As everybody knows, sh*t happens to our dogs, we go to the vet and faint when we see the bill. Pet insurance plans can be very tricky to understand. There are many aspects that require careful consideration. I have created the following chart to help make the decision easier. I only included insurance programs that have superior reputations and offer excellent coverage. I’ve included companies that cover alternative treatments (acupuncture, cold laser, and water therapy) AND holistic treatment (herbs, homeopathy, and supplements). You will notice that I make my preferences clearly. My goal is to enable you to decide for yourself which company would serve you best so I included the top 5. Trupanion offer discounts when you enroll through my website. Those are my favorites respectively. You can enroll through my website links to lock in your discount and then call the company afterwards if you have any questions or if you would like to make any changes.
What’s REALLY important to look for?
No Limits and No Caps on Reimbursement:
If there are no limits and no caps it means that there are no coverage limits per year or lifetime for costs. For example, I have friends who have spent a fortune of money on cancer treatments or for the treatment of other diseases. It is not uncommon for such treatments to cost $15k to $30k. Unlimited benefits means that they will continue to pay the claims regardless of the cost.
Embrace and Fetch by Dodo (formally PetPlan) have limits and caps so once you reach those caps you are on your own. By the way, Pet Plan offers an automatic 5% discount when you sign up online. It is VERY easy to surpass those limits. Imagine insuring a dog during puppyhood. That plan needs to cover that dog for several years to come. If a dog has a chronic condition or a serious disease you need to be sure that the plan you choose will reimburse you from the beginning of his treatment and throughout the rest of his life. This is the most important thing to look at when you are choosing a policy. Trupanion has no caps and no limits. If your bill is $50k, they will cover it while the others will not. Trupanion is my favorite because it is the only insurance plan that covers non-prescription supplements and herbs. That’s a VERY big deal if you see a holistic vet!
Deductible Payment:
You want your deductible to be as low as possible, but the lower the deductible, the more expensive the policy. At the same time, you want a plan that is annual AND per condition. This means that if a condition develops after the policy is activated, the payment of the first treatment is going to go toward your deductible. Although the deductible is annual, this chronic condition will be covered without putting any additional money toward the deductible for the lifetime of the dog. This is how Trupanion and Fetch by Dodo work so that you pay toward the deductible for that condition only one time during the dog’s lifetime. If it is an annual deductible only, then after each year of coverage you will need to put further costs toward your deductible each year. Fetch by Dodo has no limits and no caps, the deductible needs to be paid year after year for chronic conditions. If a dog has cancer, each year the deductible needs to go toward that. That means that there is less money going into your pocket, but more coverage means higher cost.
The cost can be daunting for plans with no caps or limits. The trick is to figure out what works best for you. To give you an idea of how much my Trupanion plan costs me each month see below:
Coverage for Alternative – Acupuncture, Cold Laser Treatments, Water Therapy…
I am a big fan of alternative treatments. If I can avoid the pharmaceutical industry I am a happy camper. It is important to contact the insurer to inquire further about the specifics of the coverage they offer in this category. Although Trupanion’s core policy includes some alternative & homeopathic treatments, in order to get the best comprehensive coverage I decided to add an additional rider.
My Suggestions:
I strongly suggest that you visit the websites of all the companies to see which one is the best fit for you and to confirm the information in this article just in case they made any changes to their plans. After configuring your policy, you will be able to compare prices and coverage details.
 |
|
 |
|
| Fetch by Dodo | Trupanion | Embrace | |
| Wellness Office Visits & Routine Care | No | No | Yes depends on plan |
| Office Visits to Examine & Diagnose | No | No | Wellness Plan is 100% reimbursement up to your chosen allotment |
| Dental Illness | Yes | ONLY if the result of an accident |
Yes (up to 1K per year) |
| Hereditary & Genetic Conditions | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pre-Existing Conditions pre-policy | No | No | No |
| Prescriptions for Treating Illnesses | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Holistic & Alternative Treatments | Yes
Limit/Cap |
Yes Additional cost for better coverage no Limit/Cap | Yes
Homeopathic and herbal ONLY if including Welless Plan |
| Boarding & Kennel Non-Medical Vacation | Yes depends on plan | No | No |
| Enrollment Age Requirements | 6 weeks & up years | 8 weeks -13 years | 6 weeks up to 14 years
Enrollment after 15 eligible for accident only |
| Spay & Neuter | No | No |
Yes Depends on plan |
| Cremation & Burial | No | Yes depends on plan | No |
| Deductible | Choose $100/ $250/$500 depends on plan | Choose $0/ 50 up to $1k in $50 increments depends on plan | Choose $100/ $200$/$300/ $500/$1k depends on plan |
| Deductible Payment | Annual & per condition | per condition |
Annual |
| Limits & Caps | NONE | Annual $10K/$14K/$22K depends on plan | Annual $30K but most states unlimited |
| Reimbursement | Choice of 80%/90%/100% depends on plan | 90% | Choice of 70%/ 80%/90% depends on plan |
| Premium Increases | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| My Final Rating | 2 stars |
3 stars |
2 stars |
|
|
|
|
| Fetch by Dodo | Trupanion | Embrace |
My first choice is Trupanion because they have the most comprehensive coverage, no limts or caps and the manner in which the deductible is paid (see above description of deductible payment). I have Trupanion insurance policies to cover my dogs. Trupanion is a bit pricier than the other plans.
