Denial for pre-existing conditions

In June of 1975, my wife, our two little boys and I moved to Missoula, where I had been hired as the band director at Hellgate High School. My wife was four months pregnant with our third son, who was born that November. We moved from Cut Bank, where we had health insurance through the school district that covered her two earlier pregnancies and deliveries.

When we moved to Missoula, the health insurance for teachers did not cover the rest of my wife’s prenatal care or delivery because it was labeled a “pre-existing condition.” Her remaining prenatal care, delivery and hospital expenses were paid for from our own personal resources, even though our family was covered by the health insurance provided for faculty by Missoula County High Schools.

We have always felt that this experience was very unfair and that insurance companies were arbitrarily denying coverage for their own profit. Requiring insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions has been one of the most positive parts of the Affordable Care Act.

Now it appears that Congress is ready to again give insurance companies the ability to deny coverage of pre-existing conditions or charge much higher premiums for them. Is this really what we want?

Richard Erickson,

Stevensville