Pet insurance system and method

• US 10,255,993 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2018
• Issued: 04/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Trupanion, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Trupanion, Inc.
• Inventors: Marshall, Kerri E., Rawlings, Darryl, Plowman, Katie, Cappelletti, Chris
• Primary Examiner(s): Reyes, Reginald R
• Application Number:
  US16/115,446
• Publication Number:
  US 20180374574A1
• Time in Patent Office: 224 Days
• Field of Search: 705 4
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms

Abstract

A pet insurance system and method are provided. The pet insurance system provides rapid insurance enrollment and quick claim processing. In addition, the pet insurance system and method generates a pet health status identifier that is displayed to users of the system.

Claims

1. A pet medical insurance system, comprising:

a backend component comprising a database system;

one or more user computing devices coupled to the backend component over a communication path, each user computing device being configured for use by an owner of a patient and having a processor, memory and a plurality of lines of computer code;

a computer system at a veterinary practice connected to the backend component over the communication path, the computer system comprising;

a processor;

memory; and

a first practice information management system of the veterinary practice having one or more modules for managing the veterinary practice; and

a client being in communication with the first practice information management system;

a plug-and-play express system connected to the first practice information management system of the computer system and configured for electronic communication with the backend component, wherein the plug-and-play express system retrieves data from the first practice information management system, maps the data according to the database system of the backend component and sends the mapped data to the backend component, thereby limiting the data traffic between the backend component and the first practice information management system, the plug-and-play express system being plug-and-play integratable with a second or more different practice information management systems for connection thereto;

the backend component comprising;

a processor,

memory, and

a plurality of lines of computer code configured to;

communicate with the plug-and-play express system to request data from the first practice information management system, the plug-and-play express system accessing data from the first practice information management system of each veterinary practice,

retrieve via the plug-and-play express system one or more pieces of data about a patient from the first practice information management system, and

store the one or more pieces of data about the patient;

each of the one or more user computing devices further configured to;

communicate with the backend component to request insurance coverage for a particular patient, and

receive an insurance offer from the backend component and allow activation of the insurance offer; and

the backend component further configured to;

receive the request for insurance coverage for the patient, generate an insurance coverage for the patient that is stored in the database when the insurance offer has been activated, and

communicate the insurance coverage for the patient to the veterinary practice computer system through the plug-and-play express system;

the veterinary practice computer system further configured to display the communicated insurance coverage as a patient insurance coverage status to the veterinary practice; and

the backend component further configured to;

programmatically process a claim for one or more treatments and procedures for the particular patient based on the insurance coverage status of the patient, and

electronically pay an amount to the veterinary practice for the one or more provided treatments and procedures at the time of completion of the one or more provided treatments and procedures.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the backend component further comprises a user interface component that is configured to generate a user interface containing information about the patient for the veterinary practice.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the database of the backend component further stores one or more pieces of data about one or more of treatments and procedures for the patient.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the user interface component is configured to generate an insurance claim form.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the backend component further comprises one or more computing resources that host the backend component.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein each of the one or more computing resources is one of a server computer and/or cloud computing resource(s).

7. A method of providing insurance for veterinary treatments or veterinary procedures using a backend component implemented on a computer, comprising:

receiving, by a services component of the backend component from an insurance component used by a veterinary practice that is remote from the backend component, one or more pieces of data about an animal;

storing the one or more pieces of data about the animal in a database of the backend component;

generating, on one or more computing devices capable of being coupled to the backend component, a request for insurance coverage for the animal;

receiving, on the one or more computing devices capable of being coupled to the backend component, an insurance offer from the backend component;

mapping data from a first practice information management system of the veterinary practice to the insurance component by a plug-and-play express system connected to the first practice system and in communication with the backend component, the plug-and-play express system;

receiving data from the first information management practice system;

mapping the data according to the insurance component; and

sending the mapped data to the insurance component, thereby limiting the data traffic between the insurance component and the first practice information management system to create efficient correspondence between the insurance component and the practice system and improve the enrollment and claim processing of the animal, the plug-and-play express system being plug-and-play integratable with a second or more practice information management systems for connection thereto;

enrolling, by an enrollment processing component, the owner of the animal for insurance for the animal upon receipt of the request for the insurance of the animal and issuing the insurance offer for the animal;

programmatically generating, using a claims processing component of the backend component, an eligibility of insurance coverage for the animal when the insurance has been activated by the owner, the eligibility of insurance coverage being stored in the database;

displaying, the eligibility of insurance coverage status for the animal at the veterinary practice; and

programmatically processing, using the claims processing component of the backend component, a claim for a treatment or procedure for the animal, wherein the claim is processed based on the eligibility of insurance coverage status of the animal and paying an amount to the veterinary practice for the treatments or procedures.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising generating a user interface containing information about the animal.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising storing the one or more pieces of data about the animal.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising generating an insurance claim form.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein enrolling the owner of the animal further comprises activating the offer for insurance coverage.

12. A pet insurance system, comprising:

a first veterinary practice information management system of a veterinary practice having an insurance component;

a backend component remote from the first veterinary practice information management comprising a processor, a memory, a database and a plurality of lines of computer code that when executed by the processor causes the backend component to;

communicate with the insurance component used by the first veterinary practice information management system over a communications path, receive from the insurance component over the communications path, one or more pieces of data about an animal and store the one or more pieces of data about the animal in the database;

one or more user computing devices capable of being coupled to the backend component, each computing device comprising a processor, a memory and a plurality of lines of computer code that when executed by the processor causes the one or more user computing devices to;

communicate with the backend component to request insurance coverage for the animal and receive an insurance offer from the backend component;

a computing device at the veterinary practice having a processor, memory and a plurality of lines of computer code in an express system configured to;

connect to the first veterinary practice information management system of the veterinary practice and communicate between the first veterinary practice information management system and the backend component;

the backend component further configured to receive the insurance coverage request for the animal, generate the insurance offer, generate an eligibility of insurance coverage for the animal when the insurance has been activated and displayed at the veterinary practice as patient insurance coverage status and displayed at the user computing device as patient insurance coverage status, programmatically process a claim for one or more treatments or procedures for the animal based on the eligibility of insurance coverage status of the animal and pay an approved claim amount to the veterinary practice for the one or more provided treatments and procedures;

a plug-and-play express system connected to the first veterinary practice information management system of the veterinary practice and configured to communicate with the backend component, the plug-and-play express system configured to receive data from the veterinary practice information management system, map the data according to the insurance component of the backend component and send the mapped data to the backend component, thereby limiting the data traffic between the backend component and the first veterinary practice information management system, the plug-and-play express system being plug-and-play integratable with a second or more different veterinary practice information management systems of the veterinary practice for connection thereto.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the backend component further comprises a user interface component that is configured to generate a user interface containing information about the animal for the veterinary practice.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the backend component is configured to generate an insurance claim.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the user interface component is configured to generate an insurance claim.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the backend component further comprises one or more computing resources that host the backend component.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein each of the one or more computing resources is one of a server computer and/or cloud computing resource(s).

18. The system of claim 12, wherein the one or more user computing devices are configured to allow the owner of the particular animal to activate insurance coverage.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the one or more user computing devices further comprise a browser application executed by the processor to interact with the backend component.