Citizens Life Group guide explains which health conditions can qualify seniors to sell a life insurance policy

Citizens Life Group has published a guide that says life settlement eligibility depends on federal and state certification standards, not a fixed list of diseases. The Orlando brokerage says the new guide is meant to help policyholders understand when cancer, heart disease, dementia and other conditions may qualify a policy for sale.

Why it matters: - Life insurance policy sales can produce far more cash than a policyholder’s surrender value, but eligibility depends on medical and policy details. - The guide aims to clear up a common mistake: a diagnosis alone does not determine whether a senior can sell a policy. - Citizens Life Group says sellers should compare any potential settlement offer with an insurer’s accelerated death benefit rider before moving forward.

What happened: - Citizens Life Group, a licensed life settlement brokerage in Orlando, published a guide on Aug. 23 about the health conditions that can qualify a life insurance policy for sale. - The guide organizes the topic around certification standards in federal law and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners model act, not around a checklist of diseases. - The guide runs 16 sections and covers cancer, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, dementia, kidney failure, cardiac amyloidosis and ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. - The company also posted a companion explainer on viatical settlements on its YouTube channel.

The details: - Federal law does not name any qualifying disease for these transactions. - Under Internal Revenue Code section 101(g), terminal illness means a physician certifies that an illness or physical condition can reasonably be expected to result in death in 24 months or less. - Under section 7702B, chronic illness means a licensed health care practitioner certifies an inability to perform, without substantial assistance, at least two of six activities of daily living for at least 90 days, or severe cognitive impairment requiring substantial supervision. - The six activities are eating, toileting, transferring, bathing, dressing and continence. - The NAIC Viatical Settlements Model Act uses the same basic framework, defining “terminally ill” as an illness or sickness that can reasonably be expected to result in death in 24 months or less. - The model act also defines “chronically ill” using the same two-of-six daily living test or severe cognitive impairment, though definitions vary somewhat by state. - In the guide’s cancer section, active metastatic disease with a documented life expectancy of 24 months or less may qualify as a viatical settlement. - Stage 4 cancer that has stayed stable for years on modern treatment more often fits a life settlement, where age can matter more than diagnosis. - Remission can change the result again. - The guide says underwriters look at combinations of conditions, not one item at a time. - The guide uses the example of an older owner managing heart disease, diabetes and declining kidney function, where the combined record can shorten life expectancy more than any one condition alone. - In 2025, sellers received an average of $212,066 through a life settlement, nearly 9 times the average cash surrender value of $24,360, according to the Life Insurance Settlement Association’s 2025 annual market data. - The association said its members completed 2,955 transactions and paid $626.6 million to consumers in 2025. - Citizens Life Group says its guide and related educational material are available on the company’s website and YouTube channel. - More information is available at the company’s website.

Between the lines: - The guide pushes back on the idea that people can self-screen out of a potential settlement based on a diagnosis list. - The underwriting standard appears to focus on documented function, prognosis and treatment response, which can change over time. - That means a policyholder may qualify one year and not qualify later if treatment improves the health picture. - The company is also nudging sellers to consider accelerated death benefit riders first, since those benefits can pay out early through the insurer rather than through a policy sale.

What’s next: - Citizens Life Group says sellers can contact the firm to confirm whether its services are available in their state. - The company says any commission is paid from settlement proceeds and disclosed in writing before a seller agrees to anything. - Citizens Life Group also says there is no upfront cost to a seller. - The release says eligibility depends on individual health and policy details, and not every policy qualifies or receives an offer.

The bottom line: - For seniors exploring a policy sale, the key question is not “What disease do I have?” but whether medical records meet terminal or chronic illness certification standards.