Health Insurance Articles
The Benefits Of Affordable Health Insurance Coverage For Diabetics
2011-09-06
Diabetics often pay more for their health insurance coverage, as diabetes is considered to be an expensive preexisting condition. New reform laws have made it easier for diabetics to find affordable coverage and have greatly eased the financial burden of the disease.
Diabetics benefit from affordable health insurance coverage because they face more health care costs than other policyholders. While the condition is self-manageable, the costs of testing supplies, regular check-ups and treatments can quickly become a serious financial burden without insurance. Diabetics pay about three times more for health care than other individuals according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and these costs are almost impossible to manage without great insurance. Affordable health care can also cover the costs of the occasional emergency room visit or surgery and, as these costs can quickly go into the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, insurance coverage can be crucial.
The best way for a diabetic to keep an affordable health insurance plan is to avoid any type of lapse in coverage. Even a lapse in coverage of a few days will allow health insurance companies to declare diabetes as a preexisting condition, which can greatly increase the cost of coverage. COBRA and other health reforms have made it easier for diabetics to avoid a lapse in coverage when switching from one insurance provider to another. However, there are still options for diabetics who buy insurance after a gap in coverage. The most important tactic is to compare rates from several insurance companies. Managed care plans like PPOs and HMOs can be a great resource for diabetics, as these plans keep health care costs down. Diabetics may have a limited choice of physicians through a managed care program, however.
It's clear that affordable health insurance coverage has its advantages, but many diabetics worry that they can't qualify for insurance at all. Diabetics with other serious health risks might find it difficult to locate an insurance policy at all and, while the Affordable Care Act has made it much more difficult for insurance companies to turn down applicants due to preexisting conditions, coverage can still be difficult to obtain in some states. The good news is that many states have high risk pools which offer affordable health policies to diabetics who can't find insurance elsewhere. High risk pools are a last resort, as their insurance is more expensive and limited than private insurance, but they ensure that all diabetics can find coverage. Since affordable health coverage is especially important for buyers with chronic preexisting conditions like diabetes, this is an especially important option for diabetic health insurance buyers.
