If you feel the need for protecting the future of your loved ones and want them to have enough support to pay off any debts you have, consider life insurance for seniors with dementia.
Many people think that a decline in cognitive ability is normal as we age. Symptoms that make it difficult for you to carry out everyday tasks are indicative of the onset of dementia. You might face difficulty when trying to remember the simplest things.
However, as a senior with dementia, you should not feel discouraged as you can lead a normal life.
Life Insurance for Seniors with Dementia
Many seniors wrongfully assume that they are not eligible for life insurance if they have dementia. While many providers do not provide such support, there are others that have specific plans in place.
Hence, you do not have to feel like there is nothing you can do to protect the financial future of your family just because you have a particular health condition.
However, since dementia progresses over time, the provider will have a set of questions for you. This is important because life insurance with dementia falls under the high-risk category. There will also be some medical tests that you will have to undergo.
All of this is necessary for the provider to evaluate your current medical condition. Generally, a blood test and a urine test are requested along with other essential criteria.
Frequent Questions for Seniors with Dementia
At first, you will have to provide the necessary information such as your age, height, weight, and occupation.
Then, the provider will ask you to share details about your family’s medical history and if you have any dangerous habits, read this.
You must share information regarding your smoking and alcohol consumption habits. If you have a history of kidney, heart, or diabetes risk in your family, the provider will take this into account.
Other than the necessary information, providers also ask for some specific details in case of policies with dementia.
These include:
- The time you received the diagnosis of dementia.
- If there have been changes in memory over the past six months.
- Whether there is a strong history of cognitive disorders, such as Dementia or Alzheimer’s, in your family.
- Details about the medication prescribed to you. This is important as there is a list of medicines that can result in rejection if you have used any of them in the past.
- Information about any other health conditions you may be suffering from at the time. Since dementia patients are already considered high-risk clients, providers need to know if there are any other health problems.
- The frequency of your visits to a healthcare professional. While there isn’t any known cure for dementia, going to a doctor may indicate a chance that the cognitive decline will slow down.
Apart from asking you all these questions, the insurance provider may also talk to your doctor and go through your medical records.
All of this is a necessary part of understanding your current health condition. Later, the providers determine the coverage cost that is appropriate in your case.
Why Life Insurance?
Seniors pay a great deal of attention to the topic of life insurance. If you have loved ones to support or significant debt to take care of, you should opt for insurance coverage.
By choosing a life insurance policy, you can remain at ease and do not have to worry about the financial situation of your family members.
Also, as you do not know how dementia will progress over the years, you should think about securing the future of people you support. Such a plan helps you pay for the final expenses that will arise after your demise.
By doing this, you will give your loved ones a chance to grieve your loss instead of worrying about making payments indeed.
A life insurance plan, thus, is a financial support system that you can have in place to ensure the well-being of your family. It is the right choice for every senior as it provides them the peace of mind they are looking for.
How to Choose the Right Plan
There is no doubt that having dementia has a significant impact on your life insurance application. It is also true that most of the providers will find you ineligible for their standard policies.
However, you will be surprised to know that there are many plans out there that cater to your unique needs.
Moreover, you can even customize your program by opting for riders. Hence, you should not think life insurance is out of your reach just because you have dementia.
While you will need to disclose your condition to the insurance provider, some plans do not have any medical exam requirements. A guaranteed acceptance plan is an ideal plan for seniors suffering from cognitive disorders.
Under such a scenario, the person applying for insurance does not need to undergo extensive medical tests. This makes the process less stringent and makes coverage an option for seniors with severe health conditions.
Why Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance?
Apart from the fact that you can apply for such a policy without worrying about your health conditions, there are other benefits to such coverage.
These Include:
1. No Unpredictability
The best feature of a guaranteed acceptance life insurance policy is its consistency. It is understandable that you are not able to cope well with surprises at this stage.
Many seniors inform their agents that they are looking for something with less unpredictability. Luckily, this plan can help you achieve that goal.
In such a plan, you have to pay a fixed amount in premiums. This does not change regardless of the highs and lows in the market.
The bonus is decided upon at the time of application and therefore offers more stability. This also means that you should pay attention to the premium amount and be practical when determining the amount.
