 [ Symptoms ] if i am at high risk for colon cancer but not yet 50 why will not doctors bill a colonoscopy as routine  my brother in law was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer at 46 years old he died last september  my husband is 48 and wants to get a colonoscopy but the procedure is not being billed as routine so we would have to meet our entire deductible before insurance pays anything  what are our options [ Disease ] push the insurance company do not take no as the first answer and ask to talk to the medical director or better yet have your physician request an exemption to the rule a friend of mine wanted a colonoscopy early because her grandmother had colon cancer they refused at first only offering a sigmoidoscopy a cheaper and less  thorough exam they finally okayed the colonoscopy and a pre cancerous lesion was found in a place where the sigmoidoscopy would not have discovered had she waited several more years like the insurance company wanted she would have definitely had colon cancer by that time fight em