Kidney Transplant Insurance Questions & Answers

How do life insurance underwriters view people who have had a kidney transplant?

Obtaining life insurance for people with a kidney transplant is extremely difficult because life insurance companies view the transplant of such a major and vital organ as being very risky to insure.

Although great strides have occurred in organ transplants and the success rate for survival is longer, many insurers will not issue a traditional life insurance policies for those who have had a kidney transplant.

A small handful of insurers may approve a traditional policy but only after a period of time has elapsed and there have been no relapses or extenuating physical symptoms. Key to finding a traditional policy will depend on your age and how well you have responded to the immunosuppressant medications.

Those companies which might be amendable to issuing a policy will likely give a person who has had a successful transplant a much lower rating which can result in a very expensive policy.

Finding life insurance for people with a kidney transplant will be exceptionally challenging and may be cost prohibitive for those who are approved for a traditional life insurance policy.

What are the health risks of a kidney transplant?

There are a number of potential health threatening issues that can occur from having a kidney transplant.

One of the most dangerous is that the donor kidney can be rejected by the host body resulting in kidney failure. Other health effects that stem from a kidney transplant include the potential for a higher risk of infection because all transplant patients require the use of immunosuppressant medications to prevent the body from rejecting the donor kidney.

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Other health problems which may arise can occur from the side effects caused by the immunosuppressant medications. Other diseases can also be transmitted through blood transfusions during the surgery or through the donor kidney itself such as HIV, hepatitis and other types of diseases.

Failure of the transplanted kidney could require ongoing dialysis for the duration of the person’s life.

Finding life Insurance with a kidney transplant

Finding life insurance for people with a kidney transplant will be very difficult for the majority of individuals because of the high degree of potential health related problems that can stem from a transplant.

The majority of insurers will issue an automatic decline for most traditional life insurance policies. A handful of companies may issue a policy but only after a certain period of time has elapsed since the transplant was completed. These policies can be very expensive.

There are other policies available which can be obtained such as a Guarantee Issue life insurance policy or a Critical Illness policy. These policies can be obtained through an experienced independent broker or through those companies which specialize in high risk life insurance.

Several quotes should be obtained because these policies can also vary from insurer to insurer and may have certain restrictions that apply. Premiums are more expensive for these policies and premiums can fluctuate significantly.

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