Do They Drug Test For Life Insurance? Avoid It Or Fail To Purchase Policies

Some insurers require the applicants to undergo a medical exam and or answer the health questions. But, some of them may not need it when they offer several or all life insurance policies. Do they drug test for life insurance?

Up to now, the life insurance companies with drug test requirements are still rare but it does not mean there aren’t. Generally, the insurers will deny people to purchase their life policies if they are indicated drug abuse. Let’s find out the real fact by learning this reference!

When Do Life Insurance Companies Do Drug Tests?

The life insurers require a drug test to make sure their applicants do not the drug abuse. It is important to know because the death because of overdosage is not covered by the insurers. Usually, the insurers are only willing to cover the death as the result of an accident, terminal illness, disability, chronic illness, and other legal health conditions.

The drug test is needed for the policyholders with specific professions such as pilot and heavy equipment operators. Those professions work by concerning the health and safety of others. So, they do not allow consuming drugs and harming others.

The insurers require drug tests to receive or reject people in purchasing life insurance. The signs of drug abuse will see from the drug test result and the insurer will deny it if they use the drug. If the insurer receives their purchasing, it may affect high premium rates.

Additionally, many countries legalize the use of marijuana and consumers must be aware of local laws regarding testing. Do they drug test for life insurance? Of course, the life insurers in these countries must do the drug test.

How to Drug Test?

A drug test is commonly done by conducting a medical exam and some life insurers have applied it. One of the medical exam procedures is a urine test and it is done after a phone interview. The urine test will give underwriters a full picture of the current applicant’s health condition.

In detail, the urine test will show:

Health Issues

The main purpose of a medical exam through undergoing a urine test is to know someone’s health condition. After analyzing the urine sample, the life insurer can determine various health risks such as diabetes, liver problems, or kidney infection.

Drug Use

Inadvertently, this kind of medical test can detect whether you are a drug abuser or not and what drugs you consume. In detail, the urine test detects drugs like amphetamines/methamphetamines, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, cocaine, opiates, phencyclidine (PCP), and methadone.

You are ineligible for coverage if you are using hard drugs or painkillers without a doctor’s prescription. The doctor or healthcare facilities give the drug prescription to heal specific diseases. Meanwhile, consuming drugs without a prescription is called illegal and harms themselves.

Nicotine And Cotinine

Next, a urine test can be used to detect nicotine and cotinine in someone’s body. They include alkaloids and are typically found in tobacco. The urine test can detect it though these essences have stayed in the body for at least several days.

Each body has a different ability to process nicotine. If the policyholder is a tobacco user, they allow purchasing a life insurance policy. But, they may pay two to three times more premium costs than non-smoker policyholders.

How To Avoid Urine Test

Do they drug test for life insurance or they can avoid it? Surely, you can avoid urine tests when you do not want them. It is easy as you quite look for a life insurer with no medical exam and health question qualifications.

Although your life insurance policy does not require this test, they keep giving comparable or even lower rates. It implies the urine test is relatively unintrusive. Can policyholders retake the life insurance medical test?

In some cases, the policyholder may retake the medical test if the insurer finds a drastically abnormal reading. Typically, it occurs when the policyholder show anomaly results such as high blood pressure it does not emerge before.

However, they cannot retake their medical test if rugs are detected in their urine. The insurer will reject their policy or receive higher premium rates. Failing drug tests also makes people lose employment.

Drug Testing For Group And Individual

A life insurance policy offered in a group or through an employer often does not require drug testing. It belongs to a prerogative right as it is more applied to the professions with the health and safety of others as a primary concern. It is such as medical professionals, judges, military personnel, airline pilots, and heavy machinery operators.

So, do they drug test for life insurance? Well, it depends on the life insurer and the types of policyholder’s profession. Meanwhile, the drug test can be required by the insurer if the life insurance policy is applying for individually (privacy).

Unluckily, some insurers do not available the drug test and charge a higher premium to mitigate the risk. Surely, policyholders may ask for the test if they are charged high premium rates without undergoing the drug test. This way may lower the premium cost though the request type is not approved.

Impact Of Drug Use On Life Insurance (Past & Current)

The use of drugs gives a big impact on life insurance policies both it is used in the past and current. When the insurer requires information on drug use, the policyholder should be honest.

If you do not disclose it, you may cancel your policy purchasing. Even though, the insurer may receive the application with the death benefit deduction when something happens to the applicants.

