A woman who recently applied for health insurance was shocked when she was denied coverage, but even more so when she was given the reason. On Monday, March 4, Taylor Rios, of Kerrville, Texas, received a letter from Humana Health Insurance Company stating that they denied her application due to her diagnosis of bipolar disorder, which they referred to as a pre-existing condition.
Apart from her bipolar disorder, which has nothing to do with her physical health, she has absolutely no medical history, and has never been denied medical coverage before.
Rios, a self-employed freelance writer and mother of two, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2004. It has always been successfully treated with proper medication and since seeking treatment, the disorder has never affected her daily life.
With medication, my bipolar disorder allows me to live a normal life and to take care of my family and allows me to remain self-employed and help support my family. With medication, I do not have to apply for disability like many other people with my illness.
Although she requires three different medications, she states that she does not even need the health insurance to cover her medications because she already has a separate prescription plan that covers those. She stated that she basically just wanted the insurance as a cautionary measure.
It would be nice to have insurance in case I break a leg or have a heart attack.
Rios also shared that she was in the market for individual health insurance because the insurance premiums from her husband’s employer doubled from last year, making it no longer affordable for their family.
Although she was shocked by Humana’s refusal to insure her, she was somewhat not surprised either. Her father, who had medical insurance with no lapse in coverage for 10 years, was refused services when he was diagnosed with cancer. The insurance company claimed it was a “pre-existing condition.”
This incident has left a lot of unanswered questions, the biggest of which is simply where is this so-called affordable health insurance for all that President Obama keeps talking about?
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