Insurance for old cat?

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christina52388

christina52388

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I called VPI but since Chocolate is older than 10, (shes 15) she doesn't qualify for any coverage that would be beneficial. I'm scared of huge vet fees in case of a serious hypo, dka, anything like that, but also if she needed bloodwork or something else done. Does anyone know of or heard of any insurance companies that will take her?
 
Sorry, no. Even at younger age cats, i felt that what was charged for pet insurance was outrageous. Better off putting the money into a savings account.
 
PetPlan USA (http://www.gopetplan.com/) has recently started taking older pets (previously, there was a cutoff age), but I'd call and talk to them about what exactly would or wouldn't be covered. I kind of doubt, for instance, that DKA would be covered in a cat already being treated for diabetes, but I could be wrong. Problems unrelated to anything preexisting would be covered. Routine care is never covered, regardless of the age of the animal. Premiums would be high for an older pet, though. You'd need to find out more details to see if it would be worth it.

They're a good company, and I would have no qualms recommending insuring a young cat with them. They are also more than willing to discuss your specific situation over the phone so that you can sort out possibilities.
 
Thanks so much..When I tried searching for insurance for older cats pretty much everything that popped up was from the UK..weird....I'll give them a call tomorrow :smile:
 
I recently priced out my cats on Pets Best and they would insure one of my older girls (14) who has only ever had issues with arthritis at $31 per month plus $22 PER month for the routine maintenance coverage. They would not cover Smokey, I don't know if it was the diabetes or the pancreatis/liver issues or the combination of it all. They would only give me the $10/month accident coverage on Smokey. That coverage was still with a $250 deduct for 80% coverage on up to $7000 per incident, $100,000 lifetime coverage. That's still a lot of money out of pocket at the time something happens. I figured it'd be better off putting that money into a savings account each month, then it is there to cover whatever goes wrong, no exclusions.

Since the diabetes is pre-existing, no costs associated with that will be covered if anyone does cover you, I didn't see any that covered any pre-existing conditions. Bloodwork is often considered routine, so that may not be covered unless a maintenance package was bought.
 
after Calypso was dx for cancer and Korbel's final bills, I got petplan for the dogs. The dogs are both old (11) and they cost about $60 for both combined, I think the first is $35 and the second is $25. You can play with % covered and deductible to get your premiums where you want it. They also cover hereditary conditions as long as the animal hasn't already been diagnosed. That is nice because I remember when bear was younger I looked into insurance and they wouldn't cover alot of stuff on her that were "typical" of Golden Retrievers to get. I didn't cover Calypso since she already has cancer anything related to cancer wouldn't be covered. I didn't look into it but I doubt anything diabetes related would have been covered with Korbel either.
 
Yeah I called PetPlan which otherwise seems to be a great choice for insurance but since Chocolate is diabetic, something like DKA wouldn't be covered and that's what I'm most concerned with. I'll speak with my vet to see if he thinks its a good idea otherwise but I doubt it would be. Thanks for the feedback :smile:
 
the main thing to be concerned with, is any already diagnosed issue - will NOT be covered under any insurance plan - this is known as pre-existing condition.

since chocolate is already diagnosed with diabetes - if you can get insurance coverage - any incident or tests related to diabetes will not be covered under the insurance.

read the fine print, ask the questions, but somewhere in it, it will tell you this.
 
ASPCA Pet Health Insurance takes cats up to 15. Cats over 15 can get accident coverage.

But Hillary is right, if the cat already has FD, it's pre-existing. Just like you can't wreck your car and then buy car insurance and expect them to fix your car. The trick is to insure your pet when they're healthy. I have ASPCA for Jetta, have had it for abot 3 years. Her diagnosis and initial treatment for FD, Pancreatitis, and DKA was just over $2,000. I'm getting back a claim check for almost $1,600.
 
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