My son was denied health insurance!!!!!

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I just really need to vent. My son is a truck driver and over the last few years he has put on some weight. He knows he needs to lose the extra weight and he is trying to do so. He is 6' 4" and weights 318 pounds.

He recently was offered insurance through the company he works for and the insurance company denied coverage due to his Height/Weight. That is exactly what it says "coverage denied due to Height/Weight".

Now I am sorry but he is only 23 years old, it is not like he has been over wieght all his life. But since he is now considered obese he is not elligble for health coverage. This is a crock if you ask me:angryfire. What has our health care come too? Pretty soon insurance companies will be dropping those from their policys due to being overweight.

I am just so overwhelmed by this! What is my son to do now? He is trying to lose the weight, he is a wonderful young man, trying to make an honest living but is unable to get healthcare coverage.

I wish I had all the money in world so no one would ever have to be turned down for the healthcare that they deserve. I am so saddened to think that he may have to go the rest of his life without insurance.

What is a mother to do! Sad, Sad, day.:scrying:

i just read about your situation and i felt compelled to join the site so i could post a comment of my own. i'm truly sorry for you son's situation and i hope that something happens soon to correct this wrongdoing. right now i'm in a similar situation with my son. i just found out today that he was denied health coverage because of a pre-existing condition. late last year he went in to the hospital twice in short successions with pancreatitis. fortunately he had health insurance while he was in the hospital but it was a short term policy that expired february 1st. now we are finding out that insurance carriers don't want to write a new policy because of his previous illness. i just want to say that insurance companies are, in my opinion, the pinnacle of hypocrisy. if you don't have a problem and they perceive you as a good risk they are your best buddy. the minute they have to pay money they change their attitudes immediately! they are dragging their feet paying the bills and now they don't want to write a policy! in my mind this is immoral and it should be illegal! i understand that insurance companies are in business solely to make a profit - they're like every other corporation in this board-room controlled country. i've been a conservative republican all of my voting life but i think the profit-driven approach to providing health care insurance to fellow humans is absolutely wrong! we are not dealing with inanimate objects that sit on shelves waiting to be sold and funnel profits into the pockets of share holders. there is a clear and fundamental difference with the health insurance business and the time has come to acknowledge that fact. we are dealing with lives here people - not widgets sold for profit! i truly hope that i can find some way to correct this tragedy, not only for my son but to help correct the situation for us all. the absolute stupidity of this whole issue repulses me.

good luck with your son and i hope that the problem is fixed very soon!

:banghead:

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The horror.....Actually expecting companies to perform for the common good....

bankrupt companies don't help much either.

i'm not sure where people expect the extra money to come from. people hate paying premiums and having limited coverage yet they expect these same companies to take on additional LOSSES? math does not work that way.

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bankrupt companies don't help much either.

i'm not sure where people expect the extra money to come from. people hate paying premiums and having limited coverage yet they expect these same companies to take on additional LOSSES? math does not work that way.

Many, many of us do not want the insurance companies to take on additional losses -- we want to get private-for-profit insurance companies OUT OF HEALTHCARE ALL TOGETHER and have a publicly-funded single-payer system.

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Specializes in DOU.

Yikes, this thread scares me! I have a 15 year old with epilepsy. Right now, of course, she is covered by our family insurance. What is going to happen when she is too old to be covered by our policy?

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DO NOT PERMIT YOUR INSURANCE TO LAPSE, EVEN IF IT MEANS PAYING COBRA.

You can not be denied under a group plan IF there has been no lapse in coverage.

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Yikes, this thread scares me! I have a 15 year old with epilepsy. Right now, of course, she is covered by our family insurance. What is going to happen when she is too old to be covered by our policy?

She will probably be okay if employed by a "large" employer with good group coverage (and if she stays there, and doesn't change jobs/employers much); otherwise, she will have trouble finding coverage and/or it will be exorbitantly, prohibitively expensive.

On the other hand, there's always the possibility that, by then, we will have fixed this horrendous mess ... Surely?? :uhoh21:

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She will probably be okay if employed by a "large" employer with good group coverage (and if she stays there, and doesn't change jobs/employers much); otherwise, she will have trouble finding coverage and/or it will be exorbitantly, prohibitively expensive.

On the other hand, there's always the possibility that, by then, we will have fixed this horrendous mess ... Surely?? :uhoh21:

It will have to ,its already imploding.Unregulated corporate greed as brought health care to this point, its up to the voters to get the corporate cronies and lobbyists out of government.
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It will have to ,its already imploding.Unregulated corporate greed as brought health care to this point, its up to the voters to get the corporate cronies and lobbyists out of government.

ITA! .

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Yikes, this thread scares me! I have a 15 year old with epilepsy. Right now, of course, she is covered by our family insurance. What is going to happen when she is too old to be covered by our policy?

As others have mentioned, don't let your insurance lapse. My son has a heart problem and was covered by me until 19. After that he continued with the same company, but paid his own premiums.

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Yikes, this thread scares me! I have a 15 year old with epilepsy. Right now, of course, she is covered by our family insurance. What is going to happen when she is too old to be covered by our policy?

From what my parents have told me since I have a condition, she also needs to be careful what states she lives in. Some states allow that if she even just changes insurance she can be denied. Not even if it lapses, if she just changes.

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Specializes in Assisted Living Nurse Manager.
i just read about your situation and i felt compelled to join the site so i could post a comment of my own. i'm truly sorry for you son's situation and i hope that something happens soon to correct this wrongdoing. right now i'm in a similar situation with my son. i just found out today that he was denied health coverage because of a pre-existing condition. late last year he went in to the hospital twice in short successions with pancreatitis. fortunately he had health insurance while he was in the hospital but it was a short term policy that expired february 1st. now we are finding out that insurance carriers don't want to write a new policy because of his previous illness. i just want to say that insurance companies are, in my opinion, the pinnacle of hypocrisy. if you don't have a problem and they perceive you as a good risk they are your best buddy. the minute they have to pay money they change their attitudes immediately! they are dragging their feet paying the bills and now they don't want to write a policy! in my mind this is immoral and it should be illegal! i understand that insurance companies are in business solely to make a profit - they're like every other corporation in this board-room controlled country. i've been a conservative republican all of my voting life but i think the profit-driven approach to providing health care insurance to fellow humans is absolutely wrong! we are not dealing with inanimate objects that sit on shelves waiting to be sold and funnel profits into the pockets of share holders. there is a clear and fundamental difference with the health insurance business and the time has come to acknowledge that fact. we are dealing with lives here people - not widgets sold for profit! i truly hope that i can find some way to correct this tragedy, not only for my son but to help correct the situation for us all. the absolute stupidity of this whole issue repulses me.

good luck with your son and i hope that the problem is fixed very soon!

:banghead:

meezcar thank you for your kind words. i also hope and wish for the best for your son. i agree with you on all points. something needs to be done! i have always voted republican myself, but not so sure that i will this time around. we need health care coverage for each and every living, breathing human being.

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As mentioned here and in other threads, health insurance is a business like any other. People often blame the insurance companies for higher premiums with fewer benefits, but fail understand that employers (or negotiating units) choose what to offer their employees and for how much. Perhaps the best thing your son (or anyone else) can do is to choose to work for a conscientious company that values the health of its employees enough to offer comprehensive group health insurance and to contribute enough to the cost of premiums so that employees don't take the brunt of it. There are such employers out there, however few and far between.

That being said, I do sympathize with your son, and hope he's able to find the coverage he needs to get (and stay) healthy.

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