We continue to get inquiries and continue to have success in finding affordable life insurance for people with a history of sleep apnea. This is another one of those areas where the majority of companies still have a knee jerk reaction built into their underwriting guidelines that produces either a highly rated or decline outcome.
This outcome could be appropriate in some cases of severe apnea combined with other risk factors such as morbid obesity and poorly controlled blood pressure. The problem is that the majority of companies don’t allow for the fact that there are different levels of severity and different levels of control. To put it simply, from a mortality impact standpoint there is a huge difference between poorly controlled severe sleep apnea with other risk factors, and, for lack of a better term, your garden variety well controlled mild sleep apnea with no other risk factors.
Generally speaking, from an underwriting standpoint, if the apnea is mild to moderate, well controlled by use of a cpap, and the user is compliant with use and followup, rates as good as preferred can be found. Preferred rates would obviously be contingent on the person meeting preferred guidelines in all other areas. Well controlled sleep apnea and a build of 6’0, 330#’s doesn’t get you there.
Bottom line. An independent agent should know what questions to ask and what companies to shop your business to in order to get the most bang for your life insurance buck.
My 20 years of experience give me the knowledge and leverage to find reasonably-priced life insurance for people who have been declined or are paying more than they need to.
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