Effects of being poz on life insurance

[Memcub]

What effects does being  poz have on life insurance policies? I had to get tested when I got the policies, so just wondering what would happen.

Edited January 17, 2021 by Memcub

[Guest]

All depends on a lot of things, read all the fine print and go from there, about all ins. companies are different about these things. I also had to be tested before hand and also had to answer questions about sex habits, so they could make a judgement on the risks.

[Cuteguy69]

I have to go on life insurance soon 

after a year that the wife work for them it’s a law here

but now am on the government and it’s paid 100%
and insurance is only 80%

[Guest Somebody]

If you already own the policy, and then become HIV+, it should make no difference whatsoever.  It would be no different than say purchasing a policy when one was cancer free, and then later developing terminal cancer.  The life insurance company would honor the policy as written.

At one time, if someone was HIV+, they would automatically be declined life insurance if they applied.  It took a while for the life insurance companies to catch up to the success of HIV meds, but most, if not all, have, and will now underwrite HIV+ individuals.  I am not sure what kind of rating is issued as I have been away from that business for too long.  An off-hand guess would be a Smoker Rating.  Someone with HIV would certainly pay a higher premium than someone who is negative.  I speak from a USA perspective, and have no idea what applies in other countries.

Also, one could conjure up all sorts of scenarios with special circumstances.  For instance, say someone purchased a Term Policy that has a Conversion (To a Permanent Policy) Clause in it, and subsequently that person becomes HIV+.  Can they still convert the Term insurance into Permanent insurance?  That would depend, in part, on whether the Conversion Clause requires proof of insurability or not.  If proof of insurability is required, do the underwriting standards in place when the original Term Policy was issued apply, or do the current underwriting standards apply?  My point to all of this is that sometimes these things can get somewhat complex.  When they do, nothing is more valuable than a GOOD agent who is both capable and willing to read an existing contract with a fine-tooth comb, and then make the necessary inquiries at headquarters.

For what it is worth, when I was in the business, both Prudential and MetLife were very "gay friendly" with large marketing staffs dedicated to the LGBT market.  MetLife spun-off their retail business, and only sells group (employer provided) insurance as I understand it so I suspect that no longer exists as such.

Also, in the USA, keep in mind that insurance is regulated at the state level so insurance law varies from state to state.  While there is often some general congruity between states, some states such as New York and New Jersey have radically different laws.  So much so that most insurance companies doing business in New York and/or New Jersey have separate subsidiaries dedicated to just those states.  The point to this is that what might be true in say Oregon, may not be true in say Virginia.  I believe that the law in the state where the policy was originally purchased would govern, in case for instance someone has moved, but that is another question for a GOOD agent.

[Guest Somebody]

Life insurance for HIV+ individuals is apparently not as widespread as I may have implied above.  I had heard a number of years ago that Prudential had started underwriting it, and given how competitive the market is, I assumed that it would be relatively common by now.  Some online research revealed that Prudential was indeed a leader in this area, and there are a number of companies offering it.  However, it is not nearly as widespread as I suspected.  Moreover, the underwriting process can be somewhat complicated.  The good news is that it is available.

[wood]

Unfortunately, being HIV+ will still exclude you from many policies. I forget the specifics, but I have a friend who works in life insurance, and being HIV+ is a deal breaker for many policies 

[BootmanLA]

20 hours ago, Tallallman said:

Life insurance for HIV+ individuals is apparently not as widespread as I may have implied above.  I had heard a number of years ago that Prudential had started underwriting it, and given how competitive the market is, I assumed that it would be relatively common by now.  Some online research revealed that Prudential was indeed a leader in this area, and there are a number of companies offering it.  However, it is not nearly as widespread as I suspected.  Moreover, the underwriting process can be somewhat complicated.  The good news is that it is available.

Correct. There are several companies which DO offer life insurance (both term or whole) to HIV-positive individuals, but there are a number of "catches".

First, the cost is going to be higher than for someone who is HIV-negative. How much higher depends on the company.

Second, there are several other things which (depending on the company) might exclude you from getting coverage. For instance, if you've had hepatitis, you could be out of luck. If you've had any AIDS-defining illness (ie Kaposi sarcoma, pneumocystis pneumonia, wasting syndrome, cytomegalovirus disease, etc.) then you're almost certainly out luck, Another big no-no is intravenous drug use - that's essentially a guaranteed NO.

Third, they'll order their own HIV tests and other bloodwork (drug screens, etc.) and no doubt will require submission of your medical records. They're likely to require two or more years of being undetectable on a regular basis, be under an HIV specialist's care, and be no older than a given age (say, 60). The age limit is so that they can get enough years of premiums out of you before you're expected to kick off and still make some money on your payments.

I'd imagine some states have more companies competing in this space than other states - several in California, for instance, not so many in Wyoming. 

 

[fskn]

A suggestion for people who might come across this thread in the future:

Many large public and private employers in the US offer group term life insurance. (Occasionally, an employee union, rather than the employer, contracts with the insurance company.) A certain level of coverage (several hundred thousand dollars flat, or several times one's yearly salary) is guaranteed without health review, as long as you sign up soon (typically, 30 days) after you start. The price is low (typically, in the tens of dollars per month).

The caveats are that you must act fast upon starting a new job, and that your coverage will end when your employment ends. Conversion to an individual term life policy may be possible, but this is not an absolute right. If conversion is possible, the coverage level, terms, and price will likely be less generous, and a health review could be required.

If other people are financially dependent on you, and HIV makes it impossible for you to get adequate and affordable life insurance in the individual market, accepting a job with a group term life insurance benefit could be a solution.

For the "guaranteed issue" amount, if you have the choice between a flat dollar amount and a multiple of your salary, keep in mind that a flat dollar amount can't easily be increased (you'd have to submit to medical review or wait for an incentive enrollment offer from the employer/union/insurer/benefits administrator — only happens when not enough coverage is being sold, and may never happen), whereas the salary multiple will rise over time, with your salary.

[Close2MyBro]

In 2020, California passed a law prohibiting insurance companies from denying any kind of insurance coverage based on HIV status.

It reads as follows - An insurer shall not decline an application or enrollment request for coverage under a policy or certificate for life insurance or disability income insurance based solely on the results of a positive HIV test, regardless of when or at whose direction the test was performed. Notwithstanding any other law, this article does not prevent or otherwise restrict an insurer from refusing to insure an applicant that is HIV positive, limiting the amount, extent, or kind of coverage for an applicant that is HIV positive, or charging a different rate to an applicant that is HIV positive, if the refusal, limitation, or charge is based on sound actuarial principles and actual or reasonably anticipated experience.

Unfortunately, a lot of states will still deny coverage, or charge a significantly higher premium as a result. Another less known effect of HIV is that most insurers will immediately decline you for long-term/elder care care coverage. So if you wanted to try to buy a policy to cover nursing home expenses, most insurers would deny you immediately and deem you uninsurable.

The insurance industry has been reluctant to get with the times and acknowledge that HIV is no longer a killer disease but a manageable medical condition with normally expected life spans if managed properly.