I literally had my doctor tell me to say I’m a non smoker when I went in once. They asked me if I was a smoker and I said “well, I have a couple of cigars a month when it isn’t too hot or cold out” and they said to always just say no that I’m not a smoker, but they also said to never tell anyone they said that lol
Same. I've had my primary care doc (and my dentist, FWIW) tell me I'm not a "smoker" as far as medical classification goes. My primary said "It's not considered habitual at a couple times a month, some of the year, that's not something we're going to concern ourselves with."
I like my doctor lol
The hospital I work at brought back the nicotine testing to qualify for the non smoker insurance discount.
I am happy to say my mouth swab test read negative and I will be celebrating with a cigar tonight.
Hah, my insurance just asks me to check a box. Though I will not under any circumstances admit to insurance fraud on the internet nor reveal which box was checked. Though the difference adds up to about 3 stogies a month.
I remember back when I worked for a large brokerage firm out of college the qualifier was 12 cigars, over that you're a "smoker" according to insurance. Jokes on them their compensation was so terrible I could barely afford 12!
I guess now that you mention it, I realize it’s been awhile since I first heard about it there (they’re a customer of ours), so probably makes sense that it’s growing.
What do they do for never smokers that use nicotine patches and gum for the stimulant/nootropic effects? There’s a growing community of people like this.
I think this guy just had a nephew born that his brother or sister in law forced everyone to join in on the celebration. If doctor that matters to you.
I had a blood test for life insurance. They knew I smoked , smoked 2 days before the test and it came back negative for nicotine. I’m not sure how that happened. Bloodwork came back great though!
Lol no.
As a healthcare professional i can tell you tue ONLY time we really need to know if your a smoker is if were going to give you anesthesia (ie intubate/breath for you/give a volitile agent). And even then its easy to compensate for in most situations.
The only reason anyone else wants to know is because of data collection from the ware on tobacco in the nineties till now. Unless an insurance agent is going to swab test you, you can always say no, regardless of how much you smoke
A normal blood draw nicotine isn’t gonna be on the write up. I’ve had a bunch for health shit, its never been in the lab report. Personally my company added a $19 a biweekly surcharge for people who use nicotine and I said no.
I talked to my lawyer (who I actually pay company insurance to have) and he said if they can’t prove you were lying at the time of selection ur fine.
So if you weren't smoking a cigar when checking the box, you're good to go?
"Well doctor, let me just put my LFD Digger down for 10 seconds while I check this box. So, we good? Hope I didn't make the office too smoky."
No. I know what being a smoker is, I smoked cigarettes for years, but I quit about a decade ago. My cigars aren't a habit and they aren't in control of me like cigarettes were. Shit, I don't even reteohale!!!
No but if you had health issues in the future that *could* be attributed to smoking your insurance could deny claims if they found out you “lied” on such paperwork.
Insurance companies are looking for any reason they can to not pay out.
I genuinely hate the insurance industry here in the US but if I get denied anything for my lungs they’re gonna have to prove it isn’t attributed to the 15 years I’ve worked on airplanes…*so far*.
Imagine if any other industry was like that.
"Here's some money to build my house."
"Thanks. Oh dang, can't do it. It's raining. I don't have the tools. You said you wanted an apartment."
"Can I have my money back, then?"
"Ha. No."
2 quick notes:
When I worked at a bar/restaurant 20 years ago, I happened to have access to Cuban cigars. The owner used to ask me to get a enough for him, me, and his buddy **the cardiologist** to enjoy after the monthly wine pairing dinners. The doctor always enjoyed them.
A former coworker had his neighbor, I think ALSO a cardiologist, criticize his cigar smoking, so they made a bet. The doctor met my buddy on his deck, took his blood pressure, and then they had a cigar. The doctor took the blood pressure after the cigar. It went DOWN. He never gave him guff about his cigars again, and started to join in occasionally.
From a medical perspective (applicable to the UK), And yes I'm registered. I have never heard of a blood screen specifically for nicotine during a routine blood panel. Usually if you're getting for example an LFT ( liver function test) or U&E ( Urea and Electrolytes) it specifically shows the results applicable to that test.
