Tess Holliday Denied Life Insurance Due to Weight

The plus-size model says she was rejected for coverage despite being healthy and active.

Mar. 3, 2026 at 6:23am

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

Tess Holliday, a prominent body positivity advocate, revealed that she was denied life insurance coverage due to her weight of over 300 pounds, despite being healthy and active with no pre-existing conditions. Holliday shared her experience on TikTok, expressing frustration with the 'fatphobic' medical system that discriminates against individuals based on BMI rather than overall health.

Why it matters

Holliday's experience highlights the ongoing issue of weight-based discrimination in the insurance and healthcare industries, where BMI is often used as a flawed metric to assess an individual's health and eligibility for coverage. This reflects a broader societal problem of weight stigma that disproportionately impacts marginalized communities.

The details

In a TikTok video, Holliday expressed her surprise at being denied life insurance coverage due to her height and weight, despite being a healthy, non-smoking, non-drinking individual who exercises regularly. She acknowledged that the 'medical industrial complex' is 'fatphobic and inherently the system is broken,' and that her attempt to obtain life insurance was a 'lesson learned.'

  • On February 26, 2026, Tess Holliday shared her experience of being denied life insurance coverage on TikTok.

The players

Tess Holliday

A plus-size model and prominent body positivity advocate who launched the #effyourbeautystandards movement in 2013.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What they’re saying

“I'm sorry, yes. I did think that I could get life insurance as a 40-year-old, non-smoking, non-drinking, non-health-issue-having human. That was honestly my bad. That was my bad. I know.”

— Tess Holliday

“Um, am I 5 foot 3 and do I weigh over 300 pounds? And an apparently that makes me ineligible for, uh, life insurance. Yeah, it does. It does. Do I work out every single day and have no pre-existing conditions or take any kind of medication? Yeah, I do. But hey, I also understand that the medical industrial complex um, you know, is fatphobic and inherently, uh, the system is broken.”

— Tess Holliday

The takeaway

Tess Holliday's experience highlights the ongoing issue of weight-based discrimination in the insurance and healthcare industries, where BMI is often used as a flawed metric to assess an individual's health and eligibility for coverage. This reflects a broader societal problem of weight stigma that disproportionately impacts marginalized communities, and underscores the need for more inclusive and equitable policies and practices in these sectors.