Medical underwriting

Medical Underwriting is an insurance term referring to a requirement of a medical background check to qualify for coverage (typically for life or health insurance).

According to articles on the web, some states in the U.S. have made medical underwriting illegal as a prerequisite for health coverage, which means if you ask for health insurance and pay for it, you get it. (A list of those states would be nice.)

In most states, the insurance companies are allowed to review individual medical records in order to decide what to allow, deny and charge for coverage. Some believe that medical underwriting is only fair to the insurance companies, who want to reduce risks and costs.

Others believe that medical underwriting is inhumane, as relatively minor and treatable pre-existing conditions can make health insurance all but unobtainable (either by outright denial, or unaffordable premiums), leaving people financially exposed, and unlikely to seek treatment until a condition is incapacitating or life threatening, and at best far more expensive to treat.