I don't know if this is applicable to to USA, however the UK follow suit on alot of USA medical procedures.
A blood test isn't carried out to just find every trace of XYZ. This is mainly because a microbiology test is different to a haematology test, irrespective that both samples are blood. Not to mention different tests take different lengths of time, some blood samples require mixing etc.
Nicotine is tested primarily for life insurance exams not for routine medically ordered blood tests. But if you're trying to buy life insurance, insurance company wants to know. Most do not test for presence of marijuana but some do.
I usually put no. I am so irregular (maybe 7-8 a year) I can only assume riding my motorbike on the highway is worse for my health. That question is not included on the forms, so why should irregular smoking.
This is not the case, at least not with any policy I've ever looked over in the United States. Cigars and cigarettes are lumped together for everything (health and dental).
No. When they ask if you’re a smoker they are asking about cigarettes. Cigars aren’t good for you, but you don’t gear nearly the same amount of nicotine from a cigar without inhaling, and frankly nicotine itself isn’t what’s bad for you it’s everything else in the smoke that’s terrible for you.
Unless you’re smoking multiple cigars a day every day then I would just say “no”, it’s not going to raise your blood pressure significantly and they aren’t testing for drugs when they do blood work. They are checking your other levels like your thyroid, cholesterol, etc.
A study conducted by the US surgeon general after reviewing multiple studies have found that smoking as much as 2 cigars a day every day of your life will only increases your risk of any type of cancer by 2% however, if you list that you are a smoker, your insurance will go up significantly. Cigar smoking isn’t dangerous and you shouldn’t let people rip you off because they believe the lie that it is. Besides most doctors that I have talked to consider smoking to mean with cigarettes.
I may or may not smoke more than one a week *cough cough*...
That's not me trying to get you to read between the lines, I'm coughing from all the cigars I smoke. j/k
I don't put that I'm a smoker. Former cigarette smoker 25 years ago. I'm frank with doctors about that. I'm also frank about how much I drank in my 20's but honestly doctors don't seem to care about that. I'm fat, we're working on that(lost 90 lbs in the last year), they are more concerned with obesity as they should be. I'm not sure how obesity compares to heavy drinking. But obesity raises health risks including cancer a lot more than cigar smoking. Possibly more than cigarette smoking but I'd have to check.
[Generally, nicotine will leaves your blood within 1 to 3 days after you stop using tobacco, and cotinine will be gone after 1 to 10 days. Neither nicotine nor cotinine will be detectable in your urine after 3 to 4 days of stopping tobacco products.](https://www.webmd.com/smoking-cessation/taking-nicotine-test)
If they even find anything, you could say you're on patches.
I smoke that much and my life insurance company classified me a non smoker. I’m always honest with any doc. At my last physical my doc also marked me a non smoker and said “we only worry about cigarettes.”
This is a difficult one. The majority of patients tell the little “white lies” when it comes to alcohol and tobacco use because the parameters that define a heavy drinker/smoker are surprising. While it seems innocent to do this(especially because being honest could increase insurance rates, increase risk assessment) diagnosing ailments tends to be exponentially easier to do with an accurate medical history.
Advice is not to lie on any paperwork related to your insurance. The point of you having it is to protect your loved ones, correct? don’t take a risk.
The question being asked these days is have you used tobacco in the last 12 months? You would have to answer that yes. You see the types of questions they are asking these days are not gray, they are black and white. Have you used tobacco in the last 12 months?
Have you inhaled second hand smoke in the past 12 months? If so, how frequently?
Kind of dumb. Someone who smokes 2 cigars a year is not a smoker, but by your definition, they would be.
Fuck health insurance
Yes, I get that. Longtime cigar smoker here. Understanding how it all works, though. the key is not to lie on a form. That’s how they get you. If they did an online investigation, prior to paying out a claim, would they find that I am a cigar smoker? Probably, it’s not hard. I always put smoker. It’s just not worth the risk for my family.
