Important Considerations Regarding Health Insurance Portability

• Many people do not realise that age matters when it comes to insurance. This is because the risk associated with health conditions goes up with increasing age. As a result, most insurance companies are reluctant to approve health insurance portability applications proposed by senior citizens. Some insurers may accept subject to payment of high premium charges in addition to a co-payment clause. 
• High premium charges is one of the reasons that most policyholders apply for portability of their health insurance portability. Your new insurer may agree to charge you less. However, there is a possibility that the coverage amount is reduced. While this may seem beneficial initially, you may have to spend more for your treatment in the long run owing to the low amount of insurance cover that you had opted for. This means that looking at premium rates is not enough. It is important to check the premium vis-a-vis health insurance coverage. 
• Every insurance application including the new one opted for post health insurance portability is based on the “Principle of Good Faith”. This means that filling in wrong information, incorrect details about existing health disorders or inability to submit the previous policy documents mandated during portability may result in rejection of the portability application. 
• Increasing age and health disorders have a determining effect on the portability requests made. The new insurance company may seek details of your pre-existing disorders or the claims that you had made on your previous policy in the past. Some insurers also ask their prospective customers, aged above 45 years, to undergo some necessary medical tests. The insurance companies have the right to reject the portability application if the policyholder is diagnosed with medical problems including high blood pressure, diabetes, etc. 
• Understand the important waiting period clause during health insurance portability. Any and every kind of health insurance agreement contains the waiting period clause that falls into three categories. Fresh policies come with a waiting period of 30 days. For minor disorders like kidney stones or appendicitis, the waiting period does not exceed two years. However, policyholders afflicted with pre-existing disorders like cardiovascular disorders, cancer or Type 2 diabetes can seek a claim for treatment of the diseases only after completion of the waiting period equal to four years. A policyholder who applies for portability to a new insurer after continuing to pay for their insurance with the existing insurer for three years does not have to again go through the waiting period of 30 days and two years respectively. However, the four-year waiting period clause will continue to be applicable and the insured will have to wait for another one year before filing claims for pre-existing illnesses.