It becomes really painful when the insurance company with whom you have enrolled in the hope of getting the best of the coverage at the time of need refuses such coverage on some ground or other. The worst part of it is that in most cases such refusal is far from ethical or even legal.

A burning example of refusal of Individual health insurance coverage is the case of Patsy Bates of San Francisco who was awarded compensation of $9 million by the Federal Court after she lodged a complain in this regard. Her insurance company had refused coverage in 2004 when she was being treated with chemotherapy.

That is only one of the questionable practices adopted by the insurance companies. There are others like the notices sent by some for further checking of the health history and accounts details of clients by doctors though they were pre-approved. Some companies go to the extent of rewarding employees who help recessions.

The solution to such questionable practices in respect to individual, group or family health insurance could be review by an independent third party board. This will ensure transparency in the system and clients will have a redressing forum for their grievances.
Example set by the State authorities in Kansas in respect to scrutiny of the health insurance plans could well set the trend. They have created a standardized application format and also introduced external reviews thus ensuring ethics in the process of insurance in the state.