Best Pet Wellness Plans for Routine Care

Best Pet Wellness Plans for Routine Care

Most pet insurance providers offer a standard plan and a wellness plan. The difference is that typical pet insurance covers unexpected costs related to accidents and illnesses, such as surgery and medication. Pet wellness plans cover preventive health care, such as routine vet visits, vaccinations and spaying/neutering.

Many of the best pet insurance companies offer excellent pet wellness plans. We at the Guides Home Team have provided our top recommendations and compared their pros and cons to help you find the right coverage.

Pet Insurance vs. Pet Wellness Plans

Pet insurance plans typically cover costs associated with accidents and illnesses. They don’t include wellness coverage.

The table below compares coverage for a pet insurance policy versus a pet wellness plan.

Watch the video below to learn more in-depth differences between pet insurance plans and preventative care plans by Heart and Paw.

How Much Do Pet Wellness Plans Cost?

The cost of a preventative care add-on will depend heavily on the provider and the amount of coverage included. Pet owners cannot buy just a pet wellness plan; they must also buy an accident-and-illness or accident-only insurance plan.

Most pet insurance companies offer the same pet wellness plan option for all breeds. The table below has a breakdown of pet wellness plan costs and the overall cost for both pet insurance and preventative care.

Lemonade Pet Insurance: Most Affordable Plans

Lemonade offers pet insurance with wellness plan add-ons to customers across the United States. Its pet insurance policies are more affordable than many competitors, making them ideal for pet parents on a budget. Lemonade also offers an impressive mobile app to manage your pet’s health, file claims and track your policy coverage and billing.

Lemonade offers two add-on plans for preventive and routine care. Each plan has a different cost and coverage level. The less expensive plan covers a wellness exam, a fecal test, three vaccines, a heartworm test and a blood test. The more expensive plan covers flea, tick, heartworm medication, and routine dental cleaning.

Pros and Cons

Lemonade Pet Insurance Wellness Plan Coverage

The Lemonade Preventative Package is the company’s cheapest wellness add-on. It costs $15 to $20 for dogs and $10 to $15 for cats. Coverage includes the following treatments with certain per-item limits, depending on your policy’s reimbursement rate:

The Lemonade Preventative+ Package has higher monthly payments of $20 to $27 for dogs and $15 to $22 for cats. It includes everything in the table above plus the following treatments, with certain per-item limits based on your policy’s reimbursement rate:

To learn more: Lemonade Pet Insurance review

 


 

Spot Pet Insurance: Most Customizable

Spot Pet Insurance has more customizable policies than most competitors, allowing you to find the right coverage at an affordable rate. Its annual limit options range from $2,500 to unlimited.

Spot’s policies also cover items other pet insurance providers don’t, such as exam fees and microchipping. You can add one of Spot’s preventive care plans for routine care coverage.

Pros and Cons

Spot Pet Insurance Wellness Plan Coverage

You can purchase one of Spot’s preventive care plans for your pet’s routine care. The Gold preventive plan costs an additional $9.95 monthly and comes with a $250 per-treatment limit per year. Below is a list of each covered item in the Gold plan and its annual benefit:

Spot’s Platinum preventive plan is more expensive at an additional $24.95 per month for $450 of total per-item limits per year. It includes the following treatments:

To learn more: Spot Pet Insurance review

 


 

Embrace Pet Insurance Wellness Plan Coverage

Embrace’s Wellness Rewards add-on covers preventive care for an extra $18 to $53 per month. You can choose between $250, $450 or $650 of annual coverage limits. This plan pays 100{95221ed7c1b18b55d17ae0bef2e0eaa704ccc2431c5b12f9d786c88d1acb538d} of costs up to the annual limit rather than only paying specified per-treatment limits like most competitors. Below are the items covered in Embrace’s Wellness Rewards add-on:

  • Cremation or burial
  • Fecal and routine blood tests
  • Flea, tick and heartworm preventives
  • Gastropexy
  • Grooming
  • Hip dysplasia exams, radiographs or other OFA testing
  • Medicated shampoos
  • Microchipping
  • Nutritional supplements
  • Prescription diet food
  • Preventive teeth cleaning
  • Reiki, massage therapy, acupuncture
  • Routine anal gland expression
  • Routine chiropractic care
  • Spay/neuter surgery
  • Toenail trimming
  • Training
  • Wearable pet activity monitors
  • Wellness exam fees
  • Vaccinations and titers

Note: The Wellness Rewards plan is not available in Rhode Island.

ASPCA Pet Health Insurance Wellness Plan Coverage

ASPCA Pet Health Insurance offers two wellness add-ons. The Preventative Basic add-on is the cheaper plan at $9.95 per month for $250 in annual routine care coverage. Below is a breakdown of what’s covered in the Preventative Basic add-on:

Pets Best: Our Pick for Senior Pets

Pets Best is an excellent option for people with older pets. The company has no upper age limit, so you can enroll your pet anytime. Pets Best also offers two wellness plan options, so you can pick the one that best fits your budget.

Pros and Cons

Pets Best Wellness Plan Coverage

Pets Best offers two wellness plans. Its EssentialWellness plan is $16 per month* and provides annual benefits of $305. Below are the plan’s covered items and their annual limits.

*$14 per month in Washington.

The company’s other wellness plan, BestWellness, is $26 per month* with annual benefits of $535. It covers everything from the EssentialWellness package with a higher level of reimbursement.

*30 per month in Washington.

To learn more: Pets Best Pet Insurance review

 


 

Is a Pet Wellness Plan Worth It?

A pet wellness plan can be worth it. Though routine pet care costs less than surgeries or cancer treatments, you’ll ultimately spend more on preventive care throughout your pet’s lifetime if you don’t have a wellness plan.

According to health care financing company Care Credit, vet exams, core vaccinations, and procedures such as spaying or neutering and microchip implantations can total $1,800 in a puppy’s first year. The first-year cost for a cat is nearly $1,200.

Without a wellness plan, pet owners should plan to spend $7,600 to $19,000 in veterinary care over their cat or dog’s lifetime. A wellness plan offers anywhere between 80{95221ed7c1b18b55d17ae0bef2e0eaa704ccc2431c5b12f9d786c88d1acb538d} to 100{95221ed7c1b18b55d17ae0bef2e0eaa704ccc2431c5b12f9d786c88d1acb538d} reimbursement for this necessary health care. Instead of accumulating high costs over time, you pay a small monthly fee to ensure your furry companion remains happy and healthy.

 


 

Do Pet Wellness Plans Have Waiting Periods?

Every pet insurance company has waiting periods before coverage begins, which also applies to wellness plans. The average waiting period for a pet insurance policy is one to two weeks. Be sure to enroll in a pet insurance plan with an additional wellness plan before starting routine care to receive coverage.

 


 

Do Pet Wellness Plans Cover Preexisting Conditions?

No, pet wellness plans don’t cover preexisting conditions. Unfortunately, no pet insurer currently covers preexisting conditions. Insurance companies see pets with these medical conditions as costly and high-risk investments, especially since they’re guaranteed to need veterinary care in the foreseeable future.

However, some companies will distinguish between curable and incurable conditions, opting to cover curable conditions with specific stipulations. In addition, some routine treatments covered in wellness plans may help cure these conditions.

 


 

Other Pet Insurance Resources

Read some of our additional pet insurance resources below: