Accelerated Death Benefit

What Does Accelerated Death Benefit Mean?

An accelerated death benefit (ADB) is a supplemental benefit or rider to a life insurance contract. It entitles the policyholder to cash advances from the policy’s death benefit in case they get diagnosed with a terminal illness.

Insuranceopedia Explains Accelerated Death Benefit

An accelerated death benefit allows you to use some of your death benefit to pay the costs of certain medical expenses, such as treatments to stay alive and long-term care. It saw its start in the 1980s to help AIDs patients with their health care costs. However, an ADB increases premium charges, and using it decreases the death benefit payable to your beneficiaries by a certain percentage.