Veterinary Insurance
Pet insurance company Veterinary Pet Insurance (VPI) has been operating since 1982 and after 12 years of suffering losses is finally able to penetrate the US market with sales surging up since 1995. Why? Take this scenario:
"A loving pet owner took his dog "Sparky" to the vet as he was acting strangely. Finally, after almost an hour of waiting at the reception area of the veterinarian's office, the doctor comes out of the room and telling the pet owner that Sparky has cancer and needs surgery and radiation therapy – which would cost around $3,000. The owner loves Sparky so much not only because he guarded his home for nine years but ultimately became he was his best friend."
If you were the loving pet owner, you'd probably be drowning yourself in remorse for not enrolling your pet to a veterinary pet insurance, and after learning about from your neighbor. Veterinary pet insurance is currently enjoying 45% increase per year although only about 5% from the total pet owners in the U.S. insure their pets. Figures from the American Veterinary Medical Association in a 2002 report said around 60% of US households own pets.
The so-called baby "boomers" (the affluent new generation in the U.S.) has had enough of babies. Most boomers usually get a pet after their children have left home, and since they were accustomed to pampering their children, shift their attention towards pampering their pets.
Soaring Cost Of Pet Medical Care
Moreover, the latest innovation in veterinary science and the cost to run veterinary practice has raised professional fees and office visits. Medical equipment and diagnostic tools that were once set-aside for humans are now available to pets too. Such treatments for fatal conditions as kidney transplants and radiation therapies can save the life of your precious pet but would mean spending about $1,000 to more than $5,000.
In such predicament, you'd very well opt to buy veterinary pet health insurance than shell out this huge amount from your bank account. VPI veterinary pet insurance is available for dogs, cats, guinea pigs, rabbits, birds, ferrets, reptiles, and other exotic animals with annual deductibles ranging from $50 to $100. Insurance coverage will depend on what the owner chooses.
Company Incentives
Furthermore, major companies today are looking for innovative and cheap means to please their employees by offering company insurance pet veterinary as one of the optional benefits deductible from their paychecks. Currently, there are over 900 companies offering veterinary pet insurance plans for their pet-owning employees. According to a report by the "USA Today", there are 30% of Americans who needed to stay home to tend to a sick pet.
Veterinary Pet Insurance Coverage
Most insurance companies begin policies for pets six to eight weeks old with no upper limit, while some cease to take pets above nine years of age or those suffering pre-existing conditions – pets with pre-existing conditions may be taken provided they are stable. Other veterinary pet insurance companies offer lifetime coverage if the pet is insured before nine years.
Veterinary pet health insurance coverage does not guarantee cure-all benefits, though. And many will not accept animals prone to hereditary conditions and diseases like hip dysplasia in retrievers and German Shepherds. In addition, some plans can be comprehensive while some can be limited to accidents only, leaving preventive health care expenses to the owner. Still, other plans can include annual checkups, vaccinations, preventive medications, routine care, and neuter/spay surgeries.
There are advantages to the advancements in veterinary science especially when it comes to saving the life of your pet. The question is, how far would you go for it? Pet health insurance has its benefits for those who can afford but other pet owners would rather go for a pragmatic approach for their ailing pets by putting them to sleep.
In the long run, you'll have to accept that pets don't leave as long as humans do. And when it is their time to sleep, according to their evolutionary processes, it's better to let them be.