What if I get declined?
Once you have gone through this process, and learn that no insurance company will insure you with your current medical conditions, it is time to look at alternative sources that can offer you guaranteed issue coverage. Most states have health care assistance programs that are established to provide medical insurance to the uninsurable residents of that state under the high-risk pool. The eligibility requirements, plan options, premium amounts and levels of coverage will vary from one state to another. States that do not have a high-risk health pool may provide alternative options, such as guaranteed issue enrollment periods from individual health insurance carriers. Your fState Department of Insurance should be able to inform you of the guaranteed issue options in your state. If you have been recently insured under a group health plan, or have recently exhausted your COBRA coverage, you are eligible for guaranteed issue coverage under federal HIPAA law, regardless of the state in which you reside. You must apply for HIPAA coverage within 63 days of the termination date of your COBRA coverage, and your options will vary from state to state. 1 CommentLeave a comment |
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What if I get declined?
The first thing to do is obtain the details on why you were declined. The insurance company that declined your application should provide you with the exact reason for their decision. Knowing this will help save you time when trying to find alternative sources for medical insurance. It is important to understand that different insurance companies have their own underwriting guidelines. Just because you were declined by one insurance company does not necessarily mean that all insurance companies will decline you for the same reason. Of course, this depends on the reasons why you were declined. There are definitely medical conditions that will likely be declined by all individual health insurance companies, such as pregnancy, cancer, heart disease and other serious medical conditions. Once you know the reasons why you were declined, you can contact the other insurance companies and speak to their representatives before you take the time to complete an application with that insurance company. Processing and reviewing new applications requires time from the insurance companies. So, if they know that your medical condition will result in a decline, they will tell you in advance. Try contacting several different insurance companies and only submit an application with those insurance companies that encourage you to do so.
I am about to receive a letter from an insurance company that I will be declined and I don’t really know what to do. My agent let me know this after I sent her the application. She said that the underwriting department was almost certainly going to deny me because I have certain health problems. She also said that it was usually possible to get affordable health insurance even if I had such a preexisting condition because I could get a plan with exclusions on that one. But I don’t really like this answer and would like to check up on them. Do we have any legal consumer rights when it comes to insurance, such as with a credit company? I would like to make sure that they have not made any errors in the application and underwriting process. Or is the insurance business really closed off to public investigations?
Comment by Richard — June 7, 2009 @ 12:21 am