DATE: Wednesday, April 16, 1997             TAG: 9704160527

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A5   EDITION: FINAL 

DATELINE: CHICAGO                           LENGTH:   22 lines

FIRM OFFERS LIFE INSURANCE TO HIV PATIENTS AS A TRIAL

Acknowledging extraordinary medical advances against AIDS, a company has become the first in the nation to offer life insurance to people infected with HIV.

Guarantee Trust Life Insurance, a Glenview-based company that specializes in high-risk individuals, is test-marketing the coverage.

``From a life insurance risk perspective, we believe many otherwise healthy HIV-positive individuals are more appropriately viewed as having a treatable chronic illness rather than a terminal disease,'' said Richard Holson, company president.

Those who qualify for the $25,000 to $250,000 policies must be under 49, have certain levels of the virus and not have full-blown AIDS.

Guarantee Trust initially will offer the coverage only to Illinois residents.

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