Underwriting knockouts and workarounds: the general patterns behind diabetes, COPD, heart history and cancer

Every carrier's guide is different and they change, so this is the shape of the problem, not a rate table. Post the specific case in this room for specific answers.

Diabetes. The questions that decide the tier are usually age at diagnosis, insulin use and when it started, control as shown by A1C, and complications like neuropathy, kidney involvement or amputations. Oral-only, well-controlled, diagnosed later in life is a different profile from insulin since 30.

COPD and breathing. Oxygen use is the common hard stop for level tiers. Inhaler-only with no hospitalizations often has a home. Recent hospital stays for breathing move the case down.

Heart history. Timing is everything: a stent five years ago with no events since reads differently from one last spring. Heart failure and defibrillators are usually their own category.

Cancer. Type, stage, treatment end date and current status. Many carriers want a specific number of years since treatment ended for level; graded and guaranteed issue exist for the rest.

Mental health and substance use. Hospitalizations, medication changes and dates matter more than the diagnosis label.

Build. Height and weight charts knock out more cases than agents expect. Ask early.

The workaround is rarely a trick. It's the right tier at the right carrier, asked with complete information the first time.