I just ran across this because I was informed it's illegal to stock aspirin in a company first aid kit. Well, while trolling for proof that it's not, I ran into this little tidbit.
It could affect us all.
How insurance companies dig up applicants' prescriptions—and use them to deny coverage
That prescription you just picked up at the drugstore could hurt your chances of getting health insurance.
An untold number of people have been rejected for medical coverage for a reason they never could have guessed: Insurance companies are using huge, commercially available prescription databases to screen out applicants based on their drug purchases.
Privacy and consumer advocates warn that the information can easily be misinterpreted or knowingly misused. At a minimum, the practice is adding another layer of anxiety to a marketplace that many consumers already find baffling. "It's making it harder to find insurance for people," says Jay Horowitz, an independent insurance agent in Overland Park, Kan.
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Most consumers and even many insurance agents are unaware that Humana, UnitedHealth Group , Aetna, Blue Cross plans, and other insurance giants have ready access to applicants' prescription histories. These online reports, available in seconds from a pair of little-known intermediary companies at a cost of only about $15 per search, typically include voluminous information going back five years on dosage, refills, and possible medical conditions. The reports also provide a numerical score predicting what a person may cost an insurer in the future.
http://finance.yahoo.com/...
These people need to be stopped in their tracks YESTERDAY!!!!