Insurance Center

There has been a recent surge in advertisements and offers for “life insurance no medical.” This is attributable to a product called “quick-issue” life insurance. The product itself is not new. The youngest and healthiest adults have long had the privilege of applying for life insurance by answering a series of medical questions rather than having to undergo a medical exam. Favorable answers to the questions can get a life-insurance policy accepted and issued very quickly – perhaps within minutes on the Internet, or at most within a few days.

Quick-issue life insurance has exploded in popularity because of two revolutionary developments: the ease of information exchange over the Internet and the elevation of public awareness of and access to health-care information. Steady increases in life expectancy are the clearest sign of a new public resolve to take an active individual role in health care. Of course, technological improvements in health care have improved longevity, but public attitudes have increased the demand for health-giving innovations.

An interesting side effect of increased life expectancy has been a reduction in the discovery benefits of life-insurance medical exams. The exam is costly to the insurance company as well as to the applicant. It is only worthwhile if enough new information about health risks is uncovered to offset the costs of the examination.