When you apply for insurance, insurers will want to know if you have a chronic disease like sleep apnea. Even if you have sleep apnea, life insurance is still an option. It won’t immediately exclude you from purchasing life insurance, but it may limit the type of coverage you can acquire.
Can you get life insurance with a CPAP machine?
The sole side effect of sleep apnea is a fatigued partner who is awake all night due to your snoring.
Sleep apnea is a chronic condition in which breathing stops and begins periodically during sleep. Carbon dioxide builds up in the bloodstream when breathing is stopped. The brain is then told to rouse the sleeping individual and breathe in air, thanks to a receptor in the circulation.
Breathing regularly again restores oxygen levels, and the person falls asleep again. It’s uncommon for the person to even notice they’re having trouble breathing.
If left untreated, sleep apnea can cause hypertension, cardiac difficulties, lung damage, a lack of attention, and an increased risk of car accidents. Because of these possibilities, the life insurance market scrutinizes candidates who suffer from sleep apnea.
Is sleep apnea a pre existing condition for health insurance?
A pre-existing condition is a health issue that you had prior to the start date of your new health coverage. Pre-existing conditions include epilepsy, cancer, diabetes, lupus, sleep apnea, and pregnancy.
How much does sleep apnea shorten your life?
Moderate sleep apnea increases your chance of death by 17 percent, according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Untreated severe sleep apnea has a greater impact on life expectancy: it nearly doubles your risk of mortality.
Is sleep apnea a terminal illness?
Although a person with sleep apnea does not always die while sleeping, the chance of death rises dramatically if the condition is left untreated. When the brain detects a lack of oxygen, it tells the body to wake up, which is why patients with sleep apnea do not frequently die in their sleep.
Is sleep apnea covered?
Most insurance coverage cover CPAP since it is the most prevalent kind of sleep apnea therapy. According to Dr., CPAP is “considered to be durable medical equipment.”
Do you have to declare sleep apnea to car insurance?
It goes without saying that falling asleep or fainting while driving is extremely dangerous for you and other road users.
According to the Sleep Apnea Trust, if your sleep apnea is mild or moderate and you don’t experience extreme tiredness, you don’t need to tell the DVLA or your insurance provider. They must be told, though, if you are extremely sleepy.
If you have frequent fainting spells, it’s critical that you contact your auto insurance company if they occur while you’re driving.
Visual impairments
Your eyesight can decrease as you get older, which is why it’s critical to have frequent eye exams. During your driving test, you may recall the examiner asking you to read the number plate of the automobile in front of you. This easy task allows them to check your eyesight and make sure you can see everything well around you. If you were wearing glasses or contact lenses throughout the test, you must continue to wear them whenever you drive in the future.
The DVLA and your insurance provider must be contacted if your vision deteriorates, you experience double vision, or you lose your eyesight completely. Cataracts, glaucoma, and night blindness are among problems that can deteriorate as people become older. You should visit your doctor if you have any of these symptoms, such as light sensitivity, cloudy vision, acute eye pain, nausea, or halos surrounding lights. They may advise you to refrain from driving until you get your eyesight checked, so see if you can arrange for someone else to accompany you to the appointment.
History of strokes
You should be able to drive normally as long as you haven’t had a stroke recently. If you have a stroke, you won’t be able to drive for a month and will need to notify your insurance company and the DVLA. Your doctor will assess whether it is safe for you to drive again after 30 days, but your insurance rate may rise.
Epilepsy
It’s difficult to predict when an epileptic fit will occur, just as it is with sleep apnea or fainting. If you have epilepsy, the DVLA will most likely want to meet with you in person to assess how severe your condition is and whether you can continue to drive safely.
It’s possible that your license will need to be renewed every three years rather than every ten, and if you have a seizure, you should see a doctor as soon as possible and contact your vehicle insurance carrier.
Neurological conditions
Parkinson’s disease, narcolepsy, multiple sclerosis, motor neuron disease, and Alzheimer’s disease are all neurological disorders. If you have one of the above, you will need to be evaluated and your license may need to be renewed every year. You may need to be evaluated on a regular basis if you have an illness that can worsen with time, such as Alzheimer’s disease or motor neuron disease.
Physical impairments
Your auto insurer must be notified if you have a physical impairment, such as an amputated leg or a spine problem, especially if your vehicle has been customized specifically for you.
You may need an automobile with hand controls instead of pedals, steering aids, electronic accelerators, or a ramp if you have a physical disability. These modifications may raise your auto insurance premiums, and if you don’t reveal them, your policy may become void if you need to file a claim.
If you require a courtesy car, it’s also a good idea to check with your insurance provider. Do they have an appropriate alternative vehicle that you can drive?
Does diabetes affect car insurance?
If you can simply control your diabetes, it shouldn’t affect your vehicle insurance. You will be awarded a limited license if you require treatment, such as insulin. These can only be used for one, two, or three years. If you have a restricted license, you may be regarded a riskier driver, and your premium may be affected.
You can utilize the government’s A-Z check to see if your health condition needs to be declared. If you need to notify the DVLA, you’ll need to find the right form. There are several forms to choose from, and your condition will dictate which one you should choose. The FEP1 form, for example, is for people who are having convulsions, seizures, fits, deja vu, blackouts, or fainting. Use the A-Z list above to find your ailment, then click on it to find out which form you need to fill out and a link to it. You can also report your condition via the internet. Give your insurance provider a phone or send them an email to let them know about the problems.
Why would my insurance deny a sleep study?