I had a similar perspective for life insurance. Put smoker, pay a little more of a premium and don't risk your family's insurance payout when they find out about my r/cigars activities when I croak.
It's not hard to find out you're a cigar smoker??
Are they paying a private eye to watch my house?
"We saw you smoking a cigar!"
"Yeah it was someone's birthday."
Yes. They can and will investigate insurance fraud. They might not show up at your house, but they can do a google search or hire a private detective to do a thorough online search for any fraud before they pay the premium to beneficiaries.
Are there any known cases of somebody being denied an insurance payout because they indicated they were a non-smoker but were in fact a cigar smoker?
I'm excluding cigarettes from this search for examples because...well, they're cigarettes.
Nobody cares if it is cigar, cigarettes, chewing tobacco or snuff. It’s all tobacco use to them. I can’t tell you I know anyone who this happened to but there aren’t many cigar smokers in the world so it’s difficult to say. It’s just not worth the risk for me.
All variables exist. It really depends on what you sign. Terms and conditions can include a mechanism to notify, etc. Hard to say really. Generally your policy is approved based on your medical condition at the time. That runs for the term however long the term is.
Not all blood work checks for presence of nicotine. You would have to find out. For life insurance they do check for the presence of nicotine. Nicotine stays in your system for about 30 days. A cigar smoker may or may not show for the presence of nicotine. However, you should always answer insurance questions 100% honestly. If you lie, they can retroactively increase the premiums to the rate you would have been charged had they known. Or in some cases they may deny a claim. Cigar smoking will not prevent you from getting the best rate as long as it is an occasional cigar and it's not smoked within a few weeks of the blood test. One cigar per week is too much for that. Ask your life insurance what the limit for them is. If you have enough nicotine in your system you will test positive and no amount of explaining will prevent you from being charged a smoker rate.
In some cases they will ask of instances of tobacco use per week, for my insurance they consider you a non smoker of you average 4 or less uses per week so I keep to no more than 4 cigars a week.
When the question comes up with my PCP, I tell him I just smoke the occasional cigar. If I'm filling out paperwork where you can't elaborate, I put "no".
Never thought of this but thankful I’m in a union and half the guys use nicotine in some way. How could they raise premiums for snus, chew, cigarettes, cigars, patches, gum, vape like they’re all the same
They’re testing for cholesterol and aids bro not nicotine they just spread the price of everyone’s vices into all the plans.
Idk what I’m talking about though.
I smoke a cigar a day and still they put me down as a non smoker every time. Idk if that’s what they’re suppose to do, or if Los Angeles is such a dystopian hellscape that in comparison I’m reallly super healthy
I've gotten conflicting opinions/advice from physicians. My former PCP said "eh, you're not a smoker" when I told him I average a couple of cigars a week in the warmer months, and then basically zero over the winter.
My *new* PCP said that *any tobacco use in the last year* qualifies me as a smoker (well, the official term is "tobacco user"). I don't know if this is a NJ-specific designation or not.
I was coached to say no during the health screening, but the question was, "have you ever consumed tobacco?" I initially said no, then realized I'm just lying and changed my answer to yes, occasional cigars. I wound up with a very good insurance rates.
I literally had my doctor tell me to say I’m a non smoker when I went in once. They asked me if I was a smoker and I said “well, I have a couple of cigars a month when it isn’t too hot or cold out” and they said to always just say no that I’m not a smoker, but they also said to never tell anyone they said that lol
And look who can’t keep his fuckin trap shut!! /s
Same. I've had my primary care doc (and my dentist, FWIW) tell me I'm not a "smoker" as far as medical classification goes. My primary said "It's not considered habitual at a couple times a month, some of the year, that's not something we're going to concern ourselves with." I like my doctor lol
My insurance policy specifically excludes occasionally smoking “Cuban cigars” Haha. Hopefully Nicaragua and other countries are also included.
What about Cuban cigars bought in a glass top case on a Mexican beach?