You must choose a premium that you can pay with ease over the coming years. Once this is done, you can enjoy consistency in your life insurance plan. You no longer need to worry about the well-being of your loved ones after your demise.
2. More Options
You might think that such a consistent coverage option has no room for flexibility. When, in reality, you can make different choices for your policy.
Many people believe that you have to pay a more significant amount as such a system is available for high-risk individuals only.
But, with so many providers in the market today, shopping for the right one helps considerably. There are many names in the insurance industry that offer the same coverage option at lower rates.
Thus, even with dementia, you can easily find a plan that fits your budget.
3. Final Expense Coverage
With guaranteed acceptance life insurance, you have a chance to support your loved ones even after your demise. The amount paid at the end is sufficient to pay for your final expenses.
In case you have other liabilities, you can choose a higher premium amount. This will increase the final payout and will help your family take care of the expenses.
The usual payout is up to $25,000 but can be improved by opting for a higher monthly premium.
When you know that your loved ones will be taken care of even after your demise, you can enjoy peace of mind. You no longer need to worry about how you will pay off your debts.
However, it is important to note that if you do not have any dependents or debt, you might want to consider getting burial insurance. Such coverage pays solely for final expenses and assists your loved ones after your demise.
4. Greater Chance of Acceptance
As the name implies, no exam policy offers a definite chance of getting approved. All you need to do is pay the premium on a consistent basis.
There is no requirement for giving interviews or providing extensive medical records. The minimum age to become eligible for this type of coverage is 50 years. There are also some providers that offer the same plan to individuals under 50, like this one.
5. No Expiration
While some providers have an age limit for such a policy, there are others that have no termination policy.
To avoid any changes in the life of your coverage plan, you must choose a method with no expiration. Some people also prevent the chance of outliving the policy by selecting a higher age bracket.
What to Look for in a Provider
When looking for an insurance plan while suffering from dementia, you might get varying responses. There is no doubt that you will have to explore different options before you can decide on one provider.
During this research, you are sure to run into some companies that will not find you eligible for life insurance.
However, a rejection of your application should not be a cause for concern. There are many providers out there that offer seniors with dementia the financial security they need for their loved ones.
Age & Other Requirements
The first factor to look at when deciding on the provider is age. In order to be eligible for life insurance, you must make sure that the provider caters to your age bracket.
Most of the insurers deal with clients of maximum age 80. However, there are some providers who allow seniors over 90 as well.
Moreover, you need to consider the medical requirements that a particular company has in place. There are some providers that ask you to undergo extensive medical tests and submit your history which can lead to a rejection of your application.
While suffering from dementia, you need to look for a provider that does not have a rigid policy for accepting applications.
Policies Available
As mentioned earlier, guaranteed life insurance is the best option for seniors with dementia. It is normal for people to initially feel overwhelmed since there are so many different policies available.
However, in your case, options may be limited. In fact, there aren’t too many companies that accept applications from individuals with dementia. But looking around and researching more providers can help you find one suitable for your case.
Make sure that the policy you choose has no termination period and guarantees benefits. You will also need flexibility in your plan and more options. A lot of seniors also look for riders that they can use along with their policy to enhance their coverage.
Rates
As a senior, you would not want to pay for something that you do not actually need. Before making any decisions or even looking for providers, you should do an analysis of your needs.
If you earn, it may be helpful to look for a policy that covers approximately the same amount as your monthly income.
If there are no dependents in your case, you should consider your debt situation. Having a plan that will cover your debt entirely after your demise will give you the assurance you need.
Other than that, you need coverage that pays for your final expenses. No individual wants his/her loved ones to worry about paying for the last rites instead of grieving their loss.
This is one of the most common reasons why seniors seek life insurance. While there are options that exclusively pay for this amount, such as final expense insurance, leaving a little extra amount might support your loved ones even more. For this purpose, you can consider other plans.
Bottom Line
While it is true that you will have a hard time nailing down a single company when applying for life insurance, it isn’t entirely impossible. You can seek help from an insurance agent if you feel overwhelmed by the idea of looking for one name.
An agent (Seniors Life Insurance Finder) can help you understand the different options available to you and help you get accepted for one that is the most suitable for your unique case.
