Self-ping for later. I, too, am interested in what Freepers have to say on this. I’d like to know how to answer my liberal nephew who wants Obamacare because of people with preexisting conditions. I myself am taking medication for something and wonder what would happen if I switched jobs. Will my new employer’s insurance refuse me because of “preexisting condition”?
If you’ve been on the medication for more than a year, it is against the law for them to deny you coverage. Sure, you may have to pay more, but you will be able to get insurance.
If you have had coverage all along you will get a certificate of insurance from your old insurance company and usually not refused.
Pre-existing exclusions that are invoked are usually 6 to 12 months.
Here’s a definition of pre-existing conditions from WikiAnswers.
A pre-existing condition is a medical condition that existed before you obtained health insurance. In most cases, there is a 9 month waiting period for pre-existing medical condition coverage. That means that if a company offers you coverage, they may not provide coverage for that specific pre-existing medical condition for 9 - 12 months.
In many cases, if have had coverage in place for at least 18 months with no more than a 63 day gap in coverage, and you are just switching insurance companies, the new company will give you credit for having coverage in place and waive the waiting periods for your conditions. This allows you to switch plans if you need to.
The rationale for these policies is that medical insurance works the same way other insurances do-that medical insurance is to protect yourself in case something bad happens. You need to have coverage in place before something bad happens. An analogy is that just like you can’t buy auto insurance after an accident to cover the cost of the accident, medical insurance only covers issues that arise unexpectedly after coverage has begun.