WHAT WOULD YOU DO? An Insurance Story By Marla Moore
Your horse is suffering from colic. You call your veterinarian. He comes to your farm and tells you that he can probably save your horse with surgery. You ask the cost and he tells you it will be around $5,000. You don’t have the money so what do you do? You love your horse, you don’t want to have him euthanized, but you can’t afford the surgery. If you carry Major Medical coverage on the horse, it is a very easy solution and you can breathe a sigh of relief. It gives you the luxury of telling your vet to go ahead and perform the necessary surgery knowing that you will only have to pay the deductible and perhaps some insignificant uncovered charges. Major medical coverage is purchased as an endorsement to the Mortality (life insurance) policy. Medical coverage will not cover any “well horse care” such as routine checkups, vaccinations, routine pregnancy checks or normal foaling, but does provide coverage for any illness, disease or accident that requires veterinary care or surgery that occurs during the policy period. The average cost for medical coverage is anywhere from $450 to $675 depending on the company and the amount of coverage purchased. The deductible is normally around $500 per claim and the average coverage amount is $10,000 to $15,000. Using this same scenario, let’s say you do have Mortality and Major Medical coverage on your horse in the amount of $15,000 mortality and $10,000 medical insurance. Your vet clinic presents you with a total bill of $5,000. You will pay your $500 deductible and the $50 initial farm call that your vet made to your farm ( not a covered charge)
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and the company will pay 80% of $5,000 = $4,000 - $500 deductible - $50 farm call = $3,450 net payment for your claim. In the unfortunate event that your horse would die from the occurrence, you would also be paid the insured value of $15,000, a total insurance payment to you of $18,450. For an annual premium of $413 mortality plus $475 medical ($888 total insurance cost) and $1,550 out of pocket cost, you have recouped a total of $18,450. Not a bad investment. **Some companies even include free emergency colic surgery expense even if you do not carry Medical coverage, usually in the amount of $3,000 - $3,500. In the event of a colic surgery you would also get this amount paid to further reduce the vet bill. Consider discussing Major Medical with your equine agent. He or she can best advise you of any exclusions and benefits of this valuable coverage. As you can see, it is a great way to help manage your veterinary expenses and give you peace of mind knowing that you have protected your investment and you will not be financial strapped in case of a medical emergency. **Marla Moore is an agent with Independent Equine Agents in Louisville, KY. They are a full service equine insurance agency specializing in equine, farm, and liability insurance, representing A rated companies. Established over 30 years ago, they write coverage in all states as well as Canada and Europe.