Does Health Insurance Cover Cancer Treatments?

If you’ve just received a cancer diagnosis, you may be concerned about one of the big questions: affordability. Insurance policies may cover most forms of cancer treatment, but you may be worried that your expenses will exceed the coverage of your policy. Worse yet, you may even doubt your ability to pay your deductible.

In any of these situations, it’s important to take action and do your research, so let’s look into how you can help make your cancer treatments more affordable.

Be proactive with your treatment

Under the Affordable Care Act, it’s illegal for a company to put a dollar limit on their coverage of your healthcare expenses. This means that an insurance company can’t deny you the essential coverage you qualify for no matter how high your total expenses or how long your treatment. So even if you’re worried about your deductible, you should seek treatment for cancer as soon as you possibly can.

Regardless of severity or type, cancer may require immediate treatment. Just make sure to understand your policy and what your out-of-pocket expenses are first.

Research your insurance policy

Understand your deductible and out-of-pocket costs so you can get a picture of how much you might need in expenses before your insurance policy kicks in. Your insurance policy may also want you to receive treatment from certain pre-approved healthcare providers, so you should understand those preferences before you seek healthcare.

Check to see if your insurance covers “essential health benefits,” which are a set of features that offer lab services, chronic patient care, mental health care, and other forms of healthcare. These benefits will help reduce the cost of some of the services you’ll require while undergoing cancer treatment and therapy.

Will you need supplemental insurance?

Health insurance can cover the bulk of expenses involved in cancer treatment. However, there are other external expenses that may fall outside the realm of traditional health insurance coverage. For example, a cancer insurance policy is a form of supplemental insurance you may want to consider.

A cancer insurance policy can set aside a lump sum amount for cancer treatment expenses like traveling costs, childcare, and drug prescriptions. Cancer treatments and procedures can quickly add up.

Get the support you need

A cancer diagnosis is difficult enough. Use your health insurance properly so that the expenses don’t become difficult to handle either.

With the right research and the right insurance policies, there are ways to help make cancer treatment affordable. That way, all you have to worry about is recovery, and your health insurance can help manage the rest.

Coverage is underwritten by Aflac. In New York, coverage is underwritten by Aflac New York.

In Idaho, Policies B70100ID, B70200ID, B70300ID, B7010EPID, B7020EPID. In Oklahoma,

Policies B70100OK, B70200OK, B70300OK, B7010EPOK, B7020EPOK. This is a brief product overview only. Coverage may not be available in all states including but not limited to New Jersey, & Virginia. Benefits/premium rates may vary based on plan selected. Optional riders are available at an additional cost. The policy has limitations and exclusions that may affect benefits payable. Refer to the policy for complete details, limitations, and exclusions. For costs and complete details of the coverage, please contact your local Aflac agent.

The content herein is provided for general informational purposes and is not provided as tax, legal, health or financial advice for any person or for any specific situation. Employers, employees and other individuals should their own advisers about their situations.

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