How to get health insurance with pre-existing medical conditions

Getting health insurance with pre-existing medical conditions can be tricky. It’s common for insurers to exclude pre-existing medical conditions from their insurance policies. The truth is, if they did include these conditions in their policies, they would have to pay many claims which means they would pay more on health insurance to the insured.

What is a pre-existing medical condition?

Pre-existing medical conditions are usually illnesses you know about before purchasing a health insurance plan. Any disease you may have had medical treatments for could also be included. Examples of pre-existing medical conditions include diabetes, Hepatitis B, epilepsy, cancer, High blood pressure etc. It’s a good idea to check with the insurer before purchasing a health plan.

Why do insurers not pay for existing conditions?

The main reason for health insurance is to cover yourself if something happens to you in the future. A health insurance covers you for unexpected illnesses or injuries that could affect you and your financial status. Unfortunately, health insurance is not designed for pre-existing medical conditions. If you already have any medical conditions, it may be hard to find insurers that are willing to onboard you with the existing conditions.

Can I get insured?

Yes, you can. Having a pre-existing medical condition does not mean that you cannot get insured at all. It means that your insurance provider is unlikely to pay out for any treatments, medication, and advice you may receive for any pre-existing conditions.  A lot of insurers will count anything that you have had treatment for in the past 5 years, as a pre-existing condition. Therefore, it is important that you find out everything before getting a policy with any insurer. You do not want pay a heavy medical bill after thinking that the insurance will cover it.

Some insurers may insure you and cover you for some of your pre-existing conditions if they believe that it’s unlikely for those conditions to re-appear.

Summarily, if you have a pre-existing medical condition, inform your insurer before purchasing a health plan so they can either insure you for it or inform you on how to cover the payment for future treatment of such conditions.