Distance runners are a unique population when it comes to health insurance coverage. They are generally young, healthy and have disposable income. The one drawback is frequent injury due to intensive training. A 2007 study found injury rates to lower extremities were as high as 79 percent in long-distance runners.
This leaves insurance companies doing one of two things, according to the report. Companies that cannot exclude pre-existing injuries from treatment will refrain from covering healthy runners with training-related injuries altogether. Or, insurance companies will accept injured runner applicants and extend the same premium rate as “couch potatoes.” Some runners, however, want their athletic hobby to factor into the calculation of their premium, much like age or gender, since it yields such well-known health benefits.
Runners often don’t buy the insurance they should, but they may want to consider supplemental accident insurance to cover potential bike crashes or other triathlon-related accidents.
Read the New York Times report about runners and health insurance.
Read more about sports injuries:
–Study: Some Olympic Sports Need Better Injury Prevention Strategies
–Arthroscopic Meniscal Repair More Effective Than Meniscectomy for Isolated Traumatic Meniscal Tears
–5 Strategies for Preventing Overuse Injuries in Youth Sports Medicine
