hipaa question

[smbclifton]

What is the name of your state?sc

question: does the portability part of hipaa apply to only health insurance, or does it also apply to other insurance?
(specifically cancer insurance) it is a group policy. i am pretty sure it is pre-tax dollars.
the reason i ask is because i want to change companies (our group offers two different cancer policies) and i already have a cancer diagnosis.

if hipaa does not apply i am surely not going to be able to switch. i have over 3 years of continous coverage under the original cancer policy ( still in force)

thanks in advance.

[cbg]

I can't think of any reason that it WOULDN'T apply. After all, it IS health insurance, just limited to one particular diagnosis.

But to be absolutely certain, why don't you ask whomever in your HR department handles benefits?

[smbclifton]

actually i DID ask the hr people...they said it did not apply. i have read the hipaa document, and it is quite confusing to me, a non-lawyer.

thanks.

[cbg]

I believe that the regulatory agency for HIPAA is the Department of Health and Human Services. If you give them a call, they should be able to tell you.

Also, here's something you might want to check with your HR people. Even if HIPAA doesn't apply, that doesn't mean that the new policy WILL apply a pre-ex clause, only that they CAN. You might want to check with them and see if pre-ex is even a factor.

BTW, HIPAA definitely does NOT apply to income replacement plans such as a short- or long-term disability policy, or to life insurance, or to non-health plans such as vision or dental. It's only because a cancer policy is related to health insurance that I'm even suggesting the possibility.