Life Insurance with COPD

COPD is a serious breathing condition that affects over 12 million Americans.  Sufferers of  Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease as COPD is known likely will have to pay more for term life insurance. COPD Life Insurance Underwriting is similar to other breathing disorders such as Asthma, but is slightly different.  If you want to pay less, it is imperative that you speak with a specialist.

This article Life Insurance with COPD is for consumers that have been diagnosed with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and wish to save money buying term life insurance.  There are two types of COPD and both will typically end up costing you more money.  In the end the best life insurance for COPD will be the one that offers you the most coverage for the lowest amount of money.

COPD stands for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.  It is a disease that over time gets worse and makes is harder for you to breath.  It can also go by a similar sounding terms: Chronic Bronchitis or Emphysema.  Some physicians prefer to call it one term while others opt for the more general term COPD. COPD essentially makes it difficult for patients to breath because the airways of the lungs become inflamed.  While the lining thickens it becomes more difficult to exchange oxygen.  This creates shortness of breath.

COPD is comprised of two main problems.

Chronic Bronchitis: "is increased cough and mucus production caused by inflammation of the airways."

Emphysema: "is associated with damage of the air sacs and/or collapse of the smallest breathing tubes in the lungs."

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease is considered treated and potentially can be prevented.

COPD is often lumped in with Asthma as they are both breathing issues.  It is important to note that Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Asthma are separate and distinct.

There are numerous medicines available from a licensed doctor to treat COPD and its two subsidiary issues Chronic Bronchitis and Emphysema.  Essentially the are broken down by type and kind:

COPD can be rated based on factors and certain measurements.  One of these measurements is the forced expiatory volume or FEV for short. This can also be listed as FEV1. This volume measurement -measures how much air can be forced out of the lungs. The stage or condition of your Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease will play a large role in the cost of your term insurance.  The FEV1 number can assist doctors in diagnosed your COPD stage.

A forced expiatory volume of 80% or more of a healthy person.  This is categorized as Mild Stage One Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

A forced expiatory volume of 50% to 80% of a healthy person.  This is categorized as Moderate Stage Two Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

A forced expiatory volume of 30% to 50% of a healthy person.  This is categorized as Severe Stage Three Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

A forced expiatory volume up to 30% of a healthy person.  This is categorized as Extreme Stage Four Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.  This is also considered the end stage for the lung itself.

This is known as the GOLD system which stands for Global initiative for Obstructive Lung Disease.

Mild - Stage 1 COPD:  

Moderate: - Stage 2 COPD:

Severe - Stage 3 COPD:

Extreme- Stage 4 COPD:

For COPD Life Insurance Underwriting there are multiple important considerations If you have COPD and are shopping for term insurance, we will need the following additional information in combination with all of the standard underwriting information:

Which Specific Type of COPD that you have?  Chronic Bronchitis or Emphysema.

When were you First Diagnosed?   The exact month and year typically will suffice for life insurance underwriting purposes.

Do you Take Prescriptions Medicines?  If so, what type, name, and dosage amounts.  Do you get these prescription meds regularly filled.  Sometimes it is best to have the medicines with you when talking with an agent. Most medicines have multiple names so it can be confusing.

Have you had any Lab Results or Other Test Completed? This may include X Rays and or Cat Scans and or Electrocardiogram (ECG).  What were the results of these findings.

When was the Last Time You were hospitalized on account of your COPD?  The more details you can provide on this the better.

Were all physicians instructions followed?  Were all treatment plans implemented?  Did all tests requested get completed.  Will the underwriters see that an ECG was requested but never completed?

Were any physician instructions not followed up on?  Were there instructions given that did not get completed either because the doctor changed their mind or otherwise.

Lastly, anything else you can tell us about your condition for the underwriters.

Saving money with term life insurance when you have a medical condition can be challenging. Often the hardest part is finding someone that knows what they are talking about.  Standard life insurance quoting engines are really not all that useful for those that have COPD.  Therefore the following is our advisement to save money on term insurance.

Work with an Independent Agent that sells and services life contracts with numerous A rated carriers. Avoid agents that only work with one company.

Stick with Term Life Insurance.  Avoid so called cash value policies that can cost you a boat load more per year.

Make sure you have a good relationship with your doctor and follow all of their advice.  If you doc is able to remember who you are they...may be able to write a better and more thorough review of your case when the time is necessary.

Take all of your prescriptions medicines and have them refilled on time.  Consumers seem to mystified why this important. Life insurers would prefer that you take your medicines rather than skip them.

Review your health case with a competent independent life insurance broker who is able to shop your case around

For many sufferers of COPD, following these simple instructions could save you real money.  Another consideration may be to go out and get multiple insurance quotes.  However it may not help as much as dealing with a specialist in this arena.

Thank you for Reading our article about COPD and term life insurance.  All of the information contained is not intended for medical purposes. It is solely intended for procuring life insurance.  Please always follow your doctors orders.  Should you have questions of your own, please kindly contact us.

scott @ marindependent.com