What You Don't Want Your Insurance Company to Know

[Cort]

Canadian study suggests people with FM have car accident rates approaching those of people diagnosed with alcoholism or about twice the average. Ouch! It's a good warning to be careful and I hope auto insurance companies don't start asking about diagnoses...(I don't think they do ????)

J Rheumatol. 2015 May 15. pii: jrheum.141315. [Epub ahead of print] Fibromyalgia and the Risk of a Subsequent Motor Vehicle Crash. Redelmeier DA1, Zung JD1, Thiruchelvam D1, Tibshirani RJ1.
OBJECTIVE:

Motor vehicle crashes are a widespread contributor to mortality and morbidity, sometimes related to medically unfit motorists. We tested whether patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia (FM) have an increased risk of a subsequent serious motor vehicle crash.
METHODS:

We conducted a population-based self-matched longitudinal cohort analysis to estimate the incidence rate ratio of crashes among patients diagnosed with FM relative to the population norm in Ontario, Canada. We included adults diagnosed from April 1, 2006, to March 31, 2012, excluding individuals younger than 18 years, living outside Ontario, lacking valid identifiers, or having only a single visit for the diagnosis. The primary outcome was an emergency department visit as a driver involved in a motor vehicle crash.
RESULTS:

The patients (n = 137,631) accounted for 738 crashes during the first year of followup after diagnosis, equal to an incidence rate ratio of 2.44 compared with the population norm (95% CI 2.27-2.63, p < 0.001). The crash rate was more than twice the population norm for those with a new or a persistent diagnosis. The increased risk included patients with diverse characteristics, approached the rate observed among other patients diagnosed with alcoholism, and was mitigated among those who received dedicated FM care or a physician warning for driving safety.
CONCLUSION:

A diagnosis of FM is associated with an increased risk of a subsequent motor vehicle crash that might justify medical interventions for traffic safety.

 

[Who Me?]

I don't remember my insurance asking about illness but the state does to get a drivers license.

But it wouldn't surprise me if they started.

 

[TigerLilea]

Here in BC we have "no fault" insurance.

 

[LunaNik]

Interesting. I've had fibro for 15 years now, and never caused an accident in my life. I'm definitely a much more cautious driver now than I was pre-diagnosis. Honestly, I would have to say it would be discriminatory to group us all together. We all deal with our limitations differently. I have friends with fibro who are still able to work, while I've barely been able to manage my normal daily activities. Still others are nearly bed-bound.