Prescription History / Opioid Pain Medication
Opioid Pain Medication: underwriting considerations
e.g., Oxycodone, Hydrocodone, Tramadol
The most closely scrutinized medication category, as carriers are specifically screening for indications of dependency.
Occasional or short-term use associated with a specific event, a past surgery, for example, is evaluated very differently from an ongoing, long-term prescription. Carriers are primarily seeking to rule out substance dependency, along with the more serious chronic pain conditions for which opioids are sometimes prescribed. A long-standing, stable prescription tied to a known condition fares better than one that is recent or open-ended.
Material considerations
Carriers establish independent criteria for evaluating any given prescription, such that identical medications may be treated differently across carriers. Health and medication questions should be answered accurately in all cases — the carrier verifies prescription history independent of disclosure, and any discrepancy may jeopardize a future claim.