Speak with an experienced advisor! If you have epilepsy, you’ve come to the right place for epilepsy life insurance approval. Having epilepsy or any other medical condition does not make you ineligible for life insurance. It is, however, important to work with a life insurance specialist familiar with this condition and other medical impairments.
What is epilepsy?
Epilepsy is a brain disorder that causes a person to have repeated seizures or convulsions. The seizures can be infrequent or frequent. If you had a single seizure, it would not be classified as epilepsy. To be diagnosed with epilepsy, you must have a history of repeated seizure events.
Not everyone who experiences a seizure has epilepsy.
What causes epilepsy?
Epilepsy occurs when tissue in the brain sends out abnormal signals to the body. A seizure happens when your brain’s electrical system does not function properly.
The symptoms of epilepsy for some people may be violent shaking, some will experience a loss of awareness or alertness, and some will have staring spells.
Can I get life insurance with epilepsy?
Yes. Your approval for life insurance will depend on:
- Your diagnosis date for epilepsy (what age were you diagnosed)?
- The type of seizures you experience (grand mal, petit mal, absence, and tonic-clonic seizures)
- The date of your last epileptic seizure
- The frequency of your epileptic seizures
- Any hospitalizations from your epilepsy
- Do you have any other underlying health issues?
- Do you drive a vehicle?
- Any hazardous occupations or activities?
- Your medications
Types of epilepsy:
Petite Mal Seizure (Absence Seizure) – Petite mal seizures result in staring spells (staring off into space); these are also called absence seizures. Absence seizures often last about 15 seconds and are caused by abnormal electrical signals in the brain.
Grand Mal Seizure (Tonic Clonic Seizure) – Grand mal seizures result in the entire body convulsing and is what most people think of when they hear the term “epilepsy.” Grand mal seizures may also be called generalized tonic-clonic seizures.
Simple Partial Seizure – Simple partial seizures occur while the person is awake; they are alert, and they can interact during the event. The seizures can be autonomic seizures, motor seizures, physic seizures, or sensory seizures.
Complex Partial Seizure – Complex partial seizures occur while the person is awake, and they may be unaware of their surroundings. The seizures often come with a warning sign (such as an aura) and typically last 1 to 2 minutes.
Epilepsy statistics
Only 1% of Americans will develop epilepsy in their lifetime. Each year, about 150,000 Americans are diagnosed with a central nervous system disorder that results in seizures.
There are around 2.5 to 3,000,000 people in the United States with epilepsy. Only about one in every 26 people will experience recurring seizures.
Risk factors for epilepsy:
- Age – epilepsy may occur at any age, but more people are diagnosed in childhood and after age 60 than other age range.
- Brain infections – infections such as meningitis that cause inflammation of the brain or spinal cord may increase your chance of developing epilepsy.
- Childhood seizures – some childhood seizures are not caused by epilepsy. As a child, high fevers may cause seizures. As these individuals grow older, some may eventually develop epilepsy.
- Dementia – older adults experiencing dementia and a decline in mental function may also develop epilepsy.
- Family history – if you have family members who have epilepsy, you are more likely to be diagnosed with epilepsy.
- Head injuries – previous injuries, falls, concussions to your head may cause epilepsy later in life.
- Vascular disease – blood vessel disease or strokes cause damage to the brain. Damage to any area of the brain may cause seizures and eventually lead to an epilepsy diagnosis.
What is the cost for epilepsy life insurance?
The cost of your life insurance will depend on your epilepsy condition and other factors. Insurance companies will consider your overall health, any other illnesses like high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes you are experiencing, your age, your height and weight, and other factors.
Underwriting requirements differ from insurance company to insurance company. What would be an acceptable risk for one insurance company is an unacceptable risk for another insurance company. We work with all the top insurance companies and can find you a plan that will work for your budget.
What will my insurance premium be with epilepsy?
If you have not had seizures for many years and take no medications, you may qualify for preferred or preferred plus rates.
If you have not had seizures the last few years, and your condition is well-controlled with medications, we often see clients coming back at a standard rate class.
If you have not had seizures the last few years, and your condition is well-controlled with medications, we often see clients getting approved with a standard-rate class.
Some of the most rewarding cases we have gotten approved for clients have been for seizure sufferers who had been denied life insurance by many companies in the past before finding us. We were able to get them affordable life insurance that protected their loved ones when they passed, and we were able to fit it into their budget.
Non-medical or fully-underwritten life insurance for epilepsy?
We have no preference either way on this, other than going with a policy that will offer you the highest chance of approval for our epilepsy clients.
If you have some medical conditions that will result in a rating of standard or less; non-medical policies offer easy approval and competitive rates.
Fully-underwritten policies will require a blood test, urine test, physician statement, and a more intensive medical background check that may result in more declines if you have multiple medical impairments.
We will help you to understand your options and help you to apply for the best plan, at the best rates, with the best chance for approval.
What if I have been declined for life insurance with epilepsy?
If your epilepsy is under control with medication and lifestyle changes, then the agent you used applied to the wrong life insurance company. There are companies out there that will accept your medical condition, and having epilepsy is not a reason to avoid purchasing life insurance.
Conclusion
If you have been diagnosed with migraine headaches, call us to help you understand your life insurance options.
At Life Wealth Win, we specialize in healthy to high-risk life insurance cases. We can help you understand your life insurance options with migraines or any other medical problems.
We work with clients across the nation to get the best life insurance rates possible. If you have migraines, we can help you get the best life insurance rates.
