Life Insurance After a Balloon Angioplasty

When you have any health concerns, it’s important to understand the things that are taken into consideration before you are approved when applying for life insurance. It is possible to get life insurance even after a Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty or a balloon angioplasty.

If you didn’t acquire life insurance prior to having an angioplasty, you should look at acquiring it now. It may not be too late.

QUESTIONS ANSWERED!

Yes you CAN get affordable life insurance, even after an Angioplasty.

There are things to take into consideration when you apply for life insurance after an angioplasty.

It’s important to note that angioplasty isn’t right for everyone. Consider bypass surgery instead if; your heart is weak, your main artery has been compromised or if you have multiple diseased blood vessels.

This will depend on the extent of your heart disease as well as your overall condition. Angioplasty does not cure coronary artery disease and you’ll also need to improve your health through diet and exercise to help help your condition going forward.

What is Angioplasty?

Coronary angioplasty, also called as percutaneous coronary intervention is done to open heart arteries that have been clogged.

The term ”Balloon Angioplasty” is coined as the procedure is done through temporarily putting and inflating a small balloon to your clogged artery to avoid further complications.

Angioplasty can improve angina (chest pain), fatigue and shortness of breath due to decreased oxygen levels.

At the event of a heart attack, balloon angioplasty is applied to open up a blocked artery and reduce damage to the heart muscles.

What causes Coronary Heart Disease?

Classic factors could be:

• Unhealthy lifestyle and lack of exercise
• High-cholesterol diets
• Smoking and drinking habits
• High blood pressure
• Genetics
• Age
• Gender
• Overweight and obesity
• High stress levels

Meanwhile, experts are also eyeing some of these risk factors:

• Binge drinking of alcohol
• Preeclampsia– This surfaces on the event of pregnancy wherein a woman’s blood pressure increases and the presence of excess protein levels in urine becomes evident. Pre-eclampsia can result into fatigue, dizziness and to further heart diseases later in life.
• Sleep apnea– Commonly visible when snoring, this problem causes a sudden drop in oxygen while the patient asleep. The repeated start-stop breathing pattern strains the cardiovascular muscles which can later lead to a coronary heart disease.
• High levels of homocysteine–  Homocysteine is a type of amino acid responsible for the production of protein and tissue maintenance. High levels of this amino acid can clog arteries- resulting to coronary artery disease.

What can you expect after your surgery

Angioplasty is done by making a relatively small incision on your leg, arm or wrist.

You are advised to drink plenty of fluids to rehydrate and withdraw from strenuous activities.

Bear in mind to ask your doctor about the do’s and don’ts after your surgery and ensure that you are drinking the prescribed medicine.

Most patients who have undergone angioplasty regardless if a stent is introduced or not will need to take aspirin. Patients who have had stents installed will be prescribed blood-thinning medications in a specific amount of time.

To maintain the results of the angioplasty, patients are suggested to:

• Monitor their glucose levels
• Keep off from fatty and salty diets
• Maintain an ideal weight for their condition
• Exercise
• Quit smoking and drinking

Consider the following when applying for life insurance after a balloon angioplasty and stent insertion:

Do not apply for life insurance right after the PCTA.

While you may be in a rush to apply for life insurance after you’ve had the procedure, it’s important to wait at least six months before you apply for coverage. If you apply sooner than this, you will probably not receive life insurance.

Most complications that can happen after this procedure will happen during the six months following it. If you rush this, you don’t know if restenosis is going to happen. This is a common occurrence that happens within the 30 to 50 percent range of all angioplasty cases. The artery could constrict again.

The reason why the stent was inserted needs to be taken into account.

There are a couple different reasons for an angioplasty and why the stent put in. This matters to life insurance companies.

If a doctor found a blockage during a physical exam, it will be easier to get approval because there wasn’t a traumatic event that led to the angioplasty.

If, on the other hand, you suffered from a heart attack that led to the angioplasty, it may be more difficult to get coverage. This is a much more traumatic event and the heart sustained more damage than if the doctor found the blockage before an attack.

Getting life insurance after an angioplasty will be easier to obtain if there was no traumatic event that led to it.

Take into account how many stents you’ve had put in.

Sometimes people may need to have multiple stents put in, depending on how many arteries have blockages. This is another factor that a life insurance company will take into account before approving life insurance coverage after a balloon angioplasty.

You will be more likely to get approval if you only have one stent. Having only one stent can also get you a better rate. Multiple stents means difficulty getting coverage or you having higher rate in the event of an approval.

Insurance company will want to know your completed treatments and tests.

Life insurance company will determine your current health by asking; what treatments you have received and what tests you have completed.

This includes a stress test.

You may also be put on certain medications after the procedure has been completed. This is highly likely after a heart attack. These include Rivaroxaban, Dabigatran, Apixaban, Heparin and Warfarin.

You will need to disclose your medications when applying for life insurance after PCTA.

Prepare for other questions from the life insurance company.

When you consult with a life insurance company after your angioplasty, prepare to answer many questions about your condition. These questions include the following:

• Reason for the angioplasty
• Your medications
• Your treatments
• What tests you’ve had done
• The number of stents you have
• If your arteries have narrowed since
• Your diet, exercise, and overall health

Life insurance company will determine your approval and at what rate by providing these answers. You need to make sure that information about your medical visits and medications is prepared.

Mentally prepare for realistic expectations.

Go into the process with realistic expectations. Depending on the specific circumstances surrounding your condition, you may already suspect whether or not you will be approved.

It’s important to think about this ahead of time. Talk with a life insurance company about the specifics to see if you may still qualify and at what rate.

Use the quote form on the right to begin the process and see if you qualify! Contact us with any questions.