Yearly travel policies that cover med and evacuation to your hospital of choice

There is so much to read on this forum, excuse me if I am repeating.

I just started Medicare, and my supplement coverage only provides minimal medical coverage outside of the US. DH and I travel quite a bit since retiring earlier this year, so are interested in purchasing an annual insurance policy rather than insuring each trip. We are looking for medical coverage, but also evacuation coverage that does more than just transport you to the nearest appropriate facility. I do not want to be stuck in a hospital 3,000 miles from home- if I am seriously ill or incapacitated and able to be evacuated I want to be moved to a hospital in my home town.

Does anyone know of any policies that provide both? I know I can purchase the evacuation policy separately, but purchasing two policies is very expensive.

Any guidance would be appreciated!

Not sure you can get what you want in a single policy. You will likely have to purchase your medical insurance based on price and limits....and then also purchase an annual evac policy from Medjetassist! We have met quite a few other cruisers who have this type of duel coverage.

Hank

We also have the MedjetAssist annual evac coverage. If you are a member of AARP, go through it's site for the coverage... you'll get a discount! :)

thanks for the feedback. I will keep hoping someone knows of a dual policy, but...........:(

We get both coverages with a GeoBlue annual policy.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

We get both coverages with a GeoBlue annual policy.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

This is the one paragraph that concerns me:

"Following stabilization, when medically necessary and subject to the Administrator’s prior approval, the Insurer will pay for a medically supervised return to the Insured Person’s permanent residence or, if appropriate, to a health care facility nearer to their permanent residence or for one-way economy airfare to the Insured Person’s point of origin, if necessary. Transportation shall not be considered medically necessary if the physician designated by the Administrator determines that the Insured Person can continue his/her trip or can use the original transportation arrangements that he/she purchased. "

I get concerned/confused about the term "medically necessary". It seems, based on the rest of the paragraph, that if the person is not able to continue their trip, or get home as originally planned, they will be flown to a facility nearer to the permanent residence. Also, what does "nearer" mean? Does that mean back to the US? Does that mean back to your home state? Does that mean back to your hometown?

I guess I need to contact them and discuss. Having worked in the insurance industry for 30 years (albeit not this type of insurance) I know that the devil is in the details (and the fine print:)).

thanks for the heads-up. I will check it out further.

You are right and those words leaver it up to the insurance company to decide what is best for you. There are policies that provide medical evac to the insurers choice of facilities. More $$$ of course.

We get both coverages with a GeoBlue annual policy.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

I just looked at the Geo Blu policy. If you have Medicare you have to be very careful. There are exclusions and it requires a non government primary policy.

This is the one paragraph that concerns me:

 

"Following stabilization, when medically necessary and subject to the Administrator’s prior approval, the Insurer will pay for a medically supervised return to the Insured Person’s permanent residence or, if appropriate, to a health care facility nearer to their permanent residence or for one-way economy airfare to the Insured Person’s point of origin, if necessary. Transportation shall not be considered medically necessary if the physician designated by the Administrator determines that the Insured Person can continue his/her trip or can use the original transportation arrangements that he/she purchased. "

 

I get concerned/confused about the term "medically necessary". It seems, based on the rest of the paragraph, that if the person is not able to continue their trip, or get home as originally planned, they will be flown to a facility nearer to the permanent residence. Also, what does "nearer" mean? Does that mean back to the US? Does that mean back to your home state? Does that mean back to your hometown?

 

I guess I need to contact them and discuss. Having worked in the insurance industry for 30 years (albeit not this type of insurance) I know that the devil is in the details (and the fine print:)).

 

thanks for the heads-up. I will check it out further.

This is the portion of the wording that most concerns you and I feel it's quite clear:

""Following stabilization, when medically necessary and subject to the Administrator’s prior approval, the Insurer will pay for a medically supervised return to the Insured Person’s permanent residence . . "

So, if you have a heart attack they'll (1) get you to immediate care where you'll be treated until you are stabilized and able to travel and (2) you will be taken to home or a hospital near your home that is adequate for your continued care.

Remember that until you are returned home all of your care (and especially that cost) will be the responsibility of the travel insurer. They hate that if there's a fast way to get you home and out of their responsibility. They're insurers -- it's all about the $$$$. They want you home as soon as you do.

