Unfortunately, like any other company, insurance companies are driven by profits. So, a person who has a past history of a serious disease such as cancer, heart surgery, diabetes, depression, or a stroke will find that no health insurance company will want to provide them coverage since they would not make money on them.
So if you have a pre-exisitng medical condition and you lose your insurance, what are you supposed to do? You may have heard of guaranteed issue health insurance. Companies that offer these policies brag that no matter what health conditions you are suffering from, they will cover you. But there are several things that you should know about guaranteed issue health insurance. These plans are not true insurance, and do not cover every medical treatment that you would need. They are still much better than nothing, are affordable, and have been lifesavers for many patients, but you should educate yourself about guaranteed issue health insurance plans before you purchase one.
In most states in America, it is perfectly legal for companies to label you as uninsurable and refuse to provide you health coverage. This uninsurable status can last for years, or even for life. Some people are born with pre-existing conditions, and can never get afforable insurance unless they get it though their work. You can also be refused for health insurance if you just have several controlled pre existing conditions. For instance, if you have hypertension, depression, and you smoke cigarettes, a health insurance company may refuse to give you insurance, based on a three strikes you're out type rule.
If you cannot get coverage because of a pre-existing condition, the first thing that you should look into is a state insurance risk pool. Not every state has a program like this, but those states that do allow people who suddenly lose their health care coverage to continue it. If you have been uninsured for over 63 days, you can still sign up for these risk pool programs, but you may have to wait for anywhere from 6 to 12 before your pre-existing conditions will be covered.
If your state does not have a program like this, or you cannot afford the program, then guaranteed issue health insurance is the only option left to you. Most of these plans work the same as state pools. If you had coverage within 63 days previous to signing up for insurance, your pre-existing conditions will be covered. If you have not had insurance for over 63 days, you will have to wait as long as a year before your pre-existing conditions are covered.
Guaranteed issue health insurance works differently than traditional insurance. There are generally no deductibles, and no co-pays. Your plan will promise to pay up to a certain dollar amount of your treatments; for instance, a typical plan will pay up to $1,000 a day of hospital bills for the first 100 days you spend in the hospital. For your first day of hospital admission, they will pay an additional $2,000 in charges. They will also cover $1,000 in additional charges for the first 15 days you spend in intensive care. It does not matter how much the doctor charges or which hospital you go to; these programs just promise to pay a pre-designated amount.
One of the best benefits of guaranteed issue health insurance is that many of these plans will also pay for an unlimited number of inpatient our outpatient surgeries. It will also cover tests that are medically necessary such as CAT Scans, EKGs, Mammographies, and MRIs. This is where plans like these have really saved at-risk patients from hundreds of thousands of dollars of medical bills. However, as far as day to day treatments, these plans are not as great. Typically, you will only one preventative care visit to a doctor will be covered every year, and only around seven outpatient doctor office visits will be included.
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