Family Medical History and Insurance
When you are sourcing medical insurance for yourself or your loved ones, you will find that family medical history plays a part in determining the cost of your coverage. Some health insurance providers may deny coverage to applicants who have a family history of a serious health condition. A reliable insurance provider will review your family medical history carefully to evaluate the seriousness of the condition, the exact family relationship, the rate of occurrence in your family and other important details.
When you are applying for health insurance, it may be tempting to conceal certain facts, such as a family history of a critical illness. However, if you were to develop this condition and your medical records proved that a close relative had the same illness, your policy could be invalidated, and any exams, treatments or procedures related to this condition might not be covered by your provider. The information provided in an application must be accurate and correct to the best of your knowledge at the time you apply.
Factors that Affect Insurance Rates
Along with your age, gender, occupation, BMI, personal health history and lifestyle habits such as smoking, your family medical history is taken into account when a health insurance company calculates your rates. Health insurance rates are based on the level of risk you present to an insurance provider. The more likely you are to require more than the most basic treatment, the higher your premium will be. If you exceed a certain threshold of risk, an insurer may deny your application altogether.
If you have an immediate family history of heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, cancer or another condition that is serious and potentially hereditary, then the statistical probability that you will require treatment for this same condition is higher than average. Insurance companies may consider the closeness of the family relationship when they evaluate your application. If you are a woman, having a mother or sister with breast cancer, for instance, may place you at a higher risk for having this condition than having a great grandmother or distant cousin who has this disease.
Family medical history is not the only factor used to determine your rates. If you are a healthy non smoker with a normal BMI and a low risk occupation, and you have never had any medical concerns of your own, you may be more likely to achieve reasonably priced health insurance. When you shop for coverage, compare quotes from several insurance providers before you accept a high premium based on your family history.
Covered and Excluded Conditions
Having a family history of a certain illness means that you yourself may require treatment or specialist care to prevent this condition. For instance, if you have a family history of Type 2 diabetes, a condition that often runs in families, you may wish to seek treatment from a specialist who can advise you in prevention. If you have a family medical history of cancer, you will want to buy a policy that gives you access to chemotherapy and other cancer treatments in the event that you are diagnosed with this disease.
Before you buy a private health insurance policy, review its list of covered benefits and exclusions carefully. Most policies exclude certain conditions, treatments and services. If you have specific concerns about cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease or other conditions that may have a hereditary factor, make sure that prevention or treatment for these illnesses is covered under your policy. The care that you receive through private medical insurance should address issues from your family medical history that might affect your health in the future.
We were actually surprised how easy to use the site was. We found a new policy that has the same coverage as our old one but is 20% cheaper. 
Chloe and Jack A, Cardiff UK
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