Gestational Diabetes and impact on life insurance premium

According to Diabetes Ireland “Many women who have gestational diabetes go on to develop type 2 diabetes in the later years. There seems to be a relation between the tendency to have gestational diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Both conditions involve insulin resistance. If you have had gestational diabetes, you should have a blood test to check for Diabetes, six weeks after your baby is born and every year thereafter to ensure you have not developed Type 2 Diabetes”.

As an income protection broker, I have seen a history of gestational diabetes in many clients who hold concerns on how this will impact their insurance premium. Don’t despair! Most insurance companies will accept you at normal rates once the sugar levels are back to normal after child birth. In very rare cases where the diabetes developed into full blown Type 2 diabetes, an extra loading will be placed on life insurance premium. This itself could range from 75%-250% based on the severity of the illness and HbA1C levels (a fancy blood sugar reading chart for diabetes). Unfortunately, for income protection insurance, the entry standards are higher than regular life insurance. Insurance underwriting is not very lenient with history of Diabetes Type 2 and most diabetics are unlikey to even be considered for income protection (some Irish insurers still say they might consider offering income protection if you have excellent control of blood sugar- I wont read too much into that!).

Coming back to Gestational diabetes- for those lucky ladies who recovered from this type of diabetes after child birth, my advice to you is to go get that income protection today!! As this market can be difficult to navigate alone, I am more than happy to give you an expert hand by comparing the whole Irish market for you in a 1-minute online quote. If you were to stop working today due to an illness or a disabiliy, imagine living on €232 a week from social welfare illness benefit? An income protection plan comes handy here to help maintain your living standards and desired lifestyle by providing a supplementary income in those times of need.

For further reading on Income Protection, read Jenny’s story here

For a quick review or an online quote feel free to reach out to joseph@financiallife.ie