"Doesn't cover pre existing conditions...

[LaurieFairyCake]

whether diagnosed or not'

In relation to health insurance.

Does this mean if I get diagnosed with diabetes, brain tumour, osteoporosis etc where the condition has likely been there undetected for years am I not covered ?

Because I'm not sure I see the point of it if that is the case

Unless it was just there to cover accidents or something - but it's not, it's £80 a month comprehensive health insurance

It means if you have already had, let's say, a bad leg, and the leg flares up again, that wouldn't be covered.

Not an expert, but I think it covers anything for which you are (potentially) symptomatic at the time of taking out the policy. It's to disbar sharp practice - for example say you have say the sort of poo symptoms which really ought to be taken to the doctor, but decide to take out insurance and wait the standard new-policy exclusion period before seeing making the appointment. If something is genuinely silent and you couldn't possibly have known about it, then you are (probably) covered.

You need to check with the company.

Some pre-existing conditions will be covered, just at a higher premium, and it may be only for new manifestations of it IYSWIM, not ongoing treatment..

Do check also if there is a maximum payment ceiling

If you read the small print it often says something along the lines of "if you have no treatment for a condition for two years then it's no longer classed as pre-existing". So for example I know I have a benign tumour, but as long as I have no treatment for it then after two years it becomes eligible to be covered under the policy.

There are two types I'm offered on the website - 'moratorium' or 'full medical disclosure' - I was really happy with full medical disclosure, would much rather they looked at my medical records and discover there's nothing on there apart from elevated cholesterol levels (not high enough to be treated by statins according to my doctor - no treatment required)

What I wouldn't be happy about is say I needed surgery or had a heart attack linked to cholesterol - if they then got away with saying it's pre existing just because I currently have slightly higher cholesterol

Hope that makes sense

If you already have high cholesterol then subsequent complications may not be covered. If you have had any diagnostic appointments, as an in or out patient, or ongoing treatment you need to declare it.

No, I have had nothing apart from one blood test 5 years ago that said I had higher cholesterol but not bad enough to prescribe statins

If in two years time I had a heart attack () would I then not be covered ?

To be clear - no treatment at all

Tell them your cholesterol level. To be fair most insurance policies(not travel) ask dr to fill in and BP height weight, cholesterol liver function kidney function are among other things All asked

Yes, that's why I want to go for the full medical disclosure so that I can say that

However if I subsequently suffered from something arising from it - and literally you could link most of the main killers to it I would be massively pissed off at paying £70-80 a month for nothing just because at 43 I had slightly elevated cholesterol levels

It is also there to prevent you taking out the insurance, once you're worried about something, but haven't actually got a diagnosis through - so, say you found some symptoms, took out the insurance, then went to the GP / hospital referral the following week they won't pay out because you hadn't got a diagnosis at the time, if you had the symptoms and were trying to pull a fast one.

Okay, from my own experience...

Say you've had heavy periods since they started and you've seen your doctor about this. Then 10 years later you're diagnosed with endometriosis- that's a pre-existing condition.

Usually it relates to things you've seen a doctor for (otherwise there's no way for them to prove it's pre-existing really) but having seen a doctor with a seemingly benign symptom can rule out coverage if you're later diagnosed with an illness related to this condition.

This is another reason why we should never ever move to an insurance based healthcare model!

Yes I agree - but I think the normal 2 week rule should apply

You know when you buy pet insurance, life insurance, house insurance - and they basically say nothing can happen for 2 weeks as you can't claim

Seems a bit unfair to make it an indeterminate length of time - if I have a heart attack next year and I'm not on medication still, not visiting the doctor etc and they STILL try and say 'AH HAH but 5 years ago your cholesterol levels were slightly higher'

Well that's just SHIT

If I die in a car accident 2 weeks and 1 day after taking life insurance out I expect those fuckers to pay out (yet another thing I'm paying £40 a month for )

Oh cross posted with Tammy

That's terrible ! And exactly what I'm worried about !!!

Assuming you are in UK most acute conditions would be treated in NHS in the first instance anyway.

Speaking from my own and my family's experience, i wouldn't be worried about what happens if you have a heart attack or if you develop cancer even (although care does vary, in most cases the NHS handles these things quite well). What I'd want coverage for if I didn't have pre existing conditions is chronic, incurable illnesses that are hard to treat / incurable as that's where the NHS really goes to shit IME!

Unfortunately, Tammy, most private healthcare cover excludes chronic conditions so they can only be dealt with by the NHS

We have underwritten health insurance through work. That means pre-existing conditions are covered. After we took it out I was unexpectedly diagnosed with MS. This is not covered by the insurance as it is a chronic disease. The NHS have been pretty good.
Diabetes would fall into this category too.
Your example of a heart attack is not a good one. You wouldn't get private emergency treatment for that on insurance. It doesn't exist. You might get a private room covered for NHS treatment in your cholesterol example but that would be true if it were a genuine surprise.

Phone the insurer and ask them.

Sadly Laurie, the same is true for pet insurance, it’s indefinite not just 2 weeks. My friend got a rescue dog from Romania about 3 years ago and it was insured upon arrival. Since November it’s been having really high temperatures and they’ve just discovered that it’s caused by some sort of bacteria or parasite (I forget which) that is common in Romania but just isn’t seen in dogs here. So they won’t cover the treatment because, despite the fact that it wasn’t diagnosed in Romania and there’s been no symptoms or treatment for it ever that my friend is aware of, it must be a pre-existing condition.

Insurance companies will refuse to pay out if they can in my experience.