Patients' Need
Viatical Settlements #1
Tom M. was killed in a car
accident several months after selling his policy. He was 38. At age 19 he became a father,
and when he and his wife divorced Tom was awarded full custody of his son. His son, now
age 19 and a marine, was at the funeral along with Tom's parents, his siblings, and many
friends.
At the start of this year Tom was on the verge of losing the home in which he raised
his son. He had been wrongfully denied workman's comp., and had to fight in court to get
paid (he succeeded weeks before his death). With no income but social security, Tom was
distraught and anxious and this affected his health. He was tall and thin and nervous and
often very tired.
He sold his policy and the viatical settlement -- about 60 percent of the death benefit --
changed his physical appearance as much as it changed his life . He put on weight
and, despite several serious illnesses, once again was the strikingly handsome man he used
to be. He took a trip to Hawaii. He was more relaxed and made plans for the future,
all the while knowing that the clock was ticking. Among the plans -- at 38 years of age he
used some of the viatical settlement to buy a cemetery plot.
Tom also used some of the viatical settlement to send a $500 check to the disease support
group that helped him when he had no funds for food. There was no obligation to repay
these funds. But Tom knew what it was like to have nothing, and to get help when it was
most needed.
Those investors who bought Tom's policy had a great profit, since he died at least 18
months sooner than his predicted life expectancy. Hopefully, these investors also know
that the money they provided Tom made Tom's last months better than the previous two
years.
To
read a letter from a viator's wife, click HERE
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