Cholesterol Levels Marginal - Advice Needed

[RichSt]

Hi - I'm going to try to keep this as short as possible and give the necessary details. Sorry in advance for the long thread. I'm a 45 yo Male in good health and I am looking to purchase about two million in term life plus a similar amount in long term disability. I was waiting until my most recent checkup to get this done so I would know where my cholesterol levels stood since they were marginal at my last checkup. They are still marginal to high. total 195, HDL 40 LDL 130 triglicerides 124. The doc mailed me a prescription for simvastatin without discussing it with me. I'm supposed to retest in 3 months. So now, I'm weighing my options as far as how to deal with this and go ahead with getting the insurance quotes I need hopefully without waiting several more months. The options as I see them -

• Take the prescription, retest at three months and get policy then.
  • Downsides – three months before getting a policy at a minimum.
  • Insurance cost may be higher because I’m on the meds.
• Start the prescription and go get insurance sooner.
  • Cost for insurance will probably be very high if I have to say I’m on cholesterol meds, but my levels haven’t come down yet
• Skip the meds and work to get numbers better by using diet and exercise.
  • Only an option if doctor will remove the prescription from my medical files otherwise the damage is probably done.
  • Not sure how long it would be before I could see improvement. If no improvement, then I just set my timetable back worse than option A.

Any advice is much appreciated.

Rich

 

[VolAgent]

Apply now and take the meds. Those levels really aren't that high. Plus what if something happens to you? You can always apply again in three months if things improve.

Take the meds, because if you don't, then you are non-compliant and that will hurt you.

 

[dgoldenz]

Apply now and take the meds. Those levels really aren't that high. Plus what if something happens to you? You can always apply again in three months if things improve.

Take the meds, because if you don't, then you are non-compliant and that will hurt you.

x2. Someone taking cholesterol meds can still get Preferred Plus rates with some companies.

Also, the maximum disability insurance you can qualify for will be based on your income.

 

[RichSt]

x2. Someone taking cholesterol meds can still get Preferred Plus rates with some companies.


Also, the maximum disability insurance you can qualify for will be based on your income.

Ok, but I would think the preferred plus rates on cholesterol meds would only be if your cholesterol levels test much better than mine will if I have just started taking the meds. I feel like I could have my current levels and still get a decent rate OR I could be taking cholesterol meds and still get a decent rate. I doubt I could do both.

Re the disability part I am a business owner. My income is between $125 and $400k depending on how you count it and how good of a year I had. Also I didn't want to get in this much detail on the original post but I would be looking at two policies (for both life and disability). One with my family as the beneficiary, and one set up in a buy-sell agreement with my VP as the beneficiary and using the proceeds to buy out the business if I died or were unable to continue working.

 

[dgoldenz]

Ok, but I would think the preferred plus rates on cholesterol meds would only be if your cholesterol levels test much better than mine will if I have just started taking the meds. I feel like I could have my current levels and still get a decent rate OR I could be taking cholesterol meds and still get a decent rate. I doubt I could do both.

Re the disability part I am a business owner. My income is between $125 and $400k depending on how you count it and how good of a year I had. Also I didn't want to get in this much detail on the original post but I would be looking at two policies (for both life and disability). One with my family as the beneficiary, and one set up in a buy-sell agreement with my VP as the beneficiary and using the proceeds to buy out the business if I died or were unable to continue working.

Your cholesterol levels are not bad at all...mostly in the normal range, HDL and LDL are borderline. Waiting for your health to improve before applying a policy is generally a bad idea, especially when you are in relatively good health, since there is always the possibility that you could develop a major health problem between now and then.

Are you looking for both a DI policy to protect your income and to fund a buy-out agreement, or just to fund the buy-out agreement? There are different DI products for each purpose.

Check out our website in my signature if you want some assistance with both the life and DI policies. We specialize in life/disability and business planning. Contact information can be found on the website.

 

[TexasAgent]

Hi Rich,

Here's my advice:
1) Throw the RX away
2) Get a new doctor who has more to offer you than his prescription pad (and doesn't even bother to tell you he's giving it to you?)
3) Get a good insurance agent

Total cholesterol of 195 is not high and is no reason to take a pill that can destroy your health and life. Please see:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/07/20/the-truth-about-statin-drugs-revealed.aspx

http://www.newswithviews.com/Ellison/shane16.htm

Spacedoc

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) instead of statins:

http://www.vitamincfoundation.org/statin.htm

Your HDL of 40 is low; ideal for men is 60+. You can increase it naturally with: cocoa (don't use sugar!), garlic, omega-3 from fish, oranges, walnuts, salmon, flaxseed. Also stop with the junk food and "move around."

You can get the preferred best rates with some companies with your current numbers; some companies would be preferred (second best rate class). Of course this is assuming you meet all their other criteria as well. I do not know of an insurance company that would be concerned you did not take a statin drug that was prescribed. If you are within their guidelines, it is not a concern. By the way, if many insurance companies allow cholesterol up to 300 for the preferred best class, clearly they do not think "high cholesterol" is going to make you croak. Most are more concerned with the cholesterol/hdl ratio because it has been shown to be more of an indicator of coronary disease. Too bad the doctors didn't get the memo...but then how could they? They get their education from the drug companies (aka propaganda).

 

[RichSt]

Not sure this is going to post because my last post said it needed to be approved by a moderator and still isn't showing, but thanks for the advice so far. I just don't see going on meds and getting an immediate insurance physical before any improvement has happened. I'm not going to elaborate much more for now because this post will probably get lost in cyberspace like the last one.

Thanks,
Rich

 

[ikeman07]

Not sure this is going to post because my last post said it needed to be approved by a moderator and still isn't showing, but thanks for the advice so far. I just don't see going on meds and getting an immediate insurance physical before any improvement has happened. I'm not going to elaborate much more for now because this post will probably get lost in cyberspace like the last one.

Thanks,
Rich

Most carriers aren't going to change their rating for just a short time frame on new meds. They will want to see a history of control on the meds. Get the coverage now, get your health in order and try to get a reconsideration on your health rating down the road.

 

[RichSt]

Most carriers aren't going to change their rating for just a short time frame on new meds. They will want to see a history of control on the meds. Get the coverage now, get your health in order and try to get a reconsideration on your health rating down the road.

This is helpful - thanks. If they largely ignore the prescription because it is so new, that definitely makes a difference. Also I really hadn't known about getting a reconsideration. If that's a fairly painless process it pretty much takes away any reason for waiting to get the insurance. Can anyone elaborate on that process?

Thanks,
Rich

 

[WinoBlues]

This is helpful - thanks. If they largely ignore the prescription because it is so new, that definitely makes a difference. Also I really hadn't known about getting a reconsideration. If that's a fairly painless process it pretty much takes away any reason for waiting to get the insurance. Can anyone elaborate on that process?

Thanks,
Rich

I believe he is saying that they are going to go by your average levels not your short term results due to meds. The company is going to pull your medical records. As others have said, your cholesterol level probably will not make that much of a difference. If it did make a difference it would be a very small difference.

If there was a difference it pales when held up against the death benefit your family will not get if you die while waiting. Use an independent agent that has access to several of the top term companies in case you need to switch from the top Pref'd+ company to the top Pref'd. Get underwritten then make a decision based on the facts.