Veterinary Pet Insurance Overview

WHY Pet Insurance?

Pet health insurance helps cover the cost of medical expenses if/when your pet becomes ill or has an accident.

Did you know current costs for a basic abdominal surgery in the Baltimore region may range anywhere from $3,000-$10,000? Are you prepared? What if there are complications and this cost increases?

Industry Trends:

Overall, cost of veterinary care is dramatically rising. Be prepared. Plan ahead. Some distributors have raised costs close to 25% per year in recent years. Ultimately, this cost is passed onto the client.
Clients expect higher quality care for their pets now more than ever before.
Advances in providing gold-standard veterinary care come with a higher cost.
Insurance can give piece of in times of crisis with an urgent or emergent medical issue, your pet can receive the care they need.
Without insurance, you, the client, is responsible for the full cost of veterinary services.
Payment plans are offered by many hospitals including Urgent VET Care. These payment options are not offered or managed by the vet hospital itself but instead offered through third-party companies. This is a way to offset the high cost of care for clients but may not be for everyone. Payment terms vary. Credit checks may be required. The client ultimately remains responsible for the full cost of care plus any interest. These payment plan options simply help lessen the one-time impact of the financial burden of an emergency by spreading the cost over time.
Insurance helps clients be more resilient financially and typically allows your pet to receive higher quality veterinary care.

When to Use Pet Insurance?

Pet insurance is best used for unexpected, catastrophic medical events that are difficult to budget for. As with any insurance, pet insurance lowers your financial risk.

Insurance can provide piece of mind that your pet can be treated without focusing on the costs during an emergency.

What is Pet Insurance?

This is insurance for veterinary medical care.
The insurance company has premiums, deductibles, co-pays, and maximum payouts.
Each insurance company has different plans and options.
There are waiting periods that define when coverage starts.
Pet insurance typically does not cover pre-existing conditions.

This means, you cannot sign up for a policy for your puppy AFTER they ate that sock and needs a $4,000 surgery.

Pet insurance requires you to pay your vet bill first. Then, you file the claim with the pet insurance company for reimbursement.

This means you will be required to have the credit or ability to pay the vet bill and then wait weeks for reimbursement.

There are NO veterinary networks. No IN-network or OUT-of-network rates.

Each veterinary clinic sets their own fees independent of insurance companies.

Urgent VET Care will help submit your insurance claims for reimbursement. This will help expedite your financial reimbursement.

How to Select a Pet Insurance Plan

Consider your lifestyle, financials’, and emotional needs.

What can you afford? Do you prefer to pay for peace of mind? Are you looking to help supplement expenses you already have planned for? Do you prefer a higher monthly cost that may not be used but may get more coverage in case of an emergency or serious disease?

Consider your pet.

Is your pets breed predisposed to illness’s that may be costly to treat?

Where are you located? Your geographical location may have higher costs for veterinary services. Insurance may not cover travel to other states.

For instance, vet clinics close to Washington DC are on average, significantly more costly for the same high-quality vet services as clinics like Urgent VET Care which is north of Baltimore.

Look for a plan that covers accidents/injuries AND illnesses including, Cancer, Chronic Diseases (chronic means they will require long duration of treatment and multiple visits to the vet), AND Continual coverage for chronic disease, Hereditary and Congenital diseases (you can’t always see these, these may develop years later), and Coverage for diseases common in your pet’s breed.
Has a maximum payout limit that will cover the worst-case scenario costs for your geographic location. The maximum payout limit is the maximum amount of money the insurance company will reimburse you. This payout limit can be annual, lifetime, per incident, per body system, or based on a predetermined benefit schedule. You want to pick a maximum payout structure that will cover the worst-case scenario costs. Costs to consider:

Examples:

Your Labrador retriever ruptured their cruciate ligament needing $6,000 orthopedic surgery.
Your Cavalier King Charles Spaniel develops a heart murmur and needs a cardiologist with a $1,000 echocardiogram.
Your Goldendoodle likes to eat clothing and needs two surgeries before 12 months of age to surgically remove socks from the intestinal tract at $5,000 per surgery.
Your 3 year old Staffordshire terrier has chronic skin issues and averages 4 visits per year to the vet hospital (one per season change) for ear infections or skin infections, a prescription diet for allergies, and a referral to a dermatologist for allergy testing?.

Offers affordable premiums.
Pays claims quickly.
Does not have unreasonable exclusions and requirements.

-Exclusions are conditions that are not covered.
-Requirements are requirements of YOU. You must do this task to remain insured (e.g., annual exams, submission of medical records, and adherence to the vaccination recommendations). Not doing this may invalidate your reimbursement.