M.E/CFS and Serious Illness/Disability Cover

Ladybird17_2

Hi all!

I'm posting as I'm looking to see if anyone has had a similar experience to me with Life Insurance.

I've been paying into a policy with Serious Illness and Disability Cover. I've recently been diagnosed with ME and email the provider about this.

However, apparently ME isn't covered as they don't consider it a "serious illness"! I'm shocked! I don't think they realise how awful and debilitating it is, in fact it's more debiliating than some of the conditions they do cover!

I feel cheated and really annoyed. I have no idea why I'm paying into a policy when the provider is so discriminatory. It's not helping my illness much either, I'm feeling really drained because of it.

Has anyone else had similar experiences?

Lou x

InsideInsurance

Is it Pru Protects Serious Illness cover or Critical Illness from someone else?

Either way, there is normally a very definitive list of conditions, and the necessary tests to pass/fail for some, of what is covered and all other conditions are excluded. Having looked at your policy is ME/CFS listed?

In blunt honesty, due to the controversial nature of ME/CFS I would be surprised if many insurers would offer cover for it

Quentin

The illnesses you are covered against should be spelt out in the policy.

The insurer can't pay up if your condition isn't one you are covered against, and won't be cheating you or discriminating against you.

Ladybird17_2

It's PruProtect, yes. I just feel really appalled at the way they dismiss M.E. though.

Ladybird17_2

ME/CFS is one of their exclusions, which is disheartening. I'm wondering if there is really any point in Serious Illness cover to be honest

InsideInsurance

I dont know if medical opinion has changed in the last 10 years (and to be honest underwriters knowledge tends to be even older than that anyway) but certainly when my cousin had ME there was still big debates on if it is medical or psychological, if you could definitively "prove" the condition or if it is the default answer when all other possible explanations are dismissed etc. Certainly my cousin was treated as an inpatient several times and most of those on the psychiatric ward (though she always contested it wasnt a psych issue)

If you look at all of the covered conditions:
http://www.pruprotect.co.uk/pdfs/life/conditions_covered.pdf
You wont see any mental health issues covered at all unfortunately.

Mojisola

InsideInsurance wrote: »

I dont know if medical opinion has changed in the last 10 years (and to be honest underwriters knowledge tends to be even older than that anyway) but certainly when my cousin had ME there was still big debates on if it is medical or psychological, if you could definitively "prove" the condition or if it is the default answer when all other possible explanations are dismissed etc. Certainly my cousin was treated as an inpatient several times and most of those on the psychiatric ward (though she always contested it wasnt a psych issue)

If you look at all of the covered conditions:
http://www.pruprotect.co.uk/pdfs/life/conditions_covered.pdf
You wont see any mental health issues covered at all unfortunately.

This is what lead to the pressure to get ME listed as a psychiatric disease in the States. Insurers saw a way of getting out of paying for what could be years of ill-health.

It's a legacy that's still with us and is still stifling research into the physical causes of ME.

Ladybird17_2

ME is definitely not a mental health issue, it's a physical issue and a lot of sufferers would be really offended to read that people think it's "mental health". This illness is going to be so challenging, I've only been diagnosed a week and already I'm shocked at how misunderstood it is. It seems as though having ME is going to be an uphill battle!

Ladybird17_2

Well said Mojisola!

InsideInsurance

Ladybird17 wrote: »

ME/CFS is one of their exclusions

Its not an "exclusion". The policy covers for a list of explicit conditions (see link in previous post) and anything not explicitly listed isnt covered. This isnt a policy where everything is covered unless explicitly excluded.

Ladybird17_2

InsideInsurance wrote: »

Its not an "exclusion". The policy covers for a list of explicit conditions (see link in previous post) and anything not explicitly listed isnt covered. This isnt a policy where everything is covered unless explicitly excluded.

It's listed as an "exclusion" on my policy documents actually!