Finding life insurance if you have a heart condition can be challenging. If your heart condition is significant enough to require treatment or surgery, it’s likely that you’re facing some big changes in your life. At times like these, it’s important to take a step back and consider what options are best for you and your loved ones.
Occasionally, we have clients that have some kind of heart condition that has affected their life insurance application. A major concern they have is if they can get life insurance with their heart condition, such as a history of heart attack in their family.
The simple answer is yes! You can get a life insurance policy with a heart condition, but the type of policy you may qualify for can differ depending on how serious and the type of heart condition you have. Moreover, how well you manage your condition will also determine your rates or if you get approved by an insurer. For example, someone with congestive heart failure might have more trouble getting approved than someone with well managed atrial fibrillation.
In this article:
What is considered a heart condition for life insurance?
Heart conditions can be conditions you’re born with, or diseases you develop later on in your life. Heart disease, or cardiovascular disease, is a group of problems that affect the heart. Different insurers will cover different diseases, but the most common heart conditions insurers will cover are:
- Coronary artery disease
- Heart attack
- Angina
- Bypass surgery
- Arteriosclerosis
- Myocardial infarction
- Atrial/Auricular Fibrillation
- Angioplasty
- Congenital heart conditions (heart murmur)
If you already have life insurance in place before you are diagnosed with a heart condition, it will have no impact on the cost or coverage of your policy, which can be a reason to get life insurance in place early if you think you may be at risk of developing one. Having a critical illness insurance policy or added benefit on a traditional insurance policy can provide extra relief and benefits in the event that you do develop a condition.
However, even if you aren’t diagnosed with a heart condition at the time of your application, any early indicators of heart disease can also create issues for you when trying to qualify for the best life insurance rates. Risk factors for developing heart disease include:
- Age: Heart disease risk increases with age. Men over the age of 45, or women over the age of 55 and/or women who have gone through menopause are at higher risk of developing heart disease.
- Family history: If anyone in your immediate family (siblings or parents) has had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or has had a heart attack, your risk of heart disease is higher.
- Build: People whose bodies are more prone to accumulating fat at the waistline or higher, have a higher risk of heart disease.
If you show a higher risk of developing a heart condition, your premiums will be higher than someone who doesn’t show a risk.
Pre-existing conditions (a condition you have before you apply for life insurance) are treated differently than if you develop a heart disease during your policy time by insurers, and will typically cause the most trouble for those applying. This is because insurers will see you as a more risky applicant to insure, since you’re already being affected by the condition. But don’t get discouraged: it’s not impossible to get life insurance with a pre-existing heart condition.
What you need to know about heart disease and life insurance
Underwriters will typically ask about the following to help understand how serious your condition is and to determine your premiums for your policy:
- What symptoms or health issues have led to your diagnosis?
- When were you diagnosed with congestive heart failure and/or heart disease?
- Does your family history include heart disease?
- Has anyone in your immediate family died as a result of heart disease?
- What medications are you currently taking?
The type of condition, how serious it is, how it’s managed, your family history, and symptoms you currently face are all factors considered when underwriting for someone with a heart condition. These factors will help underwriters understand your condition more, which will let them determine if you can be insured by the insurance company you’re working with, and at what rate.
Your type of heart condition and how serious it is, along with the symptoms you face are considered when determining your rates. The more severe your condition and symptoms, the riskier and harder you are to insure. That being said, how well you manage your condition will also determine your rates or get approved by an insurer. The better you manage your condition, the lower your rates and the better your chances of getting approved.
Your family history of heart conditions and diseases is an important factor as well. Insurers and underwriters will ask if you have any family history of heart disease, or have immediate family that has passed away from one.
Your family history of heart conditions and diseases is an important factor as well. Insurers and underwriters will ask if you have any family history of heart disease, or have immediate family that has passed away from one.
Aside from understanding the severity of your condition, insurers will also ask about your health and lifestyle habits. In order to obtain a fully underwritten policy, you can expect life insurance companies to also ask about:
- Any specific congenital abnormalities
- Ongoing and history of treatments
- Medications for your condition
- Any serious impairments
- Lifestyle habits and choices
- Smoking history
- Any underlying coronary artery diseases
- Blood pressure and cholesterol levels
- Family history of heart conditions and other conditions
The majority of life insurance companies in Canada will ask you to provide an attending physician’s statement (APS) that will provide them with more information about your health and condition.
What are my life insurance options after a heart attack?
