How to Get Life Insurance After Cancer

The diagnosis of cancer can be devastating for patients and their families. As if that wasn't bad enough, it can be very difficult to obtain life insurance following a bout with the disease. Are there any ways to work around this obstacle and find insurance products for cancer survivors?

Things You'll Need

• Your complete detailed medical records

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Instructions

• 1

  Determine whether you qualify for most life insurance policies by answering the questions: (1) Are you in remission or cured? (2) Are you at least three months past your last treatment? (3) Are you in general good health now? (4) Are you a non-smoker?

• 2

  Find an insurer who is a cancer risk or "impaired-risk" specialist. These brokers often develop relationships with companies which have cancer-friendly policies and they can even help gather your medical records for you. Make sure the agent is licensed in your state. To find such agents, try an Internet search for members of the Risk Appraisal Forum, who specialize in impaired risk underwriting.

• 3

  Check with your employer, especially if you work for a small business. Insurance companies aren't allowed to use medical underwriting (the process these companies use to determine whether to accept or turn down your application) in companies with groups of two to 50 people.

• 4

  Check with any professional, fraternal or political organization of which you're a member. These sometimes have special group life insurance policies and programs.

• 5

  Consider buying a limited-benefits policy (known as a "graded" policy). This means that the company will only pay out what you've paid them in premiums plus a fraction of the policy amount, if you die within a few years of opening the policy. If you should die after the "grading-in" policy period, then the company will pay the full benefits.