Washington Health Insurance

Insurance companies in the state of Washington enjoy relatively light regulation in most areas, but there are a number of legal guarantees you have as a resident that can be crucial in finding the health insurance policy you’re looking for.  For your convenience, we offer the following summary of significant regulations currently affecting the health insurance market in Washington.

• State law requires all Washington-based insurers to include a guaranteed-renewability clause in each policy they sell.  This means that, as long as you pay your premiums in full and on time, your insurer cannot refuse to let you renew your health coverage each time it is due to expire.  If you ever fall ill while covered by this policy, your insurer is likewise prohibited from cancelling your coverage on those grounds.
• Any newly-born or adopted children of Washington residents are automatically covered by their new parents’ existing health insurance policy, assuming that said policy covers dependents.  This grace period lasts for 60 days, which should be ample time for the parents to set up other arrangements.
• Under Washington’s current regulations, any health issue that was diagnosed or treated within the previous six months can be designated a “pre-existing condition” when setting up a new health plan, and your new insurer can choose to exclude these conditions from your health coverage for up to nine months.  Fortunately, any time spent waiting out a previous policy’s exclusions will automatically be credited toward your new policy when you switch insurance providers.
• Insurers in Washington are permitted to deny coverage to any new applicant on the grounds of health, age, or similar traits.  Those who are accepted, however, may never be charged higher premiums based on their health status— only things like age, family history, and location can be considered valid reasons for increased rates.
• Any small business in Washington with between 2 and 50 people on the payroll is automatically entitled to purchase any group health plan that is already being offered to other small businesses here.  The cost of this coverage can vary, but only for reasons unrelated to the age and health of the company’s employees.
• Keeping any group health policy active may require the insured small business to ensure at least a minimum level of participation among the company’s staff, an employer contribution to each employee’s premiums, among other possibilities.  Failing to meet these requirements can potentially mean cancellation of the entire company’s coverage, but fortunately no company can lose its group health insurance on the sole grounds that an employee has become sick.
• Self-employed Washington residents are granted the same privileges and opportunities as other small businesses when it comes to health insurance, so any self-employed entrepreneur may purchase group coverage even if he has no other employees.  On the other hand, those that choose to buy individual health coverage instead can potentially deduct a large portion of their premiums from their tax liability.

The structure of Washington’s health insurance laws make it especially important for residents of this state to purchase their health coverage as early in life as they can manage.  If you’ve decided that now is your time to buy, you should start comparing quotes from different companies as soon as you determine the kind of coverage you’re looking for.  With a little patience and good information resources, you stand an excellent chance of finding the coverage you want at a good price.

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