Does having a disease affect insurance coverage?

Having any diagnosed disease complicates your health insurance coverage, but you can usually find some type of coverage. If the disease is diagnosed while you currently have coverage, you will need to learn more about the specific benefits and limitations of your policy. You may need to complete more paperwork or pay more for coverage. If you need to purchase a new policy, the disease would be considered a preexisting condition. There are laws, particularly the HIPAA or Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, that regulate how an insurance company must treat a preexisting condition. This law pertains to anyone covered by a large group plan, not an individual policy. Even without the conditions of HIPAA, most insurance companies will have coverage for preexisting conditions at a higher cost to you.