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Obtaining health insurance with diabetes can be a monumental task. If you are a diabetic, I do not need to remind you how important it is to control your disease and the consequences of not doing so. The insurance carriers are also well aware of the possible negative outcomes, and are very reluctant to issue health insurance to a diabetic.
However, I do not want you to be discouraged. There are various ways that you can obtain health insurance. We will discuss those avenues in this article.
Diabetes Controlled with Oral Medication, Diet and Exercise
In the past, diabetes was considered a completely uninsurable condition. The insurance carriers would not even review the application or an agent would not accept the application if you were a diabetic. A legitimate health insurance plan for a diabetic would be impossible to obtain.
Today, there are certain carriers that are a bit more liberal with their underwriting. Specifically, they will consider a non-insulin diabetic who is controlled with oral medication and/or diet and exercise. In addition, you cannot have any other medical issues.
While this seems to be a somewhat narrow guideline, we have been able to write a large number of diabetics with complete major medical health insurance plans.
The carriers do "rate up" or charge a somewhat higher premium. But, it is a way to obtain a complete major medical plan at a reasonable premium. If you do not meet the aforementioned criteria, there are still other ways to obtain coverage. But, you must obtain a  Guaranteed Issue health insurance plan.
If you work for a company that offers health insurance, your problem may be solved, as group health insurance plans are what as known as guaranteed issue which means that you are not required to medically qualify for the health insurance.
If you do not have group coverage available or you do not live in one of the few states that mandates guaranteed issue health insurance (i.e., New York, New Jersey, etc.), then you need to find such a plan on your own.
It is unfortunate that there are so many salespeople (licensed and unlicensed) who will try to sell you a plan that for all practical purposes, is useless. You need to be a particularly careful consumer when buying a guaranteed health insurance plan. Let me say from the outset that the plans you find will not, in most cases, cover testing supplies or syringes. Those items will still be your personal expense.
If you are on a limited budget, we recommend either a good indemnity or mini-medical plan. The mini-medical is a little more expensive but will provide co-pays for office visits as well as brand name prescriptions. A HIPAA qualified,
You may also wish to read about life insurance for diabetics which is also something that is possible.
They use a United HealthCare PPO network and it is the best plan of this type that we have come across.
You could obtain full major medical health insurance, but this is much
more expensive. Plus, you must be employed at least 15 hours a week. It
can be self-employment. This is a full $5 million dollar major medical
plan. I suggest you go find a specialist dealing with health plans for diabetics and speak with the marketing firm directly (or call them at 800-986-4786). They are very knowledgeable about health insurance plans for diabetics and can answer your questions.
If you meet income requirements, state-sponsored Medicaid programs may
be available. Most people do not realize that you might not initially
meet the income guidelines, but, in the event that a hospital stay goes
over a certain dollar amount in a given month, Medicaid would pick up
the remaining expenses. This means that a mini-medical or indemnity
plan in conjunction with Medicaid could be a viable solution. Indemnity
plans cost between $175 and $305 per month for an individual and can be
found on the web. Click this link for more information: www.guaranteed-health-insurance.com/definedbenefit.htm
Please come back to this website from time to time to read additional
articles about guaranteed issue health insurance plans. When something
new becomes available, we will immediately update our information.
All of the plans mentioned in this article can be found online. Please
click on the following link: Health Insurance for Diabetics.
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