Successive Periods

What Does Successive Periods Mean?

Successive periods refer to multiple hospital confinements within a certain period that are considered one instance of hospitalization when each one is related or due to one medical condition.

Insuranceopedia Explains Successive Periods

In case a policyholder visits a hospital multiple times for the same injury or illness, the insurance company treats each visit as part of a successive period and a continuation of the original medical condition, rather than a new one. Because insurance companies take this into account when providing benefits, it is important for a policyholder to understand how they may affect the amount paid out. Often, a period of time known as a waiting or elimination period must pass before insurers consider benefit periods as separate and not successive periods.