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What is Health IQ?
For years, life insurance companies have penalized people with bad health, and understandably so. If you’re statistically more likely to die because of issues like diabetes or heart health, you could cost the insurance company more money. But other than a general “healthy” rate, most life insurance companies don’t really reward you for healthy behaviors and lifestyles.
Enter Health IQ, a life insurance brokerage that seeks to reward “health-conscious” people financially. The Health IQ team partners with 35 life insurance companies. Using data from multiple scientific studies, Health IQ helps healthy people get life insurance at a reduced rate.
Health IQ Product Features
Health IQ isn’t in and of itself an insurance company. It’s a broker that helps connect the health-conscious with insurance companies so that individuals can find life insurance at a lower price. Health IQ does use some interesting information and practices, though, to help healthy people see reduced rates on their life insurance, including:
- Bonuses for endurance athletes: Those who do distance running or have slow resting heart rates can get better life insurance rates.
- Athlete-friendly measurements: BMI measurements are often against athletes, who have a high muscle mass, so Health IQ measures waist-to-hip ratio in addition to BMI.
- Low-carb diet-friendly: Some low-carb dieters may have different-than-average cholesterol levels, so Health IQ uses Tri/HDL cholesterol ratio in addition to an HDL ratio for those on low-carb diets.
- Well-managed diseases: Keeping hypertension or diabetes under control is hard work, so Health IQ helps those with well-managed chronic diseases get lower life insurance rates.
Besides these perks, though, Health IQ works like many other online life insurance and disability insurance brokers. You fill out the online form, take a medical exam, prove your lifestyle, and then pick your life insurance plan from a partner company.
Health IQ Pricing and Fees
Health IQ itself doesn’t cost anything. It gets paid through the life insurance company that you choose, as most brokers do. With that said, it claims that it can save the typical applicant between 4 and 33% on a typical 30-year term life insurance policy.
Using Health IQ
Because Health IQ gives you serious discounts on life insurance for your healthy lifestyle, getting life insurance through them may take a bit more effort. Some other companies offer no-medical exam life insurance. That can be to your advantage if you have lower-than-average health. But if you’re in excellent health and practice a healthy lifestyle, you may find that taking the extra steps can save you a ton of money.
Health IQ lays out is process in four steps:
- Evaluate your health with an online quiz to see if you qualify. If you do, you can take a free medical exam in your home.
- Take a health literacy quiz to ensure that you know how to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
- Verify your lifestyle in one of several ways, including cycling more than 50 miles, running an 8-minute mile (or age-based equivalent), swimming in a meet, or other options.
- Choose your life insurance plan and save money.
As with all life insurance broker services, you’ll have to give Health IQ plenty of your personal information to quality for a plan. But spend just a bit of time online and then some time following up, and you could save a bundle on a term life insurance plan.
Health IQ Data Security
Health IQ’s privacy policy states that it will only give out your personal information when you actually apply for an insurance plan. They use standard data protection to keep your data safe after your input it into their site.
Mobile Accessibility
If you prefer, you can fill out Health IQ’s application through your mobile phone. It’s a simple way to get started. You can also log into your account to check your application status and progress from your phone.
As with any life insurance brokerage, Health IQ has its pros and cons. Here are some to consider:
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Significantly lower costs for some populations: If you fit the bill for Health IQ and have a healthy lifestyle and good health markers like waist-to-hip ratio and a lower resting heart rate, you could seriously benefit from Health IQ’s lower life insurance rates.
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Benefits for those with controlled diseases: If you have diabetes or hypertension, getting affordable life insurance can be difficult, even if you work hard to keep these conditions well under control. With Health IQ, you can get a lower life insurance premium when you have these issues under control.
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A variety of options: With 35 partner insurance companies, Health IQ can give you access to an assortment of term life insurance plans from a variety of companies, so you’re sure to find something that will suit your needs.
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Disability insurance, too: Health IQ also acts as a brokerage for disability insurance, so that can be an additional draw if you get started on the process or are looking for disability insurance, specifically.
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Long application process: If your main goal is to get signed up for life insurance quickly, Health IQ may not be for you. Though it can save you money, you’ll need to put in some effort for it. You will have to go through several steps to prove you really meet the requirements for a reduced life insurance rate, and that can take some time.
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Not for everyone: Even some people who live a relatively healthy life may not benefit from using Health IQ to find life insurance.
Who is Health IQ For?
If you’re a yogi, a runner, a performance athlete, or even just someone on a habitually strict diet, Health IQ may be for you. Or if you’re a diabetic or have hypertension but manage these diseases well, Health IQ could also be for you. If you’re a person in average health who makes it to the gym once in a while, though, this isn’t likely the life insurance broker to fit your needs.
This service is specifically for people who meet a pretty strict definition of health, based on research that shows who is likely to live longer because of their health-related decisions. But if you fit into that category, taking a bit of extra time to apply and qualify for life insurance could save you literally thousands of dollars.
Bottom Line
Using research and sticking to its mission to reward health-conscious people, Health IQ is an interesting life insurance broker that can help healthy individuals save a ton of money on their life insurance. As long as you’re willing to take a bit of extra time to prove you’re in excellent health, you could save loads of money by buying your life insurance policy through Health IQ.