This is the portion of the wording that most concerns you and I feel it's quite clear:

 

""Following stabilization, when medically necessary and subject to the Administrator’s prior approval, the Insurer will pay for a medically supervised return to the Insured Person’s permanent residence . . "

 

So, if you have a heart attack they'll (1) get you to immediate care where you'll be treated until you are stabilized and able to travel and (2) you will be taken to home or a hospital near your home that is adequate for your continued care.

 

Remember that until you are returned home all of your care (and especially that cost) will be the responsibility of the travel insurer. They hate that if there's a fast way to get you home and out of their responsibility. They're insurers -- it's all about the $$$$. They want you home as soon as you do.

You have missed an extremely important point in the wording when you say that once you are stabilized and able to travel, they will take you to a hospital near your home.

The policy statement clearly states that ONLY if it is medically necessary will they transport you home. If you are getting good medical care at the medical facility where you were initially taken to, they will not transport you home.

If you want to be transported home because that is where you want to be and not because it is medically necessary, your only option is probably MedJet and those policies are not surprisingly expensive.

DON

The evac issue is much more complex then you can imagine. Lets take a typical example. Say you have a MI (heart attack) on a cruise and are removed from the ship (at the next port) and hospitalized. After 3 or 4 days of treatment, the attending physician says you can be discharged....but should not travel by air for at least 2 weeks! Sounds weird...but actually not very unusual. So the local physician is recommending that you live in a hotel for about 2 weeks before he/she will clear you to travel via air. And lets assume that the insurer's own medical experts share in this assessment. Under this scenario (which is not very unusual) your insurer would likely refuse to evacuate you based on the attending physician's recommendation. And then, after the two weeks in a hotel (wonder who will pay for the hotel) you are cleared to fly on a normal flight! What a mess! At this point you can certainly try to convince your insurer that they should pay the air transport (even though it is technically not a Medical Evacuation).....but your change of success is not great.

Hank

IN addition to Medjetassist you can look at On Call International. While it does not appear that they provide medical insurance they do provide medical evacuation to the hospital of your choice.

A family plan from both, for a year, should be in the $400 range. Not that expensive if you feel you need that coverage.

The evac issue is much more complex then you can imagine. Lets take a typical example. Say you have a MI (heart attack) on a cruise and are removed from the ship (at the next port) and hospitalized. After 3 or 4 days of treatment, the attending physician says you can be discharged....but should not travel by air for at least 2 weeks! Sounds weird...but actually not very unusual. So the local physician is recommending that you live in a hotel for about 2 weeks before he/she will clear you to travel via air. And lets assume that the insurer's own medical experts share in this assessment. Under this scenario (which is not very unusual) your insurer would likely refuse to evacuate you based on the attending physician's recommendation. And then, after the two weeks in a hotel (wonder who will pay for the hotel) you are cleared to fly on a normal flight! What a mess! At this point you can certainly try to convince your insurer that they should pay the air transport (even though it is technically not a Medical Evacuation).....but your change of success is not great.

 

Hank

I agree - there are so many scenarios that could play out. I would not want to pay for the two weeks at a hotel and the regular flight, but at the same time what I am really trying to insure for is a large enough hit to my bank account to cause real issues. Two weeks and a regular flight would be painful, but not life changing. $250,000 for a medical evacuation and/or $250,000 hospital charges for intensive care or the like would be a different story. But I get your point - so many different things could happen.

I agree - there are so many scenarios that could play out. I would not want to pay for the two weeks at a hotel and the regular flight, but at the same time what I am really trying to insure for is a large enough hit to my bank account to cause real issues. Two weeks and a regular flight would be painful, but not life changing. $250,000 for a medical evacuation and/or $250,000 hospital charges for intensive care or the like would be a different story. But I get your point - so many different things could happen.

And we agree with everything you say :). We have long found it amazing that some travelers will spend 7-10% of their trip cost to buy cancellation insurance (which has a limited liability) but pay scant attention to their medical coverage. Many just do not realize that the leading cause of Personal Bankruptcy in the USA are Medical Costs. Nobody ever went bankrupt it they simply lost the payments for a trip not taken.

