Do Life insurance companies have access to health records during the application process?

Life insurance is an important concern for lots of people around the world, who want to make sure that they are getting the best coverage at the lowest possible prices.  While there are multiple and complex procedures involved in the laying out of any insurance contract, there are three major factors that are well known and of primary concern to any insurers.  These three factors are the sex and age of the policy holder, and whether or not they are smokers.  Along with these three major factors, there are a number of other considerations for life insurance firms that want to measure the risk of any potential policy owners.  Many people who are thinking about taking out a life insurance policy are concerned with whether life insurance firms have access to the individual health records of insurance applicants.  While this situation is complex and does differ across the world, there are some factors that are definitely worth noting for those people who want to find the very best policy for them.

If it is deemed necessary by the insurance underwriter, individual medical records can be accessed during the application process, as potential policy holders normally need to sign a release for their medical history.  In the United States, the Medical Information Bureau (MIB) acts as a centralised database that keeps an individual's health history on file, which can then be accessed by individual life insurance firms both during and after a contract has been signed.  Theoretically, no life insurance company has access to anyone's health records until the insured person has given their written permission, however, they may refuse to initiate a policy, or to pay a claim in the future if they suspect that a person has lied on their original application. 

There is normally a clause on all life insurance applications that states that the insured person needs to list any pre-existing medical conditions, and it is the responsibility of all policy holders to be honest when filling out these forms.  Some life insurance companies will also require that people get a medical examination prior to entering a life contract, although this can be widely dependent on the age, sex, and locality of the applicant.  While no life insurance company can force an applicant to hand over access to their medical history, most firms require that people sign over their histories prior to the initialisation of a contract, and others may fail to pay a claim until past medical histories have been verified.

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