Does life insurance blood test for cotinine?
Does life insurance blood test for cotinine?
Does life insurance blood test for cotinine?
Do life insurance exams detect nicotine? The life insurance medical exam tests for nicotine and cotinine in your blood and urine. If you test positive for either, you will have to pay smoker rates.
How long does it take for cotinine levels to drop?
Generally, nicotine will leaves your blood within 1 to 3 days after you stop using tobacco, and cotinine will be gone after 1 to 10 days. Neither nicotine nor cotinine will be detectable in your urine after 3 to 4 days of stopping tobacco products.
How long after quitting smoking can you get life insurance?
12 months
Typically applicants must have refrained from smoking cigarettes for at least 12 months before applying for life insurance to qualify for nonsmoker rates at most companies. To get the best rates, you’ll need to have been smoke-free for about five years.
How do insurance companies check for smokers?
Insurers insist on medical tests to detect regular smokers and determine the premiums for coverage. Traces of nicotine can be detected in your blood, urine, hair, and saliva. The length of time nicotine stays in your system depends on how often you smoke, age, and general health condition.
What happens if you start smoking after life insurance?
If you already own a life insurance policy, and the policy was issued to you as a nonsmoker, if you start smoking it will not increase your prices. You do not need to worry about this affecting your life insurance policy in any way. The life insurance company can not contest a claim, and they can not void your policy.
How sensitive is a cotinine test?
Results
| (a) LC tandem mass spectrometry | (b) LC tandem mass spectrometry |
|---|---|
| Total cotinine >200 ng/mL | Total cotinine <10 ng/mL |
| Sensitivity = 99.5% | Sensitivity = 98.7% |
| Specificity = 92.0% | Specificity = 90.1% |
| Positive predictive value = 92.6% | Positive predictive value = 85.4% |
How do you read cotinine test results?
To learn what the results mean for you, talk with your healthcare provider. Cotinine is measured in nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL): Cotinine levels in a nonsmoker are generally less than 10 ng/mL. Cotinine levels in a light smoker or someone exposed to secondhand smoke are 11 ng/mL to 30 ng/mL.
Can doctors tell if you smoke occasionally?
Yes, your doctor can tell if you smoke occasionally by looking at medical tests that can detect nicotine in your blood, saliva, urine and hair. When you smoke or get exposed to secondhand smoke, the nicotine you inhale gets absorbed into your blood.
What is the half life of cotinine?
Cotinine, the primary metabolite of nicotine, is currently regarded as the best biomarker of tobacco smoke exposure. Measuring cotinine is preferable to measuring nicotine because cotinine persists longer in the body with a plasma half-life of about 16 hours (Benowitz and Jacob, 1994).
What happens if you lie about smoking on insurance?
If you’re not honest about tobacco, you risk being charged with insurance fraud. Even such “soft fraud” is considered a misdemeanor and can result in sentences of probation, community service — or even time in jail.