Questions about potential AARP payout

This story is a bit of a mess so I apologize but I’m asking on behalf of my mom, I don’t know all the details of the policy unfortunately. I’m going to try and summarize the best I can. I’m just wondering what kind of outcome my mom should plan for and how long it may take for them to reach a decision. My dad (54m, would’ve been 55 today) died suddenly late August of this year (collapsed on a Monday, died early Wednesday), and he had taken out a $50k policy with AARP last February. On paper, there was no pre existing conditions or anything. No diagnoses, not until after he had collapsed (he had stage IV lung cancer apparently, we were waiting for results from a biopsy when he collapsed). The only thing on a medical history my mom was asked about from AARP was a surgery on his carotid artery back in 2019 (he also had type 2 diabetes but no one asked about that). His death certificate is vague, it says cardiogenic shock. Since the policy is less than 2 years old they said they have to look into his medical history to determine payout. No one said that the full amount was off the table, but we were wondering if half was more likely.