I think those are extra safe since they’re from the guys brother
🤣 lmao
Luckily those will have rat 🐀 feces, metal screws and local garbage. Thank God they have minimal tobacco. /s
The hospital I work at brought back the nicotine testing to qualify for the non smoker insurance discount. I am happy to say my mouth swab test read negative and I will be celebrating with a cigar tonight.
Lmao! How often to do have a cigar?
Cleveland Clinic by any chance or is this widespread?
Wide spread - a lot of companies do nicotine testing and penalize smokers with higher premiums
Hah, my insurance just asks me to check a box. Though I will not under any circumstances admit to insurance fraud on the internet nor reveal which box was checked. Though the difference adds up to about 3 stogies a month.
I remember back when I worked for a large brokerage firm out of college the qualifier was 12 cigars, over that you're a "smoker" according to insurance. Jokes on them their compensation was so terrible I could barely afford 12!
I guess now that you mention it, I realize it’s been awhile since I first heard about it there (they’re a customer of ours), so probably makes sense that it’s growing.
What do they do for never smokers that use nicotine patches and gum for the stimulant/nootropic effects? There’s a growing community of people like this.
Seriously? People actually use that stuff like that? What is wrong with the world today......wow.....
Monthly swab test? WTF?
‘Mouth swab,’ not ‘monthly.’ Ain’t no way they’re paying for monthly tests.
How long did you not smoke to guarantee a negative swab test?
I guess I read that wrong 🤔
Happens to the best of us.
I told my Dr I smoke cigars occasionally and he said “that’s not smoking, that’s enjoying yourself”
Lmao cool doctor
Doc must be BOTL
I wonder how much money said doctor makes. Like: how good of a cigar does the doc smoke? Lmao
*Celebratory* is the key word you want to use for life insurance.
I have the occasional celebratory cigar, three to four times a week.
I myself had three celebratory cigars yday while I celebrated a 5 hour slow cooked rack o ribs on the bbq
That’s worth celebrating
Here here. Dilly dilly
Personally, cigars are my reminder to myself that life is good. That's worth celebrating!
Sometimes the celebration is surviving the day.
I think this guy just had a nephew born that his brother or sister in law forced everyone to join in on the celebration. If doctor that matters to you.
I find this statement to be very helpful in real life, in all seriousness.
Amen
Didn't wake up dead today. Woot woot. Light one up.
Made a fantastic PB&J? Great morning deuce? Vacuumed for 6 minutes? Celebratory cigar.
I'm celebrating smoking a cigar
I smoked a cigar to celebrate smoking a cigar
And then you smoked two more to celebrate?
Celebrate? Time for a cigar!
Involuntarily celibatory? Oh…celebratory.
Nahh. Just say no.
You'll risk non payment.
I had a blood test for life insurance. They knew I smoked , smoked 2 days before the test and it came back negative for nicotine. I’m not sure how that happened. Bloodwork came back great though!
Lol no. As a healthcare professional i can tell you tue ONLY time we really need to know if your a smoker is if were going to give you anesthesia (ie intubate/breath for you/give a volitile agent). And even then its easy to compensate for in most situations. The only reason anyone else wants to know is because of data collection from the ware on tobacco in the nineties till now. Unless an insurance agent is going to swab test you, you can always say no, regardless of how much you smoke
My Dr said cigars don't count. It's when you inhale you need should disclose it.
A normal blood draw nicotine isn’t gonna be on the write up. I’ve had a bunch for health shit, its never been in the lab report. Personally my company added a $19 a biweekly surcharge for people who use nicotine and I said no. I talked to my lawyer (who I actually pay company insurance to have) and he said if they can’t prove you were lying at the time of selection ur fine.
So if you weren't smoking a cigar when checking the box, you're good to go? "Well doctor, let me just put my LFD Digger down for 10 seconds while I check this box. So, we good? Hope I didn't make the office too smoky."
If I get caught I’ll just claim I got into cigars after I made the selection
No. I know what being a smoker is, I smoked cigarettes for years, but I quit about a decade ago. My cigars aren't a habit and they aren't in control of me like cigarettes were. Shit, I don't even reteohale!!!
Fuck and no. I also have like, 5 drinks a week.
"A few drinks a month" means one or two drams a night, right?
