Welcome Back to the Medical Underwriting Circle of Hell
By John McDonough & William Seligman
February 15, 2017
All leading Republicans who are committed to repealing all or key parts of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) also emphasize their commitment to maintaining the law’s most popular part: banning pre-existing condition exclusions and medical underwriting by preserving the ACA’s (also known as Obamacare) policy of “guaranteed issue.” But the fine print in Republican proposals betrays that commitment, including legislation filed on January 26 by House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) threatening health security for tens of millions of Americans.
Medical underwriting is the insurance industry practice of issuing and pricing health insurance based on an individual’s current or prior medical condition. Insurers use medical underwriting and pre-existing condition exclusions to avoid covering anyone who might cost them money. The Walden bill, called the “Preexisting Conditions Protection and Continuous Coverage Incentive Act,” pretends to continue the ACA’s ban on medical underwriting, but would, in reality, do the opposite.What are pre-existing conditions that can prevent you from obtaining coverage?
What are pre-existing conditions that can prevent you from obtaining coverage? Here is a list of hundreds that are used to exclude or limit health insurance: acne, cancer, domestic violence, leukemia, pregnancy, sleep apnea, and much more.
Walden’s bill would require that insurers not use medical underwriting and pre-existing condition exclusions against applicants for insurance, though with provisos. For example, though insurers couldn’t refuse to issue a policy because of someone’s current or past medical condition, nothing in his draft prevents insurers from using medical underwriting in setting premiums. In other words, health care consumers could acquire insurance despite their medical history, yet still see huge increases in month premium expenses.
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http://www.realclearhealth.com/articles/2017/02/15/welcome_back_to_the_medical_underwriting_circle_of_hell_110443.html
Evil slimy bastards
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