Question about health insurance & pre-existing conditions?
Shortly before being taken off of my parent’s insurance plan, I was diagnosed with a thyroid condition that requires expensive blood tests and regular office visits. I have applied for insurance through my job, and when reading the bylaws I noticed that it does not cover pre-existing conditions. Will my thyroid disorder be considered a pre-existing when I was diagnosed only a few months ago? Will I ever be able to get any kind of insurance coverage for this disorder now?
In California, if you went from one insurance to the other within 180 days pre-existing conditions don’t apply. If they did apply, employer provided health insurance can only not cover you for thyroid for six months.
I am hypothyroid, I have never been asked about when it was diagnosed. I have always gotten my health insurance from my employer. Even if I was unemployed and uninsured before, it just doesn’t come up.
The link below can take you to a resource for your state. The rules are to keep people from waiting to get sick to get insurance.
rules as I know them, the insurance you are currently requesting, should not cover pre-existing conditions for a period of about 6 months.. However, there should be a question on the form about prior insurance. If you have had insurance in the last 6 months (the insurance companies like that number) then an exception should be made. Basically check with the new insurer and make sure they are aware you had previous coverage.
The newer laws say that if you get insurance within a specific time you will not have a pre existing condition. Look up Hippa laws and read about health insurance portability. If you have not been off insurance too long, you might have no waiting period. You need a certificate of coverage for your new insurance from your previous provider. To be pre existing you have to be treated within 2 years. If I am correct worst case, the law limits pre existing exclusions to 12 months. So if you go a significant period without insurance, you might have a waiting period of 1 year. My suggestion is to get it and keep it if it means getting cobra after a job loss.