There’s an old saying in insurance: You’ll never be younger than you are today. That’s important, because many insurance costs can go up with age. The older you are, the more likely you are to trigger some or all of your health and life insurance.
Critical illness insurance covers a set amount of costs resulting from a critical illness: cancer, heart attack, stroke, and more.
For the same reasons, it makes sense to pick up additional insurance as you age. With those years come more chances something negative will happen, leaving you to rely on savings or retirement to pay hospital costs. You’ll want the added help an insurance policy can bring. While health insurance can and will cover some bills, you’ll still need to think about lost wages, and travel to treatments, and sometimes the cost of those treatments themselves, if they’re experimental or otherwise outside coverage.
So, can you qualify for critical illness insurance when you’re 50 years old or older?
What Is Critical Illness Insurance?
First, let’s define what we’re talking about. Critical illness insurance covers a set amount of costs resulting from a critical illness: cancer, heart attack, stroke, and more. Policies can be crafted to custom-fit your needs, from the length of the policy to the amount of payout to the circumstances covered.
You’ll also need to decide between a Simplified Issue policy, which can pay out less but does not require medical clearance, and a Fully Underwritten policy, which does require a medical check but can also cover more illnesses and pay more money.
How Does Age Factor?
Many policies do have a maximum age to purchase; commonly, you’ll need to be under 65 to 70 years old, though of course the exact age will depend on your insurance carrier. In addition, health difficulties can become more common with increased age, which means a medical check may disqualify you for higher levels of insurance.
No two circumstances are alike, and policies can vary to fit your needs. We recommend you speak with a licensed insurance Agent to decide how your age and medical background could affect a critical illness policy.