Medical Insurance Question

zain

I have recently seen a private consultant and it looks like i might be seeing him in the future. The initial bill was over £300 and i wonder whether if i now take out medical insurance will it cover me for future bills? It seems unlikely, but you never know

Thanks in advance

Justicia

I believe that many Medical Insurers will refuse to cover/pay out for a condition that has been diagnosed BEFORE a policy was taken out.

So if you mean that the Consultant has diagnosed a condition that may need further (expensive) treatment then I would expect the Insurers that you approach to either refuse to cover it or put the premiums up accordingly.

The above is based on reading rather than any personal experience.

Might be good to contact a few and see what they tell you...

Bossyboots

No, as far as I could work out there is no policy that will cover you now for the condition you already have symptoms for, not even at an inflated price.

I think it is BUPA who will cover pre-existing conditions after five years membership but the policy price is loaded if you do that. You also have to have finished treatment so if it is something that will be ongoing for many years then it won't be covered. It would only be if you had something treated and it later flared up again after the five year period that you could claim.

Bossyboots

Justicia wrote:

I believe that many Medical Insurers will refuse to cover/pay out for a condition that has been diagnosed BEFORE a policy was taken out.

So if you mean that the Consultant has diagnosed a condition that may need further (expensive) treatment then I would expect the Insurers that you approach to either refuse to cover it or put the premiums up accordingly.

The above is based on reading rather than any personal experience.

Might be good to contact a few and see what they tell you...

Its not just a diagnosis, they won't cover anything where a patient has SYMPTOMS before taking out the policy.

I researched this in depth last year when looking for a loophole to see a private orthopaedic doctor in the middle of treatment.

zain

Thanks for the prompt replies.
I guessed as much but i thought it was worth asking.

Spud_2

Hi

I work for a PMI company and what you've been advised is correct. The general rule of thumb is that any symptoms (whether diagnosed or not) experienced in the 5 years prior to the policy start date aren't covered for the first two years of cover. This is referred to as a Moritorium policy.

I'm certainly not aware of any policy which will cover pre-existing problems. In effect, it's the same as any insurance policy in that if for example you had a break-in, you couldn't then take out contents insurance the following day to get the incident covered.

Justicia

Bossyboots wrote:

Its not just a diagnosis, they won't cover anything where a patient has SYMPTOMS before taking out the policy.

I researched this in depth last year when looking for a loophole to see a private orthopaedic doctor in the middle of treatment.

Cheeeky!

When writing my post, I was working on the basis of the original post that to see a Consultant (after I assume a GP referral) the OP must have had symptoms already anyway to have had a diagnosis made!

Loophole? I suspect that Insurers give bonus' to their employees that point any of those out to be closed!!

Bossyboots

Justicia wrote:

Cheeeky!

When writing my post, I was working on the basis of the original post that to see a Consultant (after I assume a GP referral) the OP must have had symptoms already anyway to have had a diagnosis made!

Not necessarily. I have had two referrals in the past two years and neither time did my GP even offer a suggestion of diagnosis, just packed me off to the hospital for them to decide. Although the referrals were to particular departments, it gave no clue as to what was wrong. In fact, my GP specifically told me I was not suffering from something which I actually was and which has now been successfully treated.

bargainhunt_3

I am with HSA SimplyHealth and they will cover the conditions after two years for no extra cost. However the policy is more restrictive in what it covers when compared to some other policies. I would advise you to check their website and the small print.

The premiums seem to be about 40 quid per month for someone aged 20-40.

Bossyboots

Justicia wrote:

Cheeeky!

When writing my post, I was working on the basis of the original post that to see a Consultant (after I assume a GP referral) the OP must have had symptoms already anyway to have had a diagnosis made!

Loophole? I suspect that Insurers give bonus' to their employees that point any of those out to be closed!!

I found my "loophole". If I join my husband's company scheme BUPA will cover my pre-existing condition. How cross am I that I didn't do it two years ago.