I've been very busy lately so missed pointing out the most recent high profile stories that mentioned pet insurance (apart from the Today Show mentions I talked about here and here).
The first was Parade Magazine, which is the Sunday newpaper magazine in many newspapers. They had an article on pet insurance and what to look out for.
Is It Worth It? Pet insurance has a lot of fine print, so do your homework (see below). Also, consider the following :
Cost. You easily can spend more than $7,000 on premiums over your pet’s lifetime. But don’t pick a plan based on price alone—the cheapest may not be the best. Usually, lower monthly premiums mean higher deductibles and/or co-payments. Estimate how much you spend a year on veterinary care and how much you ultimately can afford. Some vets feel that pet insurance is best for major expenses or emergencies but not for routine costs, which you could pay out of pocket.
Age. If you insure your pet when he’s young, you won’t have to worry about coverage if he develops a chronic health problem. As your pet ages, the cost of the insurance may rise, and it can be hard to find coverage for dogs and cats older than 8 years.
The other was a piece on NPR The article focused on two types of drugs coming out for dogs from Pfizer – one for dog obesity (Slentrol) and the other to prevent vomiting in motion sickness (Cerenia).
In the middle of the segment, the reporters talked about the increasing spend on pet care leading to an increase awareness of pet insurance. Slentrol will $2 a day and diabetes treatments for cats run at about $1 a day.
Have you seen or heard other stories on pet insurance? Don't you think it's interesting that the mass media finds pet insurance interesting. You certainly don't see much on dental insurance, do you?
