A decrease in students applying to and getting accepted into veterinary colleges, expensive state-of-the-art equipment, liability insurance, expensive prescription drugs, and the cost of maintaining a veterinary clinic/office has inflated pet owners veterinary bills to never before imagined prices. When the beloved family pet suddenly falls ill or is injured in a freak accident many pet owners find themselves forced to put the family pet to sleep in a decision called economic euthanasia. Many family pets could have been saved from economic euthanasia if their owners had only thought to purchase pet health insurance coverage.
The cost of veterinary expenses for the average dog owner is approximately two hundred and eleven dollars per year. The average dog owner will visit the local veterinary office about 2.8 times a year. The typical reasons for dog owners to take the family dog to the local veterinarian is her basic routine health care such as physicals, vaccines, dental work, neutering or spaying, nail trimming, and heartworm testing.
The typical cat owner will visit the veterinary and 2.3 times per year to take care of declawing, physicals, vaccines, dental work, neutering or spaying, and ear mites. D. average yearly cost for these 2.3 visits to the local veterinarian each year it is approximately one hundred and seventy-nine dollars. These statistics are based on a 2005 survey done by the American Pet Product Manufacturers Association.
Pet health insurance coverage and is insurance coverage that helps pay veterinary costs if your family pet becomes ill or is injured. Depending upon the policy you purchase your family may be reimbursed if your family pet is stolen, lost, or dies. Pet owners purchased pet health insurance coverage for a few various reasons. The main reason people purchase pet health insurance coverage is to pay for unanticipated and extremely expensive veterinary bills. In many cases the purchase of pet health insurance coverage can be the difference between a recovery and economic euthanasia for many family pets.
Pet health insurance coverage is not a brand new concept. Horse owners have been ensuring their valuable show and pleasure mounts against major medical bills and the fatality/mortality for years. In Europe cut health-care coverage has been available since the 1940s and approximately 25% of all British pet owners care in some type of pet health insurance coverage. It is estimated that nearly 50% called loved household family pets have some type of pet health insurance coverage. All developed countries offer some type of pet health insurance coverage. Many dog owners in the United Kingdom also carry a type of insurance called Third Party Liability insurance. This insurance became popular after the 1971 animals act came into being; this act states that if a dog is directly responsible for an accident, like a car crash, the dog's owner will be held accountable.
Pet health insurance coverage does not typically cover potential hereditary conditions, pre-existing conditions, and normally include a cap on surgeries and other miscellaneous medical expenses. Some pet insurance companies will also cover the cost boarding your pet at a local kennel or veterinary hospital.
With the escalating cost of medical care, getting a health insurance should become a top priority if you intend getting at least part of your health expenses covered at a reasonable cost. With a complex and constantly changing health insurance system, choosing the right health insurance is by no means easy. The information below may help make it easier for you to make a decision regarding health care insurance.
Types of Health Insurance
Managed Care and Fee-For-Service are basically the two types of health insurance. Although different from each other, both plans cover a wide range of medical, hospital and surgical expenses with some even offering dental and prescription drug coverage.
Managed Care: These plans provide their members with comprehensive health services and offer financial incentives to those patients who utilize the services of the providers listed in the plan.
Fee-for-Service: Members of these plans typically see the doctor of their choice and are responsible for paying the necessary fees. The claim form can be filed later either by the patient or the medical provider.
What to Look for in a Health Care Plan
When deciding which health plan to choose you need to take into consideration the cost of care, the services that the insurance plan covers and the quality of the insurance plan.
Cost of the health care plan: Find out what is the monthly premium you will have to pay as well as the deductibles you will be expected to pay for from your own pocket, before you get reimbursed. Also find out the premium for having all your medical expenses covered and for covering just the larger expenses. Determine what percentage of your medical expenses will be reimbursed after you've met your deductible. Equally important, find out how much less you are likely to be reimbursed if you use the services of a doctor that is not within the insurance company's network.
What are the services covered by the plan: It is important that the insurance plan you choose should cover the services that you are most likely to use. Check that the hospitals, doctors and other medical providers that you would like to use are covered by the plan. Also ascertain what are the procedures involved for getting the necessary care and reimbursement in the event of an emergency. Check if the plan covers preexisting medical conditions or chronic conditions including cancer, AIDS, asthma and alcoholism, it any of them pertains to you.
Quality of the Insurance plan: Before finalizing any health care plan check how it has been rated by recognized independent government as well as non-government organizations such as the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). Check the statistics and see the number of complaints that have been filed against the plan as well as the number of members who have dropped out within a specific period.
Both Julia Solomon & Adrian Adams are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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