Do health exam red flags impact your insurance underwriting?
Health examinations have become quite common in recent years. Many people are having check-ups and getting updates on their health status as a way to prepare for the insurance underwriting process. How does a health exam report affect underwriting? What are the key factors? Read on to find out.
Are your health exam results normal or abnormal? The report summary says it all.
If you have undergone a medical check-up before applying for a medical insurance policy, knowing how to read your health exam report may be the key to a successful application. Even though a medical report is typically quite long and detailed, you can look at the key findings first by jumping to the report summary. Pay attention to the various health indicators or indices. If any of these is an abnormal value, then you should read through the details.
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Abnormal values If the report summary indicates any abnormalities, or the lab results for your blood and urine sample are shown in red or bold type or accompanied by arrows (↑/↓), that generally means the values have fallen out of the normal range, and that follow-up consultations or further tests may be necessary. As a result, your underwriting outcome may be affected. |
6 possible medical insurance underwriting outcomes, based on assessment of different risks for medical and life policies
After evaluating the medical history and health exam report provided by the customer, the insurance company will determine the premium level and scope of coverage of the policy, the applicant’s eligibility for protection, etc. For medical protection plans, there are generally 6 possible underwriting outcomes:
Since different protection plans offer different scopes of coverage, underwriters will assess risks from multiple angles. The underwriting outcomes for various types of policies may therefore be different. For instance, medical and life insurance plans focus on different risk factors:
Evaluating risks starts with understanding common health problems
A typical health exam covers many tests and procedures, and the combination varies from individual to individual. What test result should you look out for? Let’s start with health issues common to city-dwellers. We'll use the 3 highs as examples to illustrate the relationships between health exam results and underwriting outcomes.
#This table is based on specific health conditions only. Each underwriting application will require the assessment of other factors, including smoking status, BMI index, possible comorbidity or other potential causes of diseases, etc.
*The values shown are for reference only and can change due to different laboratory standards. The values shown in the relevant health exam report should prevail.
Knowing how to read the key parts of a health exam report will give you an idea as to how much protection you can expect and what different policy provisions mean, so you can plan better.
Sources:
- European Society of Cardiology and European Society of Hypertension (September 2018)
- Hong Kong Dietitians Association: Focus on nutrition - cholesterol diet
- American Diabetes Association