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Can I get life insurance if I don’t have a COVID Vaccine?

The U.S. COVID-19 Vaccination Program began December 14, 2020, and by now you may have heard the viral Instagram claim that you may be denied life insurance, or your beneficiaries will be denied insurance benefits if you are not 100% vaccinated according to the CDC recommendations.

We can confirm that your current COVID vaccination status will not decrease the probability of you being approved for a life insurance policy, additionally your vaccination status will not determine the premiums you will pay in the present. As information regarding COVID-19 evolves policies may also change to parallel the information that has accumulated.

If you are vaccinated with the Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines, you are not receiving what’s still considered by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to be an “experimental” vaccine. Instead, these companies have an emergency use authorization from the FDA. Therefore, if you are vaccinated for COVID-19, you are still eligible for life insurance—as some experimental vaccines will disqualify your life insurance.

The American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) recently issued a press release to reassure life insurance policy holders, stating:

Life insurance policy contracts are very clear on how policies work, and what cause, if any, might lead to the denial of a benefit. A vaccine for COVID-19 is not one of them. Policyholders should rest assured that nothing has changed in the claims-paying process as a result of COVID-19 vaccinations.

Why life insurers aren’t factoring in vaccinations

In general, most life insurers do not request information regarding immunizations (for any virus/disease) through the application process and have no plans to ask about the COVID-19 vaccine. Even if you take a life insurance medical exam, you are not required to share vaccine history. Therefore, most life insurers do not evaluate your vaccination history before determining whether to issue you a policy.

This will remain the same for the COVID-19 Vaccine. Life insurance policies are very clear on how they work and what causes, if any, might lead to the denial of a claim. A policyholder’s decision to receive or not to receive a vaccine for COVID-19 isn’t one of them.

The American Council of Life Insurers, individual insurance companies and regulators in several states released statements saying COVID-19 vaccine is not a current factor in determining whether an insurer will pay out on a life insurance policy. With that being said however, this is liable to change as COVID-19 and vaccine rates are evaluated in the coming future.

Does the current coronavirus pandemic make it more important to have life insurance?

At Sprouse, we don’t believe that COVID-19 should have an affect on whether or not you choose to have life insurance. Instead, we suggest, when determining if you need life insurance and what level of coverage you need, you should consider the following information:

  • Do you provide care or financial support to any of your family members?
  • Are you married?
  • Do you have dependent children?
  • Do you have any debt?

If you answered yes to any of the bullets above, its important that you consider protecting those you love with a life insurance policy, regardless of your vaccine status.

If you’re still concerned about how the COVID-19 vaccine will affect your life insurance, please call us for more information.

how can we help you?

Contact us at the Sprouse office nearest to you or submit a contact form.

Have questions about your insurance coverage?

Contact Sprouse Insurance to review your policies