 3 years since last treatment. After 3 years a stage 1 would typically have a $7.50 flat extra for an additional 5 years. Each year thereafter since last treatment would reduce the years that the flat extra would be applied.
Remember, once a flat extra period has expired the rating is taken off the policy. For instance, if you receive a $7.50 per thousand flat extra for 5 years on a $100,000 policy you would be paying an additional $750 for 5 years of the contract. After the 5 years is over you would reduce back to just the standard rate.
After 3 years stage 2 you would typically have a $10 flat extra per thousand for an additional 5 years. With stage 3 the flat extra would typically be $15 per thousand.
It’s also important to remember that the quote could have an additional rating for any other medical history such as high blood pressure, overweight, etc.
As you can see underwriting life insurance with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is involved. And it’s important to remember that each carrier will look at your situation differently. That’s why it is so important to use an independent agent who can shop the marketplace for the best carriers.
Companies who underwrite non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma the best
Below are some of the carriers that do the best job in underwriting this risk:
- American General Life
- United of Omaha
- Lincoln National Life
- Banner Life
- Protective Life
Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance
In some cases traditional underwriting may not offer a solution for life insurance. If the non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma has been recently diagnosed or if the treatment is till ongoing then you may have to look at other options.
Guaranteed issue life insurance is a plan of coverage that typically asks no health questions, needs no exam or lab work.
Guaranteed issue life companies typically limit the amount of coverage you can get with them. Therefore, if large amounts of coverage are needed you may have to combine several carriers or limit the amount of coverage you can obtain.
Most guaranteed issue life policies work the same way. They work on a graded death benefit scale. Once you purchase coverage the full death benefit is limited in the first 2 or 3 years. If death occurs during the first couple of years the company will pay all premiums back plus interest. After the 2nd or 3rd year of the policy being in force the company will pay a full death benefit.
Conclusion-
Therefore, if you are in the market for life insurance with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma find a good independent life broker to review your situation. Coverage may be available at a more reasonable cost than you think. If you would like a free evaluation please feel free to contact us directly at 678-207-8160 or email the owner at mike@specialriskterm.com