*All information is up to date and accurate as of January 5, 2014. It is recommended that you go to the websites to select and configure your policy and confirm your coverage.
Embrace, Trupanion, FetchByDodo
8 thoughts on “Pet Health Insurance”
We have Healthypaws for Shizzle and have been very happy with it. I got it for her when she was a puppy because she was putting everything in her mouth. In her first year, I had to take her in at least 3 times for emergency “consumptions” and a cold, plus follow up therapy treatment. After the $100 deductible, they paid 90% of everything minus the office visit fee.
Luckily she hasn’t had an emergency so far this year (knock on wood) but it’s a relief to know we are locked into a plan in case something pops up.
Healthy Paws is my second favorite. It is exceptionally good. I just don’t like that you have to keep on using your deductible for chronic conditions. It’s ok if your deductible is really low, but your premium would be more expensive. With Trupanion, you can have a $500 deductible, pay it once for a chronic condition, then never have to pay toward that deductible for that condition again. The higher deductible keeps the premium down. I love the coverage that Healthy Paws offers and the fact that they have no caps or limits is also great.
I have trupanion and I have been VERY happy with it! I got it for my yorkie at 8 weeks old after my vet recommended it and gave me a free month trial of it… after that month i signed up for a $0 deductible at $55 a month. I did suspect anything would happy….. but then I took him to get neutered and they found a shunt in his liver…. This has required surgery… hospitalization with 24 hour care for a week, complications and medications. Over $12,000 later and my trupanion insurance has paid 90%!!!! It’s awesome because they pay 90% of his medications for life AND 50% of his prescription vet food. Trupanion has been the only good part of this situation! (let not even talk about the vets ans what a rip off it is and how you are treated…) but if it weren’t for trupanion, my sweet little boy wouldn’t be with me today!
Hi Randi-
Yes!!! That’s why I strongly suggest Trupanion. Honestly, I ONLY encourage people to go that way. People don’t realize how important insurance is until you know what hits the fan. I advised someone to get health insurance for their dog. He got it, but then he dropped it. Now that the dog is older and there are issues, he doesn’t want to pay for insurance because it is more expensive for older dogs. Besides that, those conditions are all pre-existing now. I wish people would listen to me. I would NEVER recommend a product or a service unless I know for sure it is best. For your dog’s health issues, I STRONGLY suggest that you go to a holistic vet. If you read my article about dog food, you will understand wwhy the dog food that the vets prescribe are really not any good. Just look up “FDA” in the search bar on my website and go through those articles. If you go to a holistic vet, that doctor would take you off of what your vet gave you and you will be advised on supplements and a diet that will work. If I predict, I would not be surprised if your dog has kidney related issues. Just out of curiosity, am I right? Please let me know.
Your Blog is very informative and helps us make decision easier. If the dog has a chronic condition you need to pay off your deductible toward that condition year after year and your blog gave such a wonderful information about this. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much for the kind words. Please enjoy my other articles and share them with others.
Great Post But Many pet owners believe pet insurance is a variation of human health insurance; however, pet insurance is actually a form of property insurance
Maybe I am misunderstanding your point of view, but pet insurance IS just like human insurance. It is interesting that you mentioned “property” because in many states in the USA, pets are legally regarded as property. In other words, if a person hits your dog in a car accident, the courts (depending upon the state) will award the plaintiff the dollar cost of the dog. If the medical care exceeds the dollar amount that the dog cost in the first place, the plaintiff will only be reimbursed for the cost of the dog (possibly adding the cost of special training).