If you plan to ever buy life insurance, either whole life or term, chances are you will be required to take a medical exam. Medical exams for insurance are typically conducted by paramedicals. These are health professionals that are licensed. Often paramedicals are independent contractors that insurance companies hire to visit you in your home.
Life insurance applications generally have medical questions in either Part A or Part I of the application. These questions are usually answered either by you online or by your insurance agent with you present. Part B or Part II consists of a medical form that a physician or paramedical completes.
After your life insurance company or agent receives your application they will call a paramedical service specializing in mobile exams. They will provide the paramedical service with the insurance company name, the insurance amount being applied for, as well as information about you. A majority of paramedical professionals keep themselves current on underwriting requirements of the various insurers.
What is Involved in a Medical Exam
Most medical exams can be conducted in your office or home. A majority of paramedicals do carry supplies with them such as centrifuges needed for taking a blood sample. Some insurance companies may require the attending physician statement, or APS, to come from your personal physician. However a medical exam for life insurance cannot be conducted by your own personal doctor.
A paramedical will contact you in order to schedule an appointment. If you are unable to get an appointment schedule, there is often the option of visiting an insurer specified clinic. A medical exam is not something that is option. If you don’t have one conducted your application for life insurance will not be processed. The examining physician or paramedical is paid directly by the insurance company. You won’t be financially responsibly for either the medical exam or any necessary lab work that is conducted.
For a basic medical exam, a paramedical takes your medical history, weight and height measurements, pulse and blood pressure, and urine and blood samples. Depending on your insurance company, policy amount and your age there could be additional tests that are required.
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MetLife, for example, for applicants that are 50 years old or older applying for $1 million or more in coverage orders the in-home EKG. For applications who are at least 70 years old applying for policies of $2 million or more, MetLife will forgo an exam by a paramedical and require that the exam be conducted by a MetLife selected M.D. The physicians asks the same questions that a paramedical would and gathers information on your pulse, blood pressure, weight and height. They also conduct a short medical exam.
A treadmill test could also be required the older you are and the higher the face amounts on the policy are. MetLife requires applicants who are 50 years or older applying for over $10 of life insurance to take a treadmill test. It’s also required for applicants at least 76 years old who are applying for at least $5 million of life insurance.
If you apply for a policy with a very low face value you may not even need to have a paramedical exam conducted. If you are 40 years old and apply for life insurance with a face value of $50,000, MetLife doesn’t required any specific measurements or tests. In certain circumstances MetLife will only request what is called the simple paramed exam that includes urine and blood work along with some basic measurements. It doesn’t include a list of paramedical questions. Test guideline vary depending on the life insurance company.
What are Life Insurance Companies Looking For?
What life insurance companies want to know is if there are any health conditions that you have that could potentially shorten your life, which increases the risk for the insurance company. When urine and blood samples are collected, they are tested for various things including antigens and antibodies to HIV; kidney or liver disorder; cholesterol and other lipids; diabetes; hepatitis antibodies; prostate specific antigens along with immune disorders. In terms of your urine sample, a routine analysis will be conducted, and screenings will be done for cocaine as well as other drugs and medications.
Blood can get drawn through either a needle or finger prick.
The results from your medical exam are sent directly over to the home office of your life insurance company and is reviewed by the underwriter. Usually you can request in a writing that you would like to have a copy of your exam results. Some insurance companies automatically send lab work results to you. If there is anything in the lab result that concerns you, you will need to consult with your personal physician.
An underwriter from your insurance company will review your application for life insurance along with the medical exam results. The underwriter will then determine your insurance rating. This sets the cost for your premium. If the underwriter has any further questions regarding your health, additional medical tests or information may be requested. If you unknowingly were terminally or chronically ill, which is an extremely rare event, your application for life insurance would be declined. At that point you would need to find life insurance that was guaranteed issue or a high risk insurance carrier.
If you are a smoker your life insurance premium cost will be higher due to the higher mortality rate for smokers. If there is any nicotine found in your test results, the insurance company will consider you to be a smoker. Even nicotine delivered via a transdermal patch can be detected by the test.
After Your Test Results
If the results from your medical exam correlates with the classification that was used with the premium rate quoted to you originally you won’t have any problems getting that same rate. If any medical problems are detected, a higher premium policy may be offered to you.
Risk ratings come in two types. There are flat ratings, or also known as temporary flat extras. There are also table ratings. In order to rate various health conditions, underwriters use an underwriting manual that is very tightly defined.
An underwriter, for example, may apply the flat rating in the short term for an individual who recently had surgery. A person that has high blood pressure, on the other hand, would probably get the table rating. Premiums are increased by set amounts when a table rating is used. In depends on your age and medical condition. If you don’t agree with your rating you can contact your agent. Your agent can challenge the rating. You may have to provide additional medical tests in order to prove that you are qualified to receive a better rating.
Your test results, even if you decide against the policy, becomes part of your individual record with the database of MIB Group, the clearing house for medical information shared by insurers. The information is stored for a period of seven years following your application for a critical illness, long term care, disability income, health or life insurance policy.
Around 470 insurance companies jointly own MIB Group. You need to keep n mind that if you shop around for life insurance that your medical information will be at the disposal of all the insurers. The database of MIB doesn’t contain your actual medical records. Instead it stores codes that present different medical tests and condition, hobbies that are hazardous or bad driving records.
If you would like to review your file with MIB or dispute any information that is contained within it, a free report can be obtained each year from MIB Group’s website.
Avoiding Insurance Medical Exams
Medical exams for life insurance are very routine. However if you want to avoid having to get a medical exam what you can do is purchase a policy that is a simplified issue one. These will only require you to answer a few basic medical questions. Or you can get a policy called the guaranteed issue. It doesn’t require medical questions or an exam. However, you should keep in mind that if your health is good or even if you do have some health issues, your rate will most likely be better if you purchase a policy that is underwritten. This will require you to undergo a medical exam. Policy rates for guaranteed issue and simplified issue insurance assume that you are a high risk applicant.
Tips For Better Exam Results
Many medical conditions cannot be covered up or masked. However here a few recommendations to help you get the best possible test result.
The night before taking your medical exam make sure to get plenty of rest
Don’t drink any alcohol at lest eight hours prior to taking your exam
Don’t drink soda, tea, coffee or other types of caffeinated drinks for one hour at least before taking your exam
Within 24 hours of taking your exam avoid engaging in any strenuous physical activities.
