More Americans are turning to pet insurance as vet costs climb

Higher veterinary bills are prompting a growing number of Americans to purchase pet insurance, helped by advances in animal medicine that now make once-rare treatments more widely available.

For Amanda Moore of Norwalk, Ohio, the shift became personal when her dog Tasha was diagnosed with mammary cancer. Surgery, chemotherapy and radiation have cost about $20,500 so far.

Moore said Embrace Pet Insurance has reimbursed more than $14,300. Embrace policies are underwritten by American Modern Insurance Group.

She said radiation alone was quoted at roughly $3,000 to $10,000. Tasha was first given about six months to live, but she is doing well more than a year after treatment.

“I would not have been able to afford to do a lot of this myself without having pet insurance,” Moore told Reuters. “It allowed me to make decisions based on what was medically best for Tasha rather than what I could afford.”

About 7 million pets, or more than 4% of U.S. pets, were insured in 2025, according to the North American Pet Health Insurance Association. That was up 9% from the previous year and 76% from five years earlier.

The business is now one of the fastest-growing lines in property and casualty insurance, with premiums projected to climb 17% to $6.4 billion in 2026, according to Tim Zawacki, head of financial institutions research at S&P Global Market Intelligence.

The growth comes as annual veterinary spending averaged about $560 last year, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association, while specialized cancer care, surgery, advanced diagnostics and chronic-condition management can cost thousands of dollars.

Trupanion said its largest individual claim has topped $150,000.

Veterinary-service prices were 4.6% higher in September 2026 than a year earlier, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Veterinarians and insurers alike say rising treatment costs, along with the wider use of advanced testing and therapies, are leading more owners to buy coverage.

Karen Hauer, a veterinarian with more than two decades of experience, said supplies, shipping, employee healthcare and labor all cost more.

“Are some owners delaying or declining treatment because of cost? Absolutely,” she said.

The broader selection of care and specialists, including oncologists, cardiologists and dermatologists, has also helped push expenses higher.

“That sophistication improves outcomes and helps pets live longer, but it also raises the cost,” said Dr. Jen Quammen, president of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Richard Goldstein, global chief medical officer at animal health company Zoetis, said pets are living about 1.5 to 1.7 times longer than they did four decades ago, increasing demand for treatment of chronic conditions and other age-related diseases.

Treatments such as Zoetis’ Apoquel and Cytopoint have broadened options for environmental allergies, which Goldstein said affect up to 15% of dogs.

Zoetis introduced Cytopoint for allergic skin disease in 2016 and later won U.S. approvals for Solensia for cats in 2022 and Librela for dogs in 2023.

Cytopoint injections can cost roughly $50 to $200 per treatment, while monthly Librela injections are estimated at about $65 to $250 depending on dog size, according to pricing guides published by Vety, MarketWatch and SpectrumCare.

Zoetis did not provide its own treatment-cost ranges. Actual prices can vary widely by clinic, pet size, dosage and location.

Veterinary diagnostics company IDEXX Laboratories has rolled out testing tools such as its Cancer Dx screening panel and inVue Dx cytology platform, giving veterinarians faster and more accurate ways to diagnose cancer and other conditions.

Chemotherapy, 3D-printed prosthetics, minimally invasive surgery, wearable health monitors and portable diagnostic equipment are also adding to spending.

Insurers say premiums are increasing because veterinary care has become more expensive.

“Veterinary medicine can do more than ever before, which means there is more care worth financing,” said Katie Seawell, Trupanion’s chief marketing officer.

Trupanion said net subscription pet additions rose nearly 40% in the second quarter from a year earlier.

Embrace Pet Insurance said its average claim climbed 6.9% in the second quarter to $432 from a year earlier, and it reimbursed policyholders $62.9 million during the quarter.

Arizona resident Maribeth Roufus said she was stunned by the bill for her dog Pepita’s herniated disc, which came to about $10,000.

Insurance covered $7,791.02 of Pepita’s $10,038.77 veterinary bill, leaving Roufus with about $2,247.75 out of pocket.

“Because I knew a surgery of this magnitude would be covered by my policy, I just said, save my sweet girl,” she said.