Timing is everything.
My favorite saying is even true about pet health insurance.
Last week we discussed the importance of choosing the right pet health insurance company.
Suppose, though, you have insurance for your pet’s healthcare, but you want to change companies. Timing may be crucial, and your pet’s doctor can help.
Just as with people, pet health insurance policies have exclusions for preexisting conditions.
Take Annie, for example, who is undergoing heartworm treatment right now.
Annie came from the Humane Society of South Mississippi with 30 days of free health insurance. To continue protection beyond the first month, pet owners are required to pay the standard premium.
In cases such as Annie’s, it makes sense to continue the insurance she began with, at least for the first six months. Annie came to the shelter as a stray, so we had to assume that she had received no heartworm preventive prior to her adoption. Her initial test was negative, and we dispensed six months of heartworm preventive for her, but she needed another test in six months before she was “out of the woods.”
Fast forward six months, and Annie’s next heartworm test was positive.
By continuing the shelter-provided policy, Annie was covered for her heartworm treatment because, for that company and this timing, the heartworm condition was not yet preexisting.
Annie’s owners wanted to move her insurance protection to a bigger, older pet health insurance company with more-comprehensive care. I encouraged that move, yet, I advised them to wait until we knew what the outcome of her six-months-later heartworm test would be prior to making the change.
By waiting just a few months, Annie’s owners saved hundreds of dollars, compared to having to pay for the heartworm treatment directly out of their pockets.
Health insurance is something your pet’s doctor understands. And, if there are questions he can’t answer, the company’s representatives can.
Click here for a free quote. Or, to have your questions answered by a pet health insurance expert at PetFirst.
See you tomorrow, Dr. Randolph.
