Health insurance companies had exclusions for war, insurrection before 2024 | Fact check

BrieAnna J. Frank, USA TODAY
·4 min read
2

The claim: Health insurance companies’ exclusions for war, insurrection are new in 2024

A Jan. 28 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) claims several major insurance companies recently changed their policies because they've been tipped off to expected widespread violence.

“2024 health insurance policies modified to exclude coverage for war, riot, insurrection,” reads the post in part. "All these wars, insurrections, riots etc. are planned well in advance by the globalist deep state. Nothing is left to chance and nothing happens by accident."

The post names UnitedHealthcare, Cigna and Anthem as companies that made the change in 2024. A previous version of the claim added Aetna to that list and was shared more than 60 times before it was deleted.

Other versions of the claim spread widely on TikTok and X, formerly known as Twitter.

More from the Fact-Check Team: How we pick and research claims | Email newsletter | Facebook page

Our rating: False

Past insurance policies show the companies in question had exclusions for such incidents prior to 2024.

Companies have had exclusions for war, insurrection for years

Excluding such events is neither new nor uncommon for health insurance companies.

Daniel Schwarcz, a law professor at the University of Minnesota, said health insurers had similar language in their policies before 2024.

Schwarcz said whatever an insurance company decides to include or exclude from its coverage is based on an economic calculation. The suggestion that those decisions were made in 2024 because companies had knowledge of events to come is "preposterous," he said.

"Insurers universally attempt to limit their coverage for large, correlated risks that are plausible – that's what's going on here," he said. "It's not nefarious. It's not like health insurers have any different information than the rest of us."

Language from old policies found online shows the wording existed before 2024.

An archived version of a 2022 Anthem policy in New Hampshire, for example, says “no benefits are available” for treating injuries stemming from “war, participation in a riot or other act of insurrection.”

A 2022 Cigna policy in Mississippi also said it would not cover conditions caused by war or the beneficiary's participation in an “insurrection, rebellion or riot.”

One of UnitedHealthcare's college student insurance plans for the 2021-2022 school year also had an exclusion for injuries caused by participation in a "riot or civil disorder." A graduate and postdoctoral student plan from 2016-2017 also excluded coverage for illnesses, treatments or conditions related to participation in a "felony, riot or insurrection."

Reuters also reported in 2022 that various insurance companies had existing policies excluding such events from their coverage.

Fact check: Facebook post about health credits is scam, targets users younger than 65

The Cigna Corp. logo is displayed at the headquarters of the health insurer on Nov. 26, 2018. The Cigna Group will sell its Medicare Advantage business to another insurer, Health Care Service Corp., for about $3.7 billion. Cigna said Wednesday. The deal also includes a supplemental benefits business and Medicare prescription drug coverage.
The Cigna Corp. logo is displayed at the headquarters of the health insurer on Nov. 26, 2018. The Cigna Group will sell its Medicare Advantage business to another insurer, Health Care Service Corp., for about $3.7 billion. Cigna said Wednesday. The deal also includes a supplemental benefits business and Medicare prescription drug coverage.

Archived versions of Aetna life and disability insurance policy exclusions dating back to 2011 similarly denied coverage for disabilities related to "insurrection, rebellion, or taking part in a riot or civil commotion" as well as an act of war – whether declared or undeclared.

That changed in recent years. The company told USA TODAY that most Aetna commercial plans no longer exclude "war-related injuries."

“Aetna generally removed such exclusions in 2018 when plan benefits underwent a comprehensive review,” said spokesperson Alex Kepnes.

USA TODAY has debunked an array of false claims surrounding health insurance, including that President Joe Biden's 2023 executive order provided free health insurance, that insurance companies deny life insurance payouts after people receive the COVID-19 vaccine and that the Inflation Reduction Act expands free health insurance to people under 65.

USA TODAY reached out to several users who shared the post for comment.

Lead Stories also debunked the claim.

Our fact-check sources:

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or e-newspaper here.

USA TODAY is a verified signatory of the International Fact-Checking Network, which requires a demonstrated commitment to nonpartisanship, fairness and transparency. Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Meta.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: False claim insurance exclusion for insurrection is new | Fact check