2025 Life Insurance Awareness Month

Many people may not be aware that September is World Life Insurance awareness month.  The reasons for life insurance vary from family to family, but for most it’s an extremely valuable financial protection project.  Providing adequate coverage for your family tends to be a financial goal for most of us. If you’re one of the […]

Many people may not be aware that September is World Life Insurance awareness month.  The reasons for life insurance vary from family to family, but for most it’s an extremely valuable financial protection project.  Providing adequate coverage for your family tends to be a financial goal for most of us.

If you’re one of the nearly 590 million in the world who have diabetes, you may find out that getting coverage could be challenging.  But please do not let  diabetes diagnosis deter you from pursuing life insurance for your family.

Can You Get Life Insurance If You Have Diabetes

Diabetes is a serious medical condition impacting more than 590 million people world wide. This diagnosis means that you’ll have to manage your condition very seriously, to avoid health issues like diabetes complications, kidney disease, and other types of cardiovascular disease.

If you’ve been diagnosed with any type of of diabetes, expect this to impact the types of policies you can be approved for, and what rates you’ll pay for life insurance.    Now the good news is that most people can qualify for a policy.

Matt Schmidt with Diabetes Life Solutions notes “any type of diabetes will lead to insurance companies wanting to know more about your health history.  It isn’t an automatic decline, but a diagnosis means you are not going to be a ‘preferred candidate’.  As an example, life insurance with type 1 diabetes will always mean your premiums are considerably higher compared to a person without diabetes.”

How are premiums determined

Life insurance premiums are based on a person’s health profile, at the time that they apply for coverage.  The higher the risk, the more expensive rates will be.  Having a preexisting health issue like diabetes is expected to shorten your life expectancy, thus making you a higher risk to the insurance provider.

Life insurance for Type 1 diabetes

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that tends to be diagnosed with a person is a juvenile.  However, some individuals may be diagnosed with type 1 as an adult.  The longer a person has a chronic illness, the more expensive their rates will be.  A majority of type 1 people are going to pay higher rates compared to a person with type 2.

People with type 1 diabetes will tend to have fewer options to choose from.  Meaning fewer companies will approve them, and most likely you’ll have to undergo a paramedical exam to qualify for coverage.

Non medical exam options will be few and far between to choose from.  While completing an exam as part of the application process isn’t the end of the world, it can be challenging to find time to schedule the appointment.

Life insurance for Type 2 diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is the most common type of diabetes that people are diagnosed with.  Insurance companies tend to view a type 2 applicant much more favorably.  If you fall into this category, you’ll have an easier time getting approved.

Chris Stocker with Diabetes 365 mentions “life insurance for diabetics, especially type 2 are going to see their rates to be pretty close to a person with out diabetes.  While most type 2’s are going to pay slightly higher premiums, many of them will qualify for a Standard rating.  Standard rates mean that there are no extra premiums tied to your health profile.”

People with type 2 diabetes will be considered by nearly every life insurance provider in the world.  And you may be able to bypass doing an examination.  Certain life insurance companies can approve you for $2 Million in coverage without doing the additional blood work.

What type of policies are available

With life insurance there are two main forms of insurance.  Term, and permanent.  There is no one correct type of policy that works for everyone, so the type of life insurance that is best will vary from person to person.

Term life insurance is less expensive initially.  These policies would provide coverage for a specified period of time, such as 10, 20, or 30 years.  At the end of the term period, the policy would cancel.  Many people may need life insurance beyond the initial term period, so they may have to reapply for coverage, but at much higher rates due to being older.

We’d like to note that for most younger people, starting with a term policy tends to be the best solution, as you can obtain coverage to protect your family, and possibly re-evaluate your situation in the future.

Permanent life insurance works just like it sounds.  The policy is designed to cover a person’s entire life, with rates that do not increase.  Some policies like whole life insurance accrue cash value over time, working as an asset to the policy owner.

While whole life insurance is considerably more expensive, you wouldn’t have to worry about outliving the policy.  Some people wish to have their policy cover end of life expenses, so that their family isn’t having to pay out of pocket to take care of funeral costs.

Robert Schmidt with Burial Insurance Pro shares the following, “Burial insurance policies are very popular with people throughout the world.  These are smaller amounts of whole life insurance that would cover funeral costs, final expenses, and end of life expenses.   Policies are very expensive, and they provide amounts from $5000 to $25000 on average.  Many well known insurance companies such as AARP, AETNA, and Mutual of Omaha burial insurance provide products to people across the world.”

If you are unsure which type of policy works best for you, make sure to speak with a financial professional.  They can help point you to the best possible solutions for your situation and needs.

Do I have to tell my insurance company about my diabetes?

Absolutely.  You have to be honest when applying for life insurance.  On the application, there will be a series of health questions, one of which asking if you’ve ever been diagnosed with diabetes.  Don’t lie, thinking you can fool or trick the insurance company.

Insurance companies will run health background reports, and will see if any diabetes medications have been prescribed or not.  And if you are required to do blood testing, they’ll test for A1C, Glucose, and other diabetes related blood work.  Simply stated, companies will catch you being dishonest.

 

What can I do to lower my premiums?

Below are some tips on what people with diabetes can do to help lower their life insurance premiums.

1. Maintain your blood sugar. Testing your blood sugar regularly, or even using a CGM is preferred by most underwriters.  Also, seeing your Dr. on a regular basis, and following their treatment plan will help out your health profile.

1. Regular exercise.   Exercise tends to help a person manage their diabetes, but it’ll also lead to an overall healthy lifestyle.  Showing companies that exercise is a big part of your life will be a positive for your file, and possibly lead to lower rates.
2. Don’t use tobacco products. Using forms of tobacco lead to higher premiums.  Having diabetes, and using tobacco will drive up rates even higher.  Diabetes and tobacco do not mix!

Could I be declined for life insurance?

Nobody can be 100% certain that your application will be approved.  It’s quite possible that one insurance company will decline you.  While others would have no issues approving you for life insurance.  Because of this, it’s important to work with agents who are properly trained to work with a diabetic.  Don’t let one decline stop you from obtaining the life insurance your family needs.