Cat Insurance or Care Credit?

I'm a new kitten mommy, and I want my babies to be as healthy as they possibly can. I've been going to the vet regularly for their shots and check ups. They're only 4 months old, so I've gone twice so far, with 2 kittens I've already paid $300+ on vet visits and shots (they also had coccidia - yuck). My boyfriend is a PhD student and I'm a manager at a gym, needless to say we're not racking in the dough, so $300 is a lot for our little paychecks. I'm considering my options such as Care Credit or an insurance program. When I first adopted them from the Humane Society I got a free two weeks of 24PetWatch, this insurance program. I'm looking at their options and was wondering if anyone has used them? Or any other insurance program? I know once they're older we won't have to go to the vet as much. But any advice on a specific insurance program or Care Credit would be great! Thank you  

I would go for insurance every time. That way, you have the peace of mind of knowing that, whatever happens, the vet bills will be covered. I've always used PetPlan. They're not they cheapest, by they pay out without any problems and they offer and insurance for life policy (at least, they do in the uk). This means that you don't get any exclusions for conditions that become evident AFTER the insurance starts - a really big deal if you find yourself dealing with kidney disease or IBD (for example). I know a lot of vets like PetPlan too because they're so straightforward.

I do know that there are far more likely to be claim issues with some of the cheaper companies - sure, they cost less, but they will do almost anything to wriggle out of paying up on a claim. Not all of the cheaper companies are like this, but there are a couple of cheaper companies over here that are notorious for not paying out on claims. It's definitely something to be aware of.

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There are a few users here that have pet insurance, so hopefully one of them will chime in.

I've debated this same issue myself; but, have, so far, opted out of the insurance for a few reasons.

1.) I have more than 2 cats. The insurance plans I was considering (the highest tier) was roughly $25/mo per cat.

2.) All but 2 of my cats would be considered to have a pre-existing condition (asthma, pancreatitis, herpes, FLUTD, etc...) So, the issues they are seen for the most wouldn't be covered.

3.) Annual check ups for each cat is roughly $70/cat for exam and vaccine. Bloodwork is $50-$125 depending on which panel I want to run and if it needs to be sent to an outside lab.

So, based on the above info, I don't think insurance would be beneficial to me.

On the flip-side, I have used CareCredit and really like the way it works. If I spend $200+ at a visit (be this at the emergency clinic or at my regular clinic), I have 6 months to pay that visit off. If I have 2+ consecutive visits to either the e-clinic or regular, each visit $200+ qualifies for the 6 months same as cash deal. This also applies if I have 1 visit today and another in 6 weeks.

** If you decide to use insurance, call around an make sure different vets in the area accept the plan. Also make sure the nearest emergency clinic(s) and vet school(s) accept the plan too.

One of my mom's friends used care credit with her cat when it was going through the process of dying and racking up very expensive bills. The danger with care credit is that it is high interest and in many cases using a credit card if you have one available would be better. If you do decide on care credit, it is important to try and pay it off as quickly as possible since otherwise it can be a big headache. I think my mom's friend is still working on that bill and its been a long time since her cat died. It definitely is great for emergencies, but it would be better to try saving away a small amount of money each month to put toward vet care later.

I don't have insurance because I get great discounts through my job and exams and vaccines are free. When I no longer work in this field though, I intend on getting it. I do have Care Credit though and I think it's wonderful. I used it to pay for their spay/neuter surgeries and for Sniffles' $600 bill when she got sick and needed to be hospitalized.

My advice to you is to get both. With pet insurance you have to pay the vet bill yourself and then they reimburse you. So if you have an unexpected emergency, you can pay the bill with your Care Credit and then pay that off once the insurance company reimburses you.

I used Healthy Paws pet insurance for a while and had nothing but good experiences with them (aside from my cats being sick, that is). They were always very prompt about processing and reimbursing my claims. They cover everything for accidents and illnesses (no exam fees or preventative care) at the actual amount you paid, not what they think you should have paid.
I cancelled the plan after about a year, though, because I got a better job and my cats are healthier, so I'm less worried about vet bills.

I work for a pet insurance company (Petplan) and have cat insurance on my DSH, Phoebe, so hopefully I can add some more helpful info to this conversation.

Pet insurance is a good option for cats of any age. I know before I started working at Petplan that I thought my cat wouldn't need it, but after seeing the crazy claims that come through on a daily basis (we just had a cat fall from 9 stories and survive! can you believe that?!), I quickly changed my tone. Of course, insuring your cat when she's younger is best because then any injury or illness that happens throughout their life can be covered, provided you have a quality plan. 

In terms of cost, most cat insurance policies are quite affordable when compared with dogs. That being said, you often get what you pay for when it comes to depth of coverage and quality of service. CareCredit is an option, but you can get hit with really high interest rates if you don't pay your balance back in time. We actually see quite a few people who carry both, since all pet insurance is reimbursement based. They'll use the CareCredit to pay for the upfront bill and then pay back their CareCredit bill with the reimbursement from their pet insurance company. 

Enrolling multiple cats can get expensive, but most companies provide a multi-pet discount to help with the cost of insuring multiple furry friends.

Pre-existing conditions are always difficult to deal with and will not be covered by your pet insurance. That being said, I think if most pet insurance companies had the chance we would cover them in a heartbeat, but because we're all filed as property insurance by the state, it limits our options. 

There is a lot of confusion about pet insurance vs. wellness plans in the market. Wellness plans exist to pay for your annual shots, vaccines, etc. Pet insurance is meant to deal only with injuries and illnesses. We don't offer a wellness plan at the moment because it would cost policyholders exactly what they would pay for routine care on an annual basis anyways, and we don't feel that's fair. So we focus on making sure we're there to cover the big expenses like cancer.

Definitely do your research before buying. There are quite a few differences to be noted between the various companies, such as:

VPI: Uses a benefit schedule, only reimburses you a limited amount

Trupanion/Healthy Paws: Both offer unlimited coverage, but will not cover exam fees.

Petplan: Reimbursement caps at $22,000 per year with the gold plan, but can enroll pets of any age

Hope that helps!