Is it true that sleep studies are covered by insurance? The short answer is YES; practically all insurance companies fund sleep testing. Some insurance plans, however, have different regulations about sleep studies than others. Some insurance policies, for example, will demand a Home Sleep Test (HST) before they will fund an in-lab test (PSG). Because HSTs can accurately diagnose 75 percent of individuals with sleep apnea who have been thoroughly screened by a physician, ordering the more expensive (but more accurate) PSG scan isn’t always necessary.
Important insurance jargon to be familiar with
Some of the misconception about how much a patient must pay for services originates from a misinterpretation of language used by insurance companies in their policies. We’ll try to explain these often-confusing terminology that characterize your policy in this section.
In-network.
When arranging a sleep study with a clinic, one of the most important things to look for is whether or not your insurance provider is “in-network” with the clinic. When a clinic is in-network with your insurance provider, it indicates the two parties have agreed on a lower pricing for treatments. For example, our basic charge for a CPAP titration is $4,000 (before physician expenses), however that rate is substantially reduced for insurance carriers with which we are in-network. We’re in-network with a particular company, and the fee is $2700, a savings of $1300 over the initial amount.
This implies that if we are in-network with your insurance, your insurer will pay a lower pre-determined cost for our services, and you will spend less of your own money. If the clinic you’re going to is out-of-network, they’ll either have to pay a higher rate, they’ll only agree to pay a set amount, leaving you to pay extra, or they’ll refuse to pay the entire cost, leaving you to foot the price.
Check with your insurance to see which clinics are in-network before scheduling a sleep study so you don’t end up with a bigger fee.
Deductible
Your deductible is the amount you must pay each year before your insurance will pay for any services.
Let’s say you come to our clinic for a titration study and your insurance plan’s in-network fee is $2700, but your deductible is $1000 and you haven’t had any other services this year. Before your insurance begins to cover anything, you will normally have to pay $1000 out of pocket. This isn’t even a guarantee that your insurance will cover the remaining $1700. The amount they pay for the rest is also determined by your coinsurance.
Coinsurance
Your coinsurance is the portion of the cost of a health-care service that you share. It’s commonly calculated as a percentage of the overall service fee. After you’ve paid your deductible, you’ll start paying coinsurance.
Let’s get back to that $1700 cost once you’ve reached your deductible. A standard coinsurance percentage is 20%, which means your insurance will cover 80% of the cost and you will cover 20% of the remaining $1700. Your insurance will cover $1,360, while you will be responsible for $340. When you factor in the deductible, the total cost of treatments in this instance is $1,340.
Copay
A copay is a set amount you pay for a health-care treatment at the time you receive it. The majority of copays are for filling medications and only rarely for services like sleep studies, however your insurer may require you to pay a small upfront amount at the time of service. Depending on the type of service, the amount may differ.
Out-of-pocket
The maximum amount you will spend out of pocket for approved medical expenses in a particular year is known as out-of-pocket.
Many insurance plans will require you to meet a deductible before moving on to a coinsurance percentage that you will be responsible for up to a certain amount. Once you’ve reached that amount and paid your maximum out-of-pocket limit, your insurance will normally start paying for 100% of the charges.
While having a sleep study done at the beginning of the year may cost you some money, once you’ve met your out-of-pocket fees, your insurance will usually cover the balance of the services. These costs could include your CPAP machines, masks, hoses, and other therapy-related durable medical equipment (DME).
It’s also important to make sure that when the year draws to a close and you’ve paid off all of your out-of-pocket expenses, you’re up to date on all of your DME equipment so that your insurance will cover it, rather than having to pay for it yourself at the start of the next calendar year.
What if you don’t have insurance?
We never turn anyone away who is suffering from a sleep condition at The Alaska Sleep Clinic, regardless of whether or not they have insurance. We will always work with patients to find solutions to cover services.
We also provide a 20% discount on all cash-pay services if you pay with cash. We think that a person’s financial condition should never prevent them from getting treatment for debilitating sleep disorders, and we are happy to work out payment plans with them.
Questions to ask your insurance company and other considerations
Learn everything you can about your policy. This entails being aware of your premiums, covered services, deductibles, coinsurance, copays, and out-of-pocket costs.
If your primary care physician refers you to a clinic, double-check that the clinic is in your insurance’s network.
An insurance company will refuse to pay for a sleep study if they believe it is medically unnecessary. Your doctor may recommend a research, but your insurance company may object. Because a PSG is not medically essential, your insurance company may consent to a HST. Once your HST has been examined by a sleep specialist and it has been determined that a PSG is medically necessary, your insurance company may agree to cover the cost of the procedure. If you do the PSG first, they may refuse to pay the charges.
Insurance companies follow extremely strict guidelines for sleep studies, taking into account comorbidities and previous medical history. If you’re not sure if you’re covered, call your insurance provider and find out what you need to do to submit a study pre-determination request.
We undertake insurance verification as a convenience to patients at The Alaska Sleep Clinic in order to prepare a price quote. This price quote, however, is only an estimate of your payment part and not a firm amount that you will pay.
If you’re ready to arrange a sleep study and have checked with your insurance provider about your coverage options, contact The Alaska Sleep Clinic to set up an appointment, and we’ll help you get started on treating your sleep condition.
What comes with a CPAP machine?
Components of CPAP Air filters remove dust and pet dander from the air entering your machine; a humidifier tub holds the water for your humidifier; and air tubing links your CPAP machine to your mask.
Can I be denied health insurance because of a pre-existing condition?
Yes. Health insurance providers can’t refuse to cover you or charge you more because you have a “pre-existing condition” a health problem you had before the start date of your new health coverage under the Affordable Care Act. They are also unable to charge women a higher rate than men.
Only grandfathered individual health insurance plans, which you buy yourself rather than via an employer, are exempt from the pre-existing coverage provision. Pre-existing conditions are not required to be covered.