There are certain medical conditions, which make it difficult for a person to buy insurance. If there is any one of a host of pre existing medical conditions then he is labeled as an uninsurable person that may continue for years till he is fully cured, or it may be for a lifetime and he can never buy medical insurance.

Some of these conditions are: Heart attack, stroke, diabetes (insulin or pill dependent), cancer, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, degenerative arthritis and many other pre existing conditions. There may also be some applicants who have been cured or have controlled the medical condition but he still may be uninsurable because he may have three or more ‘rate-able' conditions.

If a patient has hypertension, hyperlipidimia and is also overweight, then he falls under the ‘3 strikes you out’ category. Or he may have two diseases and is a smoker, or a person has asthma and also smokes, then both these people fall in the uninsurable category. A combination of illnesses or diseases renders many a person unfit for being insured. The person then worries: what will happen if I have to be hospitalized, need surgery or have to take many medicines? There are two options for such people, depending upon where he lives and what the laws of that state are.

The first possibility is if the person has a corporate tax ID number, he can purchase a small group insurance policy. A minimum of two people (husband and wife, for example, if they are working in the same company) can buy insurance jointly. After some time the insurance will cover pre existing conditions. Or the person, who wishes to buy insurance but cannot because of a pre existing condition, can enroll in his State’s insurance risk pool (some states have it). Illinois State has a risk pool called the Illinois Comprehensive Health Insurance Plan (ICHIP), which is a state health benefit program and not an insurance company. Under certain circumstances the preexisting condition will be covered. Of course, not all places have such programs. Nor are they free. Premiums charged may be much higher than the normal rates. Many people cannot afford them. For people above fifty in places like Chicago, the premium can be as high as $554 per month.

Another option offered in New York is called the Defined Benefit Health Insurance Policies. The American Medical and Life Insurance Company which offers this, has three restrictions. The person should not be a Medicare recipient, he should not already been receiving disability benefits and he should not be receiving workers’ compensation benefits. There are no other conditions and the person, even with a pre existing medical condition, can get this insurance. The Defined Benefit Health Insurance Policies have their own rules and regulations, which the person intending to buy it must study it in detail before going in for it.

While it is always better to have a regular medical insurance, a Defined Benefit health insurance policy is a cost effective way to protect oneself if he is unsuitable for individual health insurance.