After a heart attack, you can surely receive life insurance. A guaranteed whole life policy, which does not require a medical evaluation and is often accessible to anybody aged 45 to 85, is a more likely life insurance option following a heart attack. If you recently had a heart attack, you should be aware that getting a properly underwritten life insurance policy would be difficult. However, if it has been over a year or more since your heart attack, you should be able to receive a life insurance policy. Even if you just had a heart attack, you have a good chance of getting a simplified or guaranteed issue life insurance policy.
If you’ve recently been worried about protecting your loved ones from potential complications associated with a heart attack, then you have some options to consider. Purchasing life insurance might provide you the peace of mind that your debts will not burden your loved ones if you pass away unexpectedly. Whether it be paying off your mortgage or paying for your children’s education, there are options available for you to be covered.
How to get the right coverage for your situation
Depending on the severity of your condition, there are many types of life insurance you may qualify for. If your condition isn’t severe and is well managed, you can qualify for traditional life insurance coverage of either permanent life insurance or term life insurance. The more serious your condition, the less options you may qualify for.
If your pre-existing condition or risk of developing heart disease is slightly more serious and you’re having some difficulty finding insurers who will approve you for traditional life insurance, you can apply for simplified life insurance or no medical life insurance. These insurance products require no medical exam and only ask a few medical history questions, making them more lenient for those who have some health issues.
If your condition is severe or your risk of developing a serious heart condition is very high, guaranteed life insurance may be right for you. These products ask no questions, and provide guaranteed acceptance for all applicants, making it ideal for those looking for immediate life insurance coverage with more serious health conditions.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Life Insurance for Heart Conditions in Canada
Yes, most fully underwritten life insurance policies will cover heart attacks, meaning if you pass due to a heart attack, your beneficiaries will get an insurance payout. Along with that, if you have suffered a heart attack before, you can still find a fully underwritten policy, a simplified policy, and a guaranteed issue policy.
This really depends on how much coverage you have, if you have $500,000 in life insurance coverage, then the payout will be $500,000 tax free. If you have a critical illness or disability insurance policy, depending on the amount that you have coverage for, you will receive your payouts if you suffer from a heart attack.
Both coronary artery disease and atrial fibrillation can cause heart failure, but it is very likely that you can get a fully underwritten life insurance policy. Typically, with these conditions you can secure life insurance coverage so long as you do not have a recent diagnosis.
Yes, you can get a fully underwritten life insurance policy with a possibility of getting a favourable rate even if you have heart disease. Typically, you will be required to disclose your medical information and you will also need to get an attending physician’s statement (APS).
Yes, you can definitely get life insurance after a heart attack. You must be aware that it will be hard to get a fully underwritten life insurance policy if you had a heart attack recently, typically if it has been over a year or more since you had a heart attack then it will be very possible to get a life insurance policy. There is also a high chance to get a simplified, or guaranteed issue life insurance policy even if you have suffered from a heart attack recently.
The best life insurance overall for a heart condition is a fully underwritten life insurance policy. This being said, it might not be the right life insurance for you, therefore the best idea for you is to either contact a life insurance advisor if you want to find the right life insurance policy for your situation. For people with heart conditions who might get declined, or got declined from underwritten life insurance policies, they might be interested in simplified life insurance, and guaranteed issue life insurance.
To get a quote for life insurance with a heart condition you should contact a licensed life insurance advisor to find out what is the best life insurance for you. Alternatively, you can use our quick quote feature to get a quote as well!
There are great critical illness and life insurance policies for children who suffer from heart conditions. For most life insurance and critical illness policies it would be a good idea to take a look into your options, start by talking to an insurance advisor today.
Finding the right life insurance for you
Whether you’re actively treating and living with your heart condition or think you are at risk of developing one, you can still find affordable life insurance for any situation you may have. Working with a life insurance advisor can help you create the perfect life insurance plan and package for your needs.
At Protect Your Wealth, we work with and compare policies and quotes from the best life insurance companies in Canada to create the best solution for you and your needs. We’ve been providing expert life insurance solutions since 2007, including no medical life insurance, term life insurance, and permanent life insurance, to build the best package to give you the protection you need.
Contact Protect Your Wealth or call us at 1-877-654-6119 to talk to an advisor today! We’re proudly based out of Hamilton, and service clients anywhere in Ontario and British Columbia, including areas such as Ancaster, Richmond, and Kelowna.
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