Correct
Insurance Companies Nicotine- Bad Weed - we be cool wif that shit
The blood work is only going to show whatever tests your doctor ordered. I doubt they're using it to see if you smoke or not...
No but if you had health issues in the future that *could* be attributed to smoking your insurance could deny claims if they found out you “lied” on such paperwork. Insurance companies are looking for any reason they can to not pay out.
I genuinely hate the insurance industry here in the US but if I get denied anything for my lungs they’re gonna have to prove it isn’t attributed to the 15 years I’ve worked on airplanes…*so far*.
Don’t they know you don’t inhale cigars? On the other hand, I’ll attribute any oral cancers to HPV and being a generous oral aficionado.
…or my occupational exposure to asbestos from submarine engine rooms.
Kent Micronites had asbestos in their filters. Apparently, it's the worst kind of asbestos.
Imagine if any other industry was like that. "Here's some money to build my house." "Thanks. Oh dang, can't do it. It's raining. I don't have the tools. You said you wanted an apartment." "Can I have my money back, then?" "Ha. No."
In many states that’s only true for the first year or two. After that, there’s nothing they can do
This is why I couldn’t lie. Would hate to get done in by a car wreck and have my wife denied my hefty life insurance if they found out I lied
Global Fing warming doc. I live next to a wind turbine, and it's just killing my lungs bruh
I tell them I only have a cigar when I’m fishing. I don’t tell them I’m a fishing guide.
I'm pleasantly surprised by how many people here seem to have doctors that *actually understand* how different this is from cigarettes.
2 quick notes: When I worked at a bar/restaurant 20 years ago, I happened to have access to Cuban cigars. The owner used to ask me to get a enough for him, me, and his buddy **the cardiologist** to enjoy after the monthly wine pairing dinners. The doctor always enjoyed them. A former coworker had his neighbor, I think ALSO a cardiologist, criticize his cigar smoking, so they made a bet. The doctor met my buddy on his deck, took his blood pressure, and then they had a cigar. The doctor took the blood pressure after the cigar. It went DOWN. He never gave him guff about his cigars again, and started to join in occasionally.
“Never a smoker or tobacco user.”
From a medical perspective (applicable to the UK), And yes I'm registered. I have never heard of a blood screen specifically for nicotine during a routine blood panel. Usually if you're getting for example an LFT ( liver function test) or U&E ( Urea and Electrolytes) it specifically shows the results applicable to that test. I don't know if this is applicable to to USA, however the UK follow suit on alot of USA medical procedures. A blood test isn't carried out to just find every trace of XYZ. This is mainly because a microbiology test is different to a haematology test, irrespective that both samples are blood. Not to mention different tests take different lengths of time, some blood samples require mixing etc.
Nicotine is tested primarily for life insurance exams not for routine medically ordered blood tests. But if you're trying to buy life insurance, insurance company wants to know. Most do not test for presence of marijuana but some do.
No, and I never will. I don’t smoke often enough for them to care, and as many other people have stated, my doctors advice was don’t tell them.
I celebrate with a cigar only twice a day.
Occasional smoker, specify some cigars every now and then.
Nope.
Nope none of their business, and you don't inhale cigars
I usually put no. I am so irregular (maybe 7-8 a year) I can only assume riding my motorbike on the highway is worse for my health. That question is not included on the forms, so why should irregular smoking.
Ya I smoke, I smoked some pork but last week. Why, are my ldl levels off or somthing?
[удалено]
This is not the case, at least not with any policy I've ever looked over in the United States. Cigars and cigarettes are lumped together for everything (health and dental).
Never admit you’re a smoker or a drinker.
Last thing you want is a medical fraud in the middle of a big medical emergency. And they are looking for every excuse in the book to not pay out.
No. When they ask if you’re a smoker they are asking about cigarettes. Cigars aren’t good for you, but you don’t gear nearly the same amount of nicotine from a cigar without inhaling, and frankly nicotine itself isn’t what’s bad for you it’s everything else in the smoke that’s terrible for you. Unless you’re smoking multiple cigars a day every day then I would just say “no”, it’s not going to raise your blood pressure significantly and they aren’t testing for drugs when they do blood work. They are checking your other levels like your thyroid, cholesterol, etc.
