Medical underwriting is a process when a private insurance company reviews your medical history to determine whether they will provide you with coverage, how much to charge you, and whether to set a waiting period before coverage begins. If you have a lot of medical issues, you may have to pay more for coverage or even be denied approval. Pre-existing conditions will come up and can cost you greatly.
Medicare Supplement plans help pay for out of pocket expenses such as copays, coinsurance, and deductibles. When
you sign up for a Medicare Supplement plan, you may need to go through the underwriting process. It all depends on when you decide to sign up for a supplement plan. To answer the question if Medicare underwriting is necessary, both yes and no. Find out how to avoid Medicare underwriting, and if you do have to go through it, then what it entails.
The Only Time To Avoid Medicare Underwriting
During the Medicare Supplement Open Enrollment Period is when you have “guaranteed issue rights.” Guaranteed issue means that you will be accepted into any plan regardless of your health condition or pre-existing conditions. During this time, you have a one-time guarantee when companies cannot deny you or charge you more due to a pre-existing condition. The Medicare Supplement Open Enrollment Period is a six month period that begins the first day of the month you turn 65 years old, and enrolled in Medicare Part B.
When You Need To Be Underwritten
If you apply for a Medicare Supplement plan after your Medicare Open Enrollment Period has passed, then you may have to go through the underwriting process. In addition, when you are switching Medicare Supplement plans, you may have to go through the underwriting process. If a Medicare Supplement plan accepts your application, the insurer can choose to make you wait 6 months before covering a pre-existing condition. This is known as a “look-back period,” or “pre-existing wait period.”
The Underwriting Process
Private insurance companies will have extensive health-related questions on their applications. It will go over your entire medical history, both past and present. If you have a pre-existing health condition that may be expensive for the company to cover, they can choose to deny your application.
If you have a health condition that needs constant attention, chronic, or incurable, then you may be denied. Certain medications can also be a reason for denial, especially for the incurable or chronic health conditions, simply because it will be too expensive for the insurers to cover. Often times minor conditions such as BMI, high blood pressure, and cholesterol are not issues for carriers. If you have pending surgeries or treatments, then it is best to get them done before applying. Serious health conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, dementia, chronic lung disorders, lupus, MS, major heart disorders, and kidney failure will be an automatic denial of coverage for the company.
If you are still within your Medicare Supplement Plan Open Enrollment Period, then great, no better time to get started and sign up for a plan. If you have passed this guaranteed issue window, you can still apply with caution. And if you get denied, then it is not the end of the world, our agents will search through all available Medicare Supplement plans and help you.
EZ.Insure has highly trained agents who will search through all the Medicare Supplement carriers in your region, whether you are within the open enrollment period or not. Your personalized agent will compare all the plans, their coverage, and their quotes. To get started, you can enter your zip code in the bar above, or speak to an agent directly by emailing [email protected] or calling 855-220-1144. We will be by your side throughout the process, walking you through it, while providing you with the best advice and options.
