Originally Posted by
meowzer
http:///forum/post/3215793
HMM...I have heard of medical insurance for pets, but I never really considered it....I can't imagine a dog/cat needing a %50,000 surgery
I have had some emergency's before, but never anything that put me in debt
Is it up to the vet (like medical for people) on whether or not they will accept it or not? I bet in small towns (like mine) the vet wouldn't take it
Well without going into too much detail, I once had to shell out five figures for multiple surgeries when we had a pet emergency. After that, I set up medical insurance.
My dog is 5 years old, and the premium is $44 per month. That premium, besides emergency care, covers all preventative care, including vet visits, shots, and preventative meds (heartgard, frontline). When you consider that I spend $400 a year for vet visits and preventative meds, it's not a bad deal - it comes out to $34 a month, so the insurance is only $10/mo over and above what I paid previously. Granted as the dog gets older the premiums will go up. Part of that is also a cancer rider that covers everything cancer related... even chemo.
The thing is that nowadays there are about as many treatment options for dogs and cats as there are for humans... and as the level of care goes up, so does the cost of care. To me, $44 (or even more) a month is a small price to pay for preventative care, plus the peace of mind that if anything goes wrong, I can do what's best for the dog and for us, and not have to worry about what I can afford. Money doesn't have to be a factor anymore.
The vet has nothing to do with medical insurance. They have a payment schedule of usual and customary amounts. When you go to the vet, you pay out of pocket. You fax the receipts and a claim form into them, and they reimburse you based on their payment schedule.
I use VPI.
www.petinsurance.com
