Life Insurance for Cancer Patients - What You Need To Know

Final Expense Life Insurance for Cancer Patients

Last Updated November 23, 2024

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Can I get life insurance with cancer

Cancer Statistics At a Glance

  • The most common cancers (listed in descending order according to estimated new cases in 2020) are breast cancer, lung and bronchus cancer, prostate cancer, colon and rectum cancer, melanoma of the skin, bladder cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, kidney and renal pelvis cancer, endometrial cancer, leukemia, pancreatic cancer, thyroid cancer, and liver cancer.
  • Approximately 39.5% of men and women will be diagnosed with cancer at some point during their lifetimes (based on 2015–2017 data).
  • The rate of new cases of cancer (cancer incidence) is 442.4 per 100,000 men and women each year (based on 2013–2017 cases).
Source: Cancer.gov

Can You Get No Medical Exam Life Insurance If You Have Cancer?

Yes, no medical exam life insurance for cancer patients is still available to people who have been diagnosed with cancer. While your options may be restricted, getting insurance for cancer patients can provide valuable financial security for you and your family.

A cancer diagnosis is fraught with anxiety and uncertainty. You don’t have to be concerned about your capacity to purchase life insurance for cancer patients as well.

If you haven’t yet, check out our article on The Best Final Expense Insurance For Smokers.

What Are the Terms of No Medical Exam Life Insurance for Cancer Patients?

The terms of the final expense life insurance policy depends on current diagnosis. We’ve provided a few examples below. 

If you’re currently receiving treatment for cancer, your only option will be what’s known as Guaranteed Issue Life Insurance for cancer patients. 

If you’ve been cancer and treatment free for 3+ years, you’ll often qualify for modified or graded life insurance for cancer patients. Some Carriers will actually give you standard level underwriting meaning no waiting periods. 

The good news is, even with a pre-existing condition like Cancer, you can absolutely still get a final expense life insurance for cancer patients to cover your funeral expenses. This does pose a risk to insurers since they may have to pay out benefits sooner, but there still is hope.

Underwriting To Expect Regarding No Medical Exam Life Insurance

As a general rule of thumb, all insurers will ask about a potential cancer diagnosis. Not all cancer related questions have the same intensity or hold the same weight, though. For example, an insurer may ask you the date of your diagnosis, or how long you’ve been cancer free.

Generally, two years is the minimum answer insurers will accept before they outright deny you automatically. If you find yourself comfortably past this two year range, and don’t expect remission during the application process, then you are fine in most circumstances. Although two years is standard, some may inquire with an expected four year time frame.

“Cancer Treatment?” Questionnaire Questions

Insurance companies will inevitably evaluate their risk when insuring you through various medical questions, or through an actual medical exam. Required medical examination is only a part of the most affordable term insurance plans. If no medical exam is required, then a medical questionnaire would be included.

Medical questionnaires can range and differ depending on who is hosting the underwriting evaluation. Regardless of the specifications of the questionnaire, they will always inquire about cancer, cancer history, or cancer recovery. 

How Cancer Affects Your Life Insurance

If you have cancer or have had cancer within the last two years, most life insurance providers will offer you a policy that doesn’t necessarily guarantee  coverage, until you reach a certain waiting period wherein you are entitled to the coverage you applied for.

This may make the initial coverage option null, depending on your  circumstances or if you don’t foresee yourself making it to that two year waiting period, or if the coverage amount’s premium invalidates the coverage amount.

You also may be outright denied coverage by certain companies, or forced to apply multiple times for the coverage that best fits your needs. If you’re not thrilled to experience this alone, then we urge you to give us a call.

Here at Final Expense Benefits, we make it our life’s mission to ease the process for you and your family.

Final Expense Benefits
(866) 311-4338

No Medical Exam Life Insurance Options For Cancer Patients

Thankfully, here at Final Expense Benefits, we contract with only the top senior life insurance companies. If you’re a senior on a fixed income, a senior with cancer, or have recovered/are recovering from cancer, we work with carriers like;

We’d like to reassure you that there are a plethora of options regarding how you would like to handle funeral expenses when you have or had cancer, and as stated above, carry a very wide range of costs and features. If you’re interested in partaking in these costs, but aren’t sure how to prepare properly, then consider these options.

What If Im Stage 4?

Generally, at this point, one would only qualify for a guaranteed issue plan at an adjusted rate, WITH a low death benefit, usually maxing out at $50,000. This may or may not be the case, depending on who you’ve discussed your options with, but it’s a good rule of thumb to consider. 

Although not too enticing, this may be better than not having any coverage at all, and some guaranteed issue plans can still contain riders that may allow you to access benefits early if qualifications are met.

How Does Cancer Affect My Payout

As we discussed briefly above, current or recent experiences with cancer may disqualify, or raise the rate in which you qualify for an insurance policy. There’s also usually a waiting period involved with policies associated with current cancer patients.

The general minimum is a 2 year minimum waiting period, which is probably in place in the unlikely event that unforeseen circumstances occur.

How much does final expense insurance cost?

On average, final expense insurance for cancer patients can cost between $40 and $170 per month.

This is going to depend on what the current diagnosis of your Cancer is and how it’s managed. As long as your condition is manageable, your monthly premium should be affordable for final expense insurance.

It takes minutes to apply and some of the top insurance carriers don’t even ask you medical questions.

Our Picks For The Best No Medical Exam Life Insurance Companies For Cancer Patients

Plenty of companies that offer burial insurance cover seniors with that currently have Cancer or have made a successful recovery.

We recommend AIG as our go to carrier for individuals with an active cancer diagnosis due to no medical underwriting, flexible payment options and affordable monthly premiums.

We recommend Americo as our go to carrier for individuals who have successfully recovered from cancer. They allow individuals who have been cancer free for 2 years to receive standard underwriting assuming no other medical complications.

Conclusion

Pre-existing conditions can make it seem impossible to find a no medical exam life insurance plan to take care of your family.

We are here to say, you still have hope. A final expense life insurance is the absolute best option for you if you have a pre-existing condition, like cancer.

Call us today at 1 866-311-4338 and let our licensed agent bring you and your family, peace of mind.