About a decade or so ago the State of New York forced the insurance companies to insure everyone regardless of their medical history. What happened? Almost all of the health insurance companies serving the non-group market fled the state. The remaining providers were forced to raise their rates beyond an amount that most could afford.

Basically what happened was that sicker people started buying health insurance policies. They cost the insurance companies more than they paid in. This forced the companies to raise their rates. This meant that fewer people could afford to keep their coverage. Those that were already sick squeezed their budgets tighter to keep their coverage when they could. This meant that more healthy people dropped their coverage than unhealthy people did. The companies raised their rates again. This cycle continued and continued.

Guaranteed medical insurance will only work when there is universal health insurance. When healthier people are allowed to opt out of the system, the rates just go up and up.

Medical insurance is expensive today because the cost of a hospital stay and the cost of a doctor’s visit are expensive.  The cost of health care rises each year as healthcare providers ask for more, more expensive procedures become available and hospitals charge more for their rooms.  By reducing your insurance company’s costs you may be able to reduce your cost as well.

You may be able to reduce coverage for certain benefits that you don’t need or that are more expensive than they are worth.  Maternity insurance, prescription coverage and dental insurance may be either unnecessary or over priced.  People often pay extra for a policy that includes maternity insurance long after they have had their last child.  Prescription coverage and dental coverage will often have relatively low annual limits.  If so, the amount you would have at risk if you eliminated one of these benefits is the amount of the coverage limit less the cost of the coverage.  This may mean that dropping the added cost is a good idea.  Spend some time looking at the limits and the costs of these benefits and do the math to make sure that they are worth keeping.

Raising your deductible may also reduce your costs. By taking more or the risk, you can often reduce your costs by a lot. In some cases the amount of extra risk you take may be less than the amount of money that you save. Make sure than when you compare your premium savings to an increase in your deductible you multiply the premium savings by the appropriate factor to get the annual savings. Your deductible is probably based on a calendar year. You should compare it with the annualized savings to make an apples to apples comparison.

If you have been charged extra because of a medical condition or because of your weight, you may be able to reduce or eliminate the surcharge.  You should find out what needs to happen in order to get your rate reduced if this is the case.

Often an insurance company will reduce or eliminate the surcharge if you have had a period of time where you haven’t needed treatment.  If your preexisting medical condition has gotten better, you may be able to get your rate reduced.  You may need to lose a small amount of weight or reduce your blood pressure readings by a small amount.  Knowing what requisite numbers may motivate you to do the things you need such as exercise or eat better.  You may be able to save more than just money by doing what it takes to get your health insurance premiums down.

Shopping around is a tried and true practice for saving money on health insurance, cars and many other things.  There is often a large variance in medical insurance prices.  You may find that you can save hundreds of dollars a month by switching to another company or even to a different type of policy that is offered by the same health insurance carrier.

There may be several factors that you have control over that will impact your cost for health insurance and health care in general.  Reducing your coverage in unimportant or unneeded areas, reducing surcharges for pre-existing conditions and shopping around can all help you bring your costs for health insurance down.

Many carriers are encouraging their policy holders to pay via credit card today.  This has both pros and cons.  It may mean that you have coverage when you need it.  It may also mean that you are paying 20% extra for your policies and are getting deeper in debt.

By allowing your insurer to debit your credit card for your auto insurance or health care policy, you may keep your insurance in force longer.  This may mean that an accident or other even is covered when it might not have been. Forgetting to pay an insurance bill can cost you thousands or even millions.  There is definitely a positive side to paying for insurance via a credit card.

If you have a medical condition or have gained weight that you acquired since you purchased your health insurance policy, this can be especially important.  Missing a payment may mean that you are denied coverage or charged extra for the same coverage you had before.

Your health insurance company is not allowed to drop you because of a significant health condition or a state of obesity that you developed since your healthcare policy was approved unless you cancel your policy or allow it to lapse.  If you do so, you can be treated as if you are a new client.  This can mean that you are subjected to medical underwriting all over again.

If you are in the habit of paying your credit cards off each month before any interest is assessed, there no downside to using a credit card to pay your monthly insurance premiums.

However credit is overused today.  How would you feel if you were charged 20% more for everything you buy because of your race, gender or religion?  When we use a credit card to pay, we often pay an extra unnecessarily.

Insurance plans that will charge your credit card by default may be willing to send you a bill in the mail or bill a checking account.  If you are concerned about excess interest charges, you may want to contact your insurer about this.

Timing your Medical Exams

A preexisting condition becomes an insurance issue when one of three things happens.  You receive medical advice for the condition. Your have symptoms that would cause a prudent person to seek medical advice.  Your insurance company discovers the condition during an exam.

If you are considering changing insurance policies you may not want to see a doctor until you have been approved by the new company.  Why?  If you are genuinely unaware of a medical condition and haven’t had symptoms that would cause you to seek medical attention an insurance company should not hold that condition against you unless it is discovered during their underwriting process.

If you have a medical examination just before applying for a new policy, your physician might discover a condition that would keep you from being approved for your policy.  You may be better served if you wait until you are covered by the new policy before you are examined.

Of course, there may be situations where waiting even a week to have an exam could have serious repercussions.  On the other hand if a serious condition is discovered a week earlier the timing may save your life.

However, if the treatment for the condition isn’t covered because your old policy expires shortly after your diagnosis, you may not be able to complete your treatment.

This is not medical advice. You will have to weigh the pros and cons of waiting verses not waiting to have an exam.

Aging of Preexisting Conditions

Not all medical conditions get worse with age.  Some are treated more favorably as they age.

A person who was diagnosed with a condition too recently may be denied coverage even for a minor condition.  This is because the insurance company wants to make sure that the diagnosis was accurate and that the treatment prescribed works.

A person who was diagnosed with asthma a year ago and has their symptoms controlled with medications will likely be approved for a medical policy.  A person who was diagnosed a week ago may not be.

Often people with serious conditions like cancer are able to qualify for medical coverage.  This depends on the type of cancer and how long it has been in remission.  Five years without treatment or need of treatment can be enough for many cancers.  The waiting period for other cancers is much shorter.  For certain others the waiting period is longer.

Ask your insurance agent if he or she for guidance if you are concerned about being denied.  You may be able to keep a rejection off your insurance history simply by waiting to apply.

If You are Denied Health Insurance

Be aware that different insurance companies may underwrite the same condition in different ways.  Be sure to check with several companies if you have been denied insurance due to a medical condition.

You should also be aware that different types of policies will have different rules.  A group health insurance policy may accept you regardless of your medical history.  This may be true with state-sponsored health care programs.

Until we have Universal Health care, preexisting conditions will have a devastating impact on certain families and individuals.  You can reduce your chances of being denied a health insurance policy by delaying a health exam until after your new policy is effective (so long as it doesn’t jeopardize your health).  You can also reduce the chances of getting a denial by waiting to apply until a recently diagnosed illness is considered stable by a new insurance company.