Past Drug Usage

Do not worry if you are past drug use and feel free to admit it to the life insurance companies. Past drug use does not always impact life insurance purchasing. You may still have a chance to purchase at the normal premium rate or approved.

The insurer still considers the use of drugs in the past to buy the policy. Usually, they will see the kind of drug and how long ago you gave up using narcotics. A similar premium rate will be given if the policyholders haven’t used illegal drugs for many years.

Current Drug Usage

Vice versa, most insurers are concerned with current or very recent drug use. Do they drug test for life insurance? Yes, of course! Moreover, this kind of applicant has a much more profound impact to get a life insurance plan.

The insurer will detect whether you as currently drug use or not by requiring urine or blood test. Even, you are required to undergo a hair test (rare occur) when you buy the life insurance products. Additionally, you likely have to do multiple tests to avoid false positives.

Legal Drugs For Life Insurance

What does it mean to legal drugs for life insurance shopping? Some insurers allow the applicants with a drug use history or current use to purchase their life coverage plans. They allow buying the product under specific requirements.

Generally, permission will be given if the applicant can prove their drug usage is under their doctor’s prescription. Some drugs such as nicotine and opiates are legal but marijuana is legal in current locations.

Although legal drug use has a chance to purchase life insurance, the process is not a piece of cake. The insurers still see how great risk to the company if the applicants consume narcotics.

The insurer also feels to find it riskier to insure you if the prescription medication often becomes addictive. So, do they drug test for life insurance? The point is applicants with legal or illegal drug use only have a limited chance to purchase or they will get a denial.

Avoid Drug Test By Purchasing No-Medical-Exam Life Insurance Policies

No-medical-exam life policy is the life policy product without physical requirements for underwriting approval. Even though, a life insurance policy with no medical exam has higher premium rates and the coverage option is limited.

A life insurance policy without a medical exam remains giving a little few cons. It is such as a waiting period to get approval and the death benefit may not be paid in full if the policy is before two years of purchasing.

Nonetheless, many life insurers are willing to reimburse at least 110% of cash value from monthly premiums. It is applied to the policyholder who dies before the waiting period expires.

Three Types Of Non-Medical-Exam Life Insurance

There are three kinds of no-medical-exam life policies to avoid a drug test. It includes simplified issues, guaranteed acceptance, and group life insurance.

Simplified Issue

A simplified issue life insurance plan is offered only by completing a health questionnaire. It focuses on a general sense of the applicant’s health overall and it is typically short.

The simplified issue policy offers various coverage limitations between $100,000 and $500,000. Certainly, it depends on the life insurer but this kind of simplified issue is offered for people up to age 75. The non-medical exam is applied for the term and permanent life insurance plans.

Guaranteed Acceptance

Do they drug test for life insurance if the purchase guaranteed acceptance? The next life insurance without a medical exam is guaranteed acceptance but it is typically more expensive. The policy is also known as guaranteed issue or final expense insurance and it always grants eligibility to people.

You can purchase guaranteed acceptance to cover burial and other end-of-life costs. Truthfully, the guaranteed acceptance belongs to permanent whole life insurance with the coverage amounts up to $50,000. Nonetheless, some insurers restrict it to lower amounts.

Group Life Insurance

Group life insurance is the last no-medical-exam policy offered and it is usually provided in the form of an employer-sponsored plan. Additionally, it is found as a part of a company’s benefits package.

The group life insurance does not require a physical and the premium is often discounted. It is a single policy to cover, several different people.

How To Buy Life Insurance Without A Medical Exam

Purchasing life insurance policies without a medical exam can be done in several ways. Firstly, it can be purchased via phone by calling the customer service of the life insurer. Secondly, you can do this by visiting the available official website and applying for the application online.

Next, you may fill flyer from an insurer and return it to get coverage. Add contact information to get follow-up from the company. Lastly, purchase non-medical-exam life insurance through an agent with multiple different quotes.

Final Words

Life insurance products are divided into two types based on medical tests and no medical exam. The no-medical-exam life insurance policy is often used to avoid drug tests as it can fail their purchasing. Drug usage can fail the policy shopping or make the premium rates increase.

Do they drug test for life insurance? Fortunately, drug test in the life insurance policy is still uncommon. However, it may happen during the medical exam by undergoing a urine test or blood test.