This article caught my eye. I have 2 female Rhodesian Ridgebacks. One is 10 years old and one is 17 months old. For NINE years I have had VPI insurance on the older one. Due to MY lack of investigating various dog insurances I went with the hype for VPI! I am SO SORRY now! Their payouts and limits on procedures are WORSE than Medicare! I have told them so! They have been around since 1982 and with their poor reimbursement rate, they’ll be around until 2082 and longer! They have a $50.00 deductible for EACH incident AND do pay 90% of the remainder- that is the remainder of THEIR limit on a vet bill and NOT the actual amount of the vet bill! Let’s say your dog needed anesthesia and the vet charged $400.00. VPI’s limit for anesthesia might be $150.00. So, after the $50.00 deductible, they pay 90% of $100.00 and NOT 90% of $350.00 like some other insurance companies do.
One example- last year my 9 year old Rhodesian needed emergency surgery to remove a 3 pound tumor from her spleen. The bill was $5,681.37. After sending in 32 pages of an itemized bill, VPI reimbursed me $1,710.45! OUTRAGEOUS! Plus, they have a lifetime limit of $$$!
For my puppy, I took out a policy with a company called Healthy Paws. I took the YEARLY $100.00 deductible plan with a 90% reimbursement rate for the REMAINDER of the vet bill! NO lifetime limits either. I pay $47.28 a month. I just took it out last month and have not had to use it yet. I hope I never have to use it, but at least I know I’m covered.
Last month, someone I know had to bring his dog to the vet because she swallowed some socks. They told her to keep an eye on her and see how she was the next day. I believe she did throw up one sock. The next day she was worse so he took her to the vet again. They said she would have to have exploratory surgery and that it was going to cost $5,000! He had no insurance and did not have the money and evidently did not make enough money to take out one of those loans that vet hospitals have.
As a result, he had to sign over his 1 year old puppy to the vet or let her die! When he called to ask how she made out with the operation, they wouldn’t give him ANY information! How awful! What a travesty! This vet hospital charges telephone numbers to begin with, but what are you to do? They certainly charge enough to set up SOME KIND of a slush fund for situations like this to lower the changes to a more affordable rate. Talk about being heartless! Karma is a bitch, so they’ll get theirs. HOW do you sleep at night taking away a dog from the owner because he doesn’t have the money to pay their outrageous fees!
It does NOT matter what the vet charges with my new Healthy Paws policy for my 17 month old. After the YEARLY $100.00 deductible, they pay 90% of the remainder of the bill. The VPI policy for the 10 year old has LIMITS on how much THEY think a procedure is worth like Medicare! At least Medicare accepts assignment and you don’t have to pay the difference. NOT VPI!
In addition, there is NOTHING cheap in Connecticut! Things are getting WORSE! The electric companies, UI and CLP, just got huge increases for generating electricity!
Your vet overcharges…check out the rates at other vets. They will usually work with what the insurance companies consider reasonable and customary for the types of procedures covered.
This article caught my eye. I have 2 female Rhodesian Ridgebacks. One is 10 years old and one is 17 months old. For NINE years I have had VPI insurance on the older one. Due to MY lack of investigating various dog insurances I went with the hype for VPI! I am SO SORRY now! Their payouts and limits on procedures are WORSE than Medicare! I have told them so! They have been around since 1982 and with their poor reimbursement rate, they’ll be around until 2082 and longer! They have a $50.00 deductible for EACH incident AND do pay 90% of the remainder- that is the remainder of THEIR limit on a vet bill and NOT the actual amount of the vet bill! Let’s say your dog needed anesthesia and the vet charged $400.00. VPI’s limit for anesthesia might be $150.00. So, after the $50.00 deductible, they pay 90% of $100.00 and NOT 90% of $350.00 like some other insurance companies do.
One example- last year my 9 year old Rhodesian needed emergency surgery to remove a 3 pound tumor from her spleen. The bill was $5,681.37. After sending in 32 pages of an itemized bill, VPI reimbursed me $1,710.45! OUTRAGEOUS! Plus, they have a lifetime limit of $$$!
For my puppy, I took out a policy with a company called Healthy Paws. I took the YEARLY $100.00 deductible plan with a 90% reimbursement rate for the REMAINDER of the vet bill! NO lifetime limits either. I pay $47.28 a month. I just took it out last month and have not had to use it yet. I hope I never have to use it, but at least I know I’m covered.
Last month, someone I know had to bring his dog to the vet because she swallowed some socks. They told her to keep an eye on her and see how she was the next day. I believe she did throw up one sock. The next day she was worse so he took her to the vet again. They said she would have to have exploratory surgery and that it was going to cost $5,000! He had no insurance and did not have the money and evidently did not make enough money to take out one of those loans that vet hospitals have.
As a result, he had to sign over his 1 year old puppy to the vet or let her die! When he called to ask how she made out with the operation, they wouldn’t give him ANY information! How awful! What a travesty! This vet hospital charges telephone numbers to begin with, but what are you to do? They certainly charge enough to set up SOME KIND of a slush fund for situations like this to lower the changes to a more affordable rate. Talk about being heartless! Karma is a bitch, so they’ll get theirs. HOW do you sleep at night taking away a dog from the owner because he doesn’t have the money to pay their outrageous fees!
You bought a contract with VPI, should have read before using it.
It does NOT matter what the vet charges with my new Healthy Paws policy for my 17 month old. After the YEARLY $100.00 deductible, they pay 90% of the remainder of the bill. The VPI policy for the 10 year old has LIMITS on how much THEY think a procedure is worth like Medicare! At least Medicare accepts assignment and you don’t have to pay the difference. NOT VPI!
In addition, there is NOTHING cheap in Connecticut! Things are getting WORSE! The electric companies, UI and CLP, just got huge increases for generating electricity!
Your vet overcharges…check out the rates at other vets. They will usually work with what the insurance companies consider reasonable and customary for the types of procedures covered.