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subrob1967 -> RE: a rant: goodbye universal health care (2/2/2008 7:54:14 AM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: sappatoti
I did have an excellent job. Good pay and health insurance costs shared by the employer and employees. It cost about $200/month. The company received a notice from it's insurer that it was no longer covering smaller businesses with fewer than 50 people, and they would have to find another carrier. My employer searched and found out that just about all of the major carriers suddenly had a similar policy, so the search went to smaller insurers who did not have the clout to make the same deals with medical practitioners as did the big carriers. My employer had no choice and signed up; result was my cost of health insurance went from $200/month to $350/month, and so did my employer's contribution go up.
I had a relapse of my continuing medical problems, and when the bills hit the insurer, they cancelled my employer's policy. The reason was that had the insurer known that I was "one of those" with chronic neurological problems, they would have not insured me. So, my employer's hunt for another carrier went on. They finally found one who would insure the company, but only if I, personally, would agree to waivers that I would not submit any medical claims having anything to do with my neurological condition to them. I did so knowing that at least the rest of the company would have insurance.
I moved on to another job in another city. When it came time for me to sign up for insurance after the probationary period, I was informed that their health insurance carrier, a large company, had reviewed my records and considered me "uninsurable." That company was bought out by another and I was one of the first to be downsized.
Since then, on every job interview I have been on, my credentials look good right up to the point where they run a background check on my medical past. It's a terrible thing to be turned down for a job because the employer is being told by their insurance company that I am "uninsurable," despite my willingness to sign waivers.
So, please tell me how this is Capitalism working at its best? I certainly did not have a say when this neuro condition afflicted me, and I certainly have no control over the fact that neurologists cannot agree on the best method to bring it under control. So, because of factors beyond my control, I am forever determined to be "uninsurable." That's not Capitalism... that's borderline fascism.
I find your story very hard to believe for 2 reasons
1) The insurance company CANNOT cancel ANY policy for ANY reason except NON payment of premiums, so if your group policy was cancelled, it means whomever was in charge of paying the premium, must not have paid the premium.
2) Group Medical policies CANNOT, BY LAW, pick and choose who is covered, and who isn't. It's an all or none proposition. They either cover EVERY employee who enrolls, or they're not allowed to do business...Period.
They can, however choose to not cover an ailment for up to 1 year under the preexisting clause. Preexisitng only comes into play if you've seen a Doctor for a specific thing, within a certain time frame of the policy's effective date. But the law states that if you don't see a Dr for 180 straight days, the condition is no longer preexisting, and no longer exempt from coverage.
So it's 180 consecutive days, or 1 year, whichever comes first.
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