Is insuring pot users as non-smokers a good move?

CBC News Posted: Jun 01, 2016 3:51 PM ET

Many insurance companies classify those who smoke pot in with those who smoke tobacco cigarettes – it does not matter if the marijuana is for medicinal purposes or for recreational use.

Last Friday, Sun Life announced a change to that policy.

“In our industry, we keep up to date with medical studies and companies update their underwriting guidelines accordingly. As a result, people who use marijuana are now assessed when they apply for insurance at Sun Life at non-smoker rates, unless they also use tobacco,” Sun Life said in a statement.

BMO Insurance has also said it will change its policy to allow people to smoke up to two joints per week.

The BMO plan is not as flexible, Zaid said, and it’s unclear what happens to the many medical marijuana users who use vaporizers or ingest their cannabis.

Zaid has fought for his own medical marijuana costs to be covered. It took eight months of back-and-forth with the student union, which administers the student health plan, to pay for his marijuana like it would any other medication.

He said while he thinks Sun Life and BMO may have some kind of “business motives” behind the changes to their policies, “I hope it’s for the patients and to help them.”

If you have a prescription for medical marijuana and are currently classified as a smoke on your life insurance policy please give us a call. We can help you get classified as a non smoker and reduce your premiums – in most cases by 50%.

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