Pet medical records are official documents provided by a vet detailing your pet's current state of health and medical history.
What’s included in a pet medical record?
Your pet’s medical records will include a summary of every vet visit with detailed doctor notes outlining medical care provided and a plan for the future care of your pet.
These detailed notes may include, but are not limited to:
- Pet name, breed, age, gender, weight and spay/neuter status
- Vaccination history
- Medications/supplements/food prescribed
- Overall wellness status
- Notes from prior visits including symptoms displayed, medical diagnosis, treatment provided and a follow up plan.
Why do you need my pet's medical records?
We may require your pet's complete medical history in order to process your claim. You authorize us, at the time of enrollment and any time after to contact any and all veterinary clinics or hospitals to obtain all available medical records that exist for your Pet, if needed.
Because pet insurance providers do not cover pre-existing conditions, medical records help determine your pet’s "baseline of health" and which conditions are considered pre-existing. This doesn't mean that your pet will be denied any coverage, it just means that particular condition will not be covered in the future.
In order to determine which conditions are considered pre-existing, we look at the 18 months preceding your policy start date and exclude any conditions that were present during that period or during the waiting periods as outlined in your Declarations page. Please note, the following conditions are deemed pre-existing if they are present at any time preceding the policy start date or during the waiting periods: chronic conditions, bilateral conditions, or intervertebral disc conditions.
What happens if I don't have my pet's medical records?
If you are unable to obtain your pet’s medical history, we suggest you have a Certified Health Exam performed to determine your pet's baseline of health.
A Certified Health Exam is a full nose to tail exam of your pet by a licensed veterinarian. This will verify that your pet's vaccinations are up-to-date, estimate their breed/age, and provide information around any pre-existing conditions including signs or symptoms of previous illnesses or injuries. No additional diagnostic testing such as x-rays or blood work is required.
*Please note, if you cannot get a copy of your pet's medical records you may want to consider canceling your current policy and signing up when you're ready. We cannot process your claim without those records.
How do I submit my pet's medical records?
After you've collected medical documents and/or the Certified Health Exam, log into your Odie Member Account to upload your pet's medical history. Not sure how? Click HERE for instructions.