Why Did I Get Denied Health Insurance?

Unlike group insurance from your employer where you simply just sign up and do not go through medical underwriting, individual insurance works a whole lot differently.  When you apply for individual health insurance, you have to be aware of a few factors so you can increase your chances of getting approved.

For instance, if you have a healthy history, chances are that you are going to get approved for individual health insurance.  However, if there are some complications, then you have to take a more strategic approach.  Sometimes choosing a plan with a higher deductible will actually increase your chances of getting approved.  This is because carriers that see more risk with a certain applicant like them to have more skin in the game.  If you have to pay for more of the up front costs, meaning the higher deductible, then the insurance carrier will look at that like you will not be over utilizing the insurance for unnecessary services. 

Also, some people just have a hard time getting approved for individual health insurance.  If you have some conditions like heart disease or diabetes, those are usually fast denials from the insurance carrier.  There are some other options though.  In California, you can get insurance from the California High Risk Pool where they take people that have got denied directly from health insurance carriers.