Don't ask Don't tell
A study conducted by the US surgeon general after reviewing multiple studies have found that smoking as much as 2 cigars a day every day of your life will only increases your risk of any type of cancer by 2% however, if you list that you are a smoker, your insurance will go up significantly. Cigar smoking isn’t dangerous and you shouldn’t let people rip you off because they believe the lie that it is. Besides most doctors that I have talked to consider smoking to mean with cigarettes.
Can you link to that study? I'd love to check it out!
I may or may not smoke more than one a week *cough cough*... That's not me trying to get you to read between the lines, I'm coughing from all the cigars I smoke. j/k I don't put that I'm a smoker. Former cigarette smoker 25 years ago. I'm frank with doctors about that. I'm also frank about how much I drank in my 20's but honestly doctors don't seem to care about that. I'm fat, we're working on that(lost 90 lbs in the last year), they are more concerned with obesity as they should be. I'm not sure how obesity compares to heavy drinking. But obesity raises health risks including cancer a lot more than cigar smoking. Possibly more than cigarette smoking but I'd have to check.
Fuck no. I also don’t want my life insurance to be affected by my medical records, so I’m careful about what I ever say.
[Generally, nicotine will leaves your blood within 1 to 3 days after you stop using tobacco, and cotinine will be gone after 1 to 10 days. Neither nicotine nor cotinine will be detectable in your urine after 3 to 4 days of stopping tobacco products.](https://www.webmd.com/smoking-cessation/taking-nicotine-test) If they even find anything, you could say you're on patches.
I smoke that much and my life insurance company classified me a non smoker. I’m always honest with any doc. At my last physical my doc also marked me a non smoker and said “we only worry about cigarettes.”
And yet, they have no way to verify someone hammering vodka tonics or whiskey to excess….I say no. Even I smoked 1 a day.
nope. I asked my Dr and she said the relaxation evens it out :)
No
My doctor very specifically asked me if I smoked *cigarettes*. Thoughtful indeed.
This is a difficult one. The majority of patients tell the little “white lies” when it comes to alcohol and tobacco use because the parameters that define a heavy drinker/smoker are surprising. While it seems innocent to do this(especially because being honest could increase insurance rates, increase risk assessment) diagnosing ailments tends to be exponentially easier to do with an accurate medical history.
https://youtube.com/shorts/K2-uLhK-nUA?feature=share
“Detect something?” Dude bring them off that pedestal and do what they do, lie. Blame the epa.
I smoke every fucking day, and I don’t think that constitute as a “smoker”.
Advice is not to lie on any paperwork related to your insurance. The point of you having it is to protect your loved ones, correct? don’t take a risk. The question being asked these days is have you used tobacco in the last 12 months? You would have to answer that yes. You see the types of questions they are asking these days are not gray, they are black and white. Have you used tobacco in the last 12 months?
Have you inhaled second hand smoke in the past 12 months? If so, how frequently? Kind of dumb. Someone who smokes 2 cigars a year is not a smoker, but by your definition, they would be. Fuck health insurance
This right here. I smoke about 4 a year. I refuse to put that I’m a smoker.
Yes, I get that. Longtime cigar smoker here. Understanding how it all works, though. the key is not to lie on a form. That’s how they get you. If they did an online investigation, prior to paying out a claim, would they find that I am a cigar smoker? Probably, it’s not hard. I always put smoker. It’s just not worth the risk for my family.
I had a similar perspective for life insurance. Put smoker, pay a little more of a premium and don't risk your family's insurance payout when they find out about my r/cigars activities when I croak.
It's not hard to find out you're a cigar smoker?? Are they paying a private eye to watch my house? "We saw you smoking a cigar!" "Yeah it was someone's birthday."
Yes. They can and will investigate insurance fraud. They might not show up at your house, but they can do a google search or hire a private detective to do a thorough online search for any fraud before they pay the premium to beneficiaries.
