Health IQ and Protective Life launched a first-of-its-kind life insurance product today that will provide well-managed diabetics living a healthy lifestyle a more cost effective option for protecting their families, while encouraging them to live long, healthy lives.
The new life insurance offering was designed using Health IQ’s proprietary data, the latest scientific research, and Protective’s innovative underwriting. This collaboration developed a unique insurance offering for individuals with Type 2 diabetes that are committed to living a healthy lifestyle that could qualify them for lower rates on their term life insurance.
“Type 2 diabetes should not define your health destiny or be the only deciding factor in pricing your life insurance. While none of us can fully control the health cards we’re dealt, we can control how we play those cards,” said Munjal Shah, Health IQ CEO.
With November being Diabetes Awareness Month, Health IQ and Protective are excited to be able to announce this offering on World Diabetes Day, November 14th, and invite everyone to a discussion around common issues individuals with diabetes face online using the hashtag #DiabetesAwarenessMonth.
Life Insurance For Diabetics in America
Today’s release represents an important modernization and major step forward for the insurance industry. By using technology and science to more accurately measure long-term health risk, the Health IQ and Protective collaboration will help millions of Americans living with diabetes access a new, cost effective life insurance option.
The launch comes as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that more than 30 million U.S. adults are now living with diabetes, and 84 million are living with prediabetes. Because a diabetes diagnosis can impact premiums, some Americans with diabetes find it challenging to afford life insurance.
“Many diabetics work hard to successfully manage their disease and live long, healthy lives,” said Aaron Seurkamp, SVP, Life & Annuity Executive, Protective. “In partnering with Health IQ, we hope to provide more options to those who diligently manage their diabetes and help millions of responsible Americans get the coverage they want.”
This offering will provide a new and more attractive alternative for insurance coverage for these individuals. While this product is initially for individuals living with Type 2 diabetes, Health IQ hopes to model a similar product for individuals living with Type 1 in the future.
Maintaining A Healthy Lifestyle As A Diabetic
A healthy lifestyle can have a significant impact on improving mortality for people with Type 2 diabetes, an insight Health IQ first discovered when analyzing its proprietary Health IQ Quiz data of over 1 million people longitudinally tracked over the last five years. This data set showed that individuals with diabetes who scored Elite had 18% lower mortality compared to individuals with diabetes who did not score Elite. It further showed that those individuals who scored Elite AND conducted regular exercise or maintained a specific diet had 40% lower mortality.
“We at Health IQ believe well-managed diabetics who live a healthy lifestyle work very hard to manage their disease and deserve financial savings for their effort. We’re proud to have pioneered the data and science that paved the way for these savings,” Shah said.
Health IQ’s findings were corroborated by a recent 2018 paper by Rawshani, et al in the New England Journal of Medicine studying the impact of recommended targets for mortality and cardiovascular risk factors in Type 2 diabetics. The paper showed that the risk of mortality for an unmanaged diabetic increases by 299%, while the risk for managed diabetics only increases by 15%. Physical activity and living a healthy lifestyle is a major predictor of mortality risk that comes second only to smoking.
How to Qualify for Health IQ’s Life Insurance for Diabetics
This new offering is designed for Type 2 diabetics who score Elite on the Health IQ Diabetic Quiz and meet applicable underwriting requirements. Those interested in taking advantage of the program must also show evidence of a healthy lifestyle through self-management, activity tracking, or a variety of other options.
These qualification standards follow the similar Health IQ process for clients applying for coverage. Health IQ is an insurance company on a mission to improve the world’s health by rewarding runners, cyclists, weightlifters, swimmers, yogis, well-managed diabetics, and other Americans living a healthy lifestyle. Health IQ gives these individuals credit for their healthy lifestyle by using Quiz score and verifiable fitness results or activity tracking.
Health IQ was founded for the health conscious by the health conscious. The company founders were each touched by a personal health challenge and overcame them by adopting a healthier lifestyle. They wanted to inspire and encourage others to embrace a healthy lifestyle with financial rewards.