Renewable Health Insurance WA

Reader’s Question:

Is a guaranteed renewable health insurance policy a better option in Washington? What exactly does that mean?

KC

Everett, WA

Hello there, KC.

When you say a health insurance policy is guaranteed renewable in Washington, it just means that you have the right to renew this policy every year. If it isn’t a guaranteed renewable, you could simply lose coverage at the end of the policy year if you get sick or meet an accident.

Examples of health insurance policies I can give you which are normally not guaranteed renewable are those sold in the individual market like short-term or temporary health insurance policies. These are the types of health insurance policies which are normally not comprehensive and are intentionally written for short period of time. Short-term health insurance policies are designed to provide minimal protection during life’s major transitions such as in between jobs, waiting time for landing a job after graduation, and the like. I’d say, temporary health insurance policies normally last for a period of 6 months or so. You can’t expect to get renewed if you get sick and these types do not lead to a permanent coverage.

If it’s guaranteed renewable, it does not really refer to a guaranteed fixed premium rates every year. Premiums might jump significantly in some years, especially if health service facilities and technologies improve greatly.