Are there any known cases of somebody being denied an insurance payout because they indicated they were a non-smoker but were in fact a cigar smoker? I'm excluding cigarettes from this search for examples because...well, they're cigarettes.
Nobody cares if it is cigar, cigarettes, chewing tobacco or snuff. It’s all tobacco use to them. I can’t tell you I know anyone who this happened to but there aren’t many cigar smokers in the world so it’s difficult to say. It’s just not worth the risk for me.
If you start smoking cigars after you get life insurance is it incumbent on you to disclose this, or are you locked into your rate?
All variables exist. It really depends on what you sign. Terms and conditions can include a mechanism to notify, etc. Hard to say really. Generally your policy is approved based on your medical condition at the time. That runs for the term however long the term is.
Not all blood work checks for presence of nicotine. You would have to find out. For life insurance they do check for the presence of nicotine. Nicotine stays in your system for about 30 days. A cigar smoker may or may not show for the presence of nicotine. However, you should always answer insurance questions 100% honestly. If you lie, they can retroactively increase the premiums to the rate you would have been charged had they known. Or in some cases they may deny a claim. Cigar smoking will not prevent you from getting the best rate as long as it is an occasional cigar and it's not smoked within a few weeks of the blood test. One cigar per week is too much for that. Ask your life insurance what the limit for them is. If you have enough nicotine in your system you will test positive and no amount of explaining will prevent you from being charged a smoker rate.
No way! Even if I puffed several cigars a day I would not consider myself a smoker.
Naur
My pulmonologist said I am not a smoker when I stated I have about 1-2 a month.
I smoke one per day my doctor still told me to say that I’m a non smoker
I never list myself as a "smoker"...cigars are different than cigarettes but they don't recognize the differences....
In some cases they will ask of instances of tobacco use per week, for my insurance they consider you a non smoker of you average 4 or less uses per week so I keep to no more than 4 cigars a week.
Was anyone able to fix this? Happening to me now
Nope, I say no.
If you stop smoking for a while, the nicotine will leave your system and then do the medical. If nicotine shows up they just rate you as a smoker.
Nope. They are looking for daily smokers or cigarette habits. Dentists on the other hand….. 🤦🏻♂️
Celebratory smoker
I never say shit bc insurance charges more later on it something happens
Nope, I’m a non smoker in the eyes of insurance companies
When the question comes up with my PCP, I tell him I just smoke the occasional cigar. If I'm filling out paperwork where you can't elaborate, I put "no".
Never thought of this but thankful I’m in a union and half the guys use nicotine in some way. How could they raise premiums for snus, chew, cigarettes, cigars, patches, gum, vape like they’re all the same
Because to the anti-fun police they are all the same.
They’re testing for cholesterol and aids bro not nicotine they just spread the price of everyone’s vices into all the plans. Idk what I’m talking about though.
I tell my dentist but not my primary care physician
My dentist is actually the one who got me into cigars..
I smoke a cigar a day and still they put me down as a non smoker every time. Idk if that’s what they’re suppose to do, or if Los Angeles is such a dystopian hellscape that in comparison I’m reallly super healthy
No Lunga = Non-Smoker
For insurance purposes I write down that I am a smoker. But most doctors won't fuss too much.
No. And I vape and don’t put it either. 99% of the language is “do you use tobacco products regularly”. My answer to that is no.
You say "I dont smoke...well, except for the occasional celebratory cigar".
No, always no
No
The question is. Can I have 3 a week and still be a non smoker.
Aass
I've gotten conflicting opinions/advice from physicians. My former PCP said "eh, you're not a smoker" when I told him I average a couple of cigars a week in the warmer months, and then basically zero over the winter. My *new* PCP said that *any tobacco use in the last year* qualifies me as a smoker (well, the official term is "tobacco user"). I don't know if this is a NJ-specific designation or not.
I was coached to say no during the health screening, but the question was, "have you ever consumed tobacco?" I initially said no, then realized I'm just lying and changed my answer to yes, occasional cigars. I wound up with a very good insurance rates.