How We Found a 'Yes' for a 71-Year-Old With Diabetes and COPD

We work with a lot of buyers who arrive at this site because someone told them “no” first. This case is one of them — a 71-year-old man with Type 2 diabetes on insulin, mild COPD, and a heart attack history from six years ago. By the time he reached us, two captive agents had told him guaranteed issue was his only option.

It wasn’t. Here’s how the case actually played out.

The Profile

The applicant — we’ll call him David, with permission to share the case — came in looking for $15,000 of coverage to cover funeral costs and leave a small benefit for his daughter. His specifics:

• Age 71, male, non-tobacco for 8 years (previously a smoker)
• Type 2 diabetes diagnosed at 58, on insulin since 2018
• A1C currently 7.4 (his most recent reading)
• Mild COPD diagnosed at 65, no oxygen, manages with daily inhaler
• Heart attack in 2020 with one stent placed, stable since
• Currently on: insulin, lisinopril, atorvastatin, an inhaler

This is a textbook “hard-to-place” profile. Three meaningful conditions (diabetes, COPD, cardiac history) plus age 71. The first two agents he spoke with — both captive — routed him straight to guaranteed issue because their single carrier had a knockout on insulin-dependent diabetes combined with cardiac history.

The Initial Approach

When David came to us, we ran his profile through our independent network’s underwriting tables — five A-rated carriers we work with regularly for complex senior cases. The internal read was: two were likely declines based on the cardiac-plus-diabetes combination. One would offer graded simplified issue. One had an underwriting niche that historically treated this combination more leniently. One was a coin flip.

Rather than apply at all five (which would have created MIB-database complications), we sequenced. We started with the carrier most likely to approve at standard or graded rates given recent underwriting tables we’d seen.

The First Application

Submitted to Carrier A — a carrier known to be more lenient on insulin use when other indicators are stable. Their underwriting reviewed David’s file, requested clarification on his heart attack treatment history (we provided records showing six years of stability with no further events), and approved at graded simplified issue.

Graded benefit period: 2 years (50% of face value in year 1, 75% in year 2, full benefit after). Monthly premium: $128 for $15,000 of coverage.

This was a much better outcome than guaranteed issue would have been. Guaranteed issue at the same coverage and age would have run around $170–$190/month with a 2- to 3-year graded period paying only premiums plus interest during the wait. The graded simplified issue policy gave David partial day-one benefit and a substantially lower premium.

The key insight: “Hard-to-place” doesn’t mean “guaranteed-issue only.” It means the carrier that handles your specific combination favorably is harder to find — but it usually exists.

Why the Captive Agents Missed It

Captive agents only sell what they sell. The two captive agents David spoke with both worked for carriers whose underwriting tables knocked out insulin-dependent diabetes with cardiac history. Their carrier’s answer was guaranteed issue. They didn’t have access to Carrier A’s table — they couldn’t have made the placement we made even if they’d wanted to.

This is the entire reason independent shopping matters for hard-to-place cases. Same applicant, different carrier, dramatically different outcome.

The Final Outcome

David’s daughter is the beneficiary. He pays $128/month, well within his fixed-income budget. The policy:

• Provides $7,500 in year 1 (50% graded)
• Provides $11,250 in year 2 (75% graded)
• Provides full $15,000 from year 3 onward and for the rest of his life
• Pays the full benefit immediately for accidental death

Compared to the guaranteed-issue path the captive agents pitched, David saves roughly $50–$60/month for the same eventual coverage and gains partial day-one benefits — the whole point of shopping final expense insurance across multiple carriers instead of one. Over a 10-year horizon, that’s $6,000–$7,000 saved on the same coverage.

Path Considered	Monthly Premium	Day-1 Benefit	2-Year Benefit
Guaranteed issue (captive agent’s answer)	$180	Premium + interest	Premium + interest
Graded simplified issue (placement found)	$128	$7,500	$11,250

What This Case Demonstrates

Three things consistently:

1. A decline at one carrier is not a decline everywhere. David had been told “no” by two captive carriers before this carrier said “yes.”
2. Hard-to-place doesn’t mean unplaceable. The combination of conditions that made David hard to place at most carriers also meant his independent-shopped policy beat the captive default substantially.
3. The carrier matters more than the product type. Choosing the right carrier for David’s specific profile mattered more than choosing between simplified and guaranteed.

David’s family has $15,000 of coverage in place at a reasonable rate. Without independent shopping, he would have ended up with guaranteed issue at substantially higher cost — or possibly walked away with nothing, which is what happens to a lot of people in his situation after the second or third “no.”

Got a hard-to-place situation of your own? — Get a free quote and we’ll shop your case the same way.