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Frequently Asked Pet Insurance Plan Questions
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How does a pet insurance plan work?
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Industry Standard
Unlike human health insurance, the pet owner is usually required to pay the veterinary bill upfront and submit a claim to the
pet insurance provider for reimbursement.
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Trupanion's Answer
Trupanion pet health insurance also requires that the pet owner pay the veterinary bill upfront, and submit a claim to be reimbursed.
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How do pet insurers compute reimbursement?
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Industry Standard
Many pet insurance providers find ways to limit their risks through reimbursement. Almost all providers require a coinsurance and most will reimburse 80% or 90% of the veterinary charges. How they choose to reimburse varies from provider to provider.
Some companies offer a benefit schedule that lays out in detail what a pet owner would get back for a given procedure (regardless of the actual cost). Most common among providers is to issue a 'reasonable costs' or 'usual and customary fee' reimbursement plan. This means that the insurance provider will determine costs that are reasonable for veterinarians to be charging in the pet owner's geographic location and reimburse up to that given amount. Few companies will reimburse the stated amount (usually 80-90%) based off of the pet owner's actual bill.
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Trupanion's Answer
The Trupanion pet health insurance plan pays 90% of all covered veterinary charges.
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Will premiums ever increase?
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Industry Standard
Almost all pet insurance providers will increase premiums with inflationary costs of veterinary medicine. Many companies will increase premiums based on the pet's age, and some may even increase premiums as the pet owner files claims.
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Trupanion's Answer
Trupanion only increases premiums to reflect the rising costs of veterinary care, and will never increase pet owners' premiums based on their pets' age or if they file a lot of claims.
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How do payout limits work?
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Industry Standard
Many pet health insurance providers offer different plans that allot various payout limits. Companies may place limits on a per incident basis where they would specify the maximum amount that they would pay out for one incident. They can also place limits on per illness category, per year, or over the lifetime of the pet.
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Trupanion's Answer
The only limit that a Trupanion pet insurance plan has is a $20,000 lifetime limit. We will never limit a payout per incident, per illness, or per year. Your pet gets $20,000 of lifetime coverage; it's that simple.
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What does pet health insurance cover?
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Industry Standard
Pet insurance will cover veterinary costs that arise from a pet getting sick or injured. Items such as the veterinary exam, surgeries, medications, diagnostic tests are typically covered.
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Trupanion's Answer
The Trupanion pet health insurance plan covers diagnostic tests, surgeries, and medications if your pet becomes sick or injured.
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What is usually excluded in a pet insurance plan?
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Industry Standard
Almost all pet insurance companies in North America exclude pre-existing conditions. Other exclusions typically include hereditary and congenital disorders, preventative care, conditions relating to breeding, alternative veterinary treatment, and most plans exclude coverage due do an accident or illness spawning from a natural disaster (such as hurricane or earthquake).
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Trupanion's Answer
The Trupanion dog and cat insurance plans exclude coverage for pre-existing conditions, routine preventative veterinary care, conditions relating to breeding, and alternative veterinary treatment. To learn more about specific exclusions, please view our
sample policy here.
The Trupanion pet health insurance plan covers diagnostic tests, surgeries, and medications if your pet becomes sick or injured.
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How do insurers handle chronic conditions?
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Industry Standard
Many pet health insurance companies will cover a chronic condition in the initial policy term that the condition first appeared in. Upon subsequent policy renewal the condition would become pre-existing and therefore not covered. Some insurers have add-ons that allow for the coverage of chronic conditions while others include chronic condition coverage in more comprehensive plans. These comprehensive plans typically cost significantly more than a lower plan.
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Trupanion's Answer
With Trupanion cat and dog insurance, as long as a chronic or recurring condition was not pre-existing, it will be covered for the life of your dog or cat. If your dog develops diabetes, for example, 3 months after you get dog insurance, we will cover the treatments for the rest of his life.
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