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by Tarvarious Haywood | Newschannel 3
Monday, March 30th 2020AA
Life insurance calls spike amid COVID-19 concerns. (WWMT/MGN Online)
PORTAGE, Mich. — Concerns about the coronavirus disease 2019, or COVID-19, the pandemic has caused more people to buy life insurance policies.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer stresses don’t panic but take precautions, as calls for life insurance policies have spiked since the COVID-19 pandemic started threatening Michigan.
“It takes something like the COVID-19 virus to really get people really worried about it,” Jefferey Duncan, an insurance agent for Allstate, said.
People are starting to look for a more permanent solution to help their family members financially in the case of a death.
Duncan said for years people have been putting life insurance last on their list, but during the COVID-19 pandemic, people are seeking those policies more than ever.
“Term insurance is by far the most common, it’s a lot cheaper than permanent insurance. Term insurance is going to last a certain term or a number of years,” Duncan said. “Permanent insurance is more expensive, but it is designed to be there when you die. So, it either pays your taxes, leaves money to your heirs.”
If someone tests positive for COVID-19 they would not be eligible for life insurance until after they have been cleared by a doctor.
“The medical underwriting is we are going to take you height and weight. Then we are going to take your blood pressure, we do a urine sample and that’s done through a regular nursing program. The nurses take that just to make sure you don’t have a disease that would make you ineligible,” Duncan said.
To protect yourself when you can’t make medical decisions on your own, a family attorney can help you name someone as power of attorney.
If married, your spouse is automatically your power of attorney.
“If you can bring in one paycheck that will last your family forever, then life insurance is really the only way and the best way to do that and protect them,” Duncan said.
