Pre-Existing Confusion

By Bill Schanefelt

It is stunning to watch Republicans being put on the defensive time and time again by the "Pre-Existing Conditions" argument. Every word has meaning and power: The inherent power of (a) word is a phenomenon that has been both omnipresent and essential throughout the long histories of literature, philosophy, religion and politics. Aside from using the free ride to be given to the under-26 crowd, the most common club used on our team is the nonsense that the existence of a pre-existing condition must not restrict or deny a person's "right" to health insurance. The very utterance of that notion conveys ignorance of the meanings of insurance -- namely, "[c]overage by a contract binding a party to indemnify another against specified loss in return for premiums paid[.]" Then there's the meaning of insurance contract: ... includes, at a minimum, the following elements: identification of participating parties (the insurer, the insured, the beneficiaries), the premium, the period of coverage, the particular loss event covered, the amount of coverage (i.e., the amount.... (Read Full Article)