Hank

I just looked at the Geo Blu policy. If you have Medicare you have to be very careful. There are exclusions and it requires a non government primary policy.

Thought we would mention that GeoBlu does INCLUDE Medicare as one of their excepted primary policies. They specifically EXCLUDE both Medicaid and the VA.

Hank

We also have the MedjetAssist annual evac coverage. If you are a member of AARP, go through it's site for the coverage... you'll get a discount! :)

If you purchase MedJetAssist through http://www.TripInsuranceStore.com you can also get the discount. Just be sure to mention it if they don't ask.

If you purchase MedJetAssist through www.TripInsuranceStore.com you can also get the discount. Just be sure to mention it if they don't ask.

Did not know that, thanks!

most of today...they tell me that the ONLY policy that provides medical coverage AND evacuation from a cruise ship is John Hancock Silver I or Gold I. Blue Cross/Blue Shield Geo Blue does not provide evacuation from the ship...nor does MedJetAssist. We are going to take just the medical portion and evacuation portion and leave the rest to be covered by our credit cards. LuAnn

most of today...they tell me that the ONLY policy that provides medical coverage AND evacuation from a cruise ship is John Hancock Silver I or Gold I. Blue Cross/Blue Shield Geo Blue does not provide evacuation from the ship...nor does MedJetAssist. We are going to take just the medical portion and evacuation portion and leave the rest to be covered by our credit cards. LuAnn

Not sure what you were told, but its not totally accurate. Evacuation from a ship can happen in two basic ways. The most common is that you would leave the ship at a port and be transported to a nearby hospital (via ambulance if necessary). Whether an ambulance transfer or even the cost of health care is covered, depends on your specific insurance. Many US policies (not including Medicare) do include some provision for the reimbursement of emergency care...but you do need to carefully review you own policy and perhaps give them a call to get the exact language.

The other way to be evacuated from a ship is by helicopter...but this is quite rare and reserved for only the most serious medical cases. When this happens the cost of the chopper is usually free to the patient and usually provided by the Coast Guard (of the closest country) or military.

As to GeoBlue....it does cover up to $500,000 of Medical Evacuation costs. Reality is that this high limit is overkill as it is almost impossible to ever exceed $100,000 (usually a lot less) for any evacuation.

Hank

Not sure what you were told, but its not totally accurate. Evacuation from a ship can happen in two basic ways. The most common is that you would leave the ship at a port and be transported to a nearby hospital (via ambulance if necessary). Whether an ambulance transfer or even the cost of health care is covered, depends on your specific insurance. Many US policies (not including Medicare) do include some provision for the reimbursement of emergency care...but you do need to carefully review you own policy and perhaps give them a call to get the exact language.

 

The other way to be evacuated from a ship is by helicopter...but this is quite rare and reserved for only the most serious medical cases. When this happens the cost of the chopper is usually free to the patient and usually provided by the Coast Guard (of the closest country) or military.

 

As to GeoBlue....it does cover up to $500,000 of Medical Evacuation costs. Reality is that this high limit is overkill as it is almost impossible to ever exceed $100,000 (usually a lot less) for any evacuation.

 

Hank

Hank...again, please tell me the exact policies you personally have if you don't mind for your traveling needs....I am totally over whelmed with all your great info.:o

Hank...again, please tell me the exact policies you personally have if you don't mind for your traveling needs....I am totally over whelmed with all your great info.:o

Keep in mind that what we have would have no bearing on your own needs or wants :). That is why each individual should assess their own needs (and risk tolerance) and purchase what works best for them.

In our case, because of our extensive travel schedule (6-7 months a year out of the country) we simply choose to purchase an annual travel med policy (GeoBlue). That annual policy costs about $450 which is the total cost for both DW and myself. When you consider that in 2016 we would have spent over 100 days on cruises plus 2 months in Mexico....that $450 is a pretty reasonable cost. That single policy covered us for all those trips and a few other shorter jaunts. Since my personal pet peeve is to have adequate medical insurance...this is the area on which we focus. Our policy covers $250,000 of medical and $500,000 of Medical Evacuation.

Hank

Keep in mind that what we have would have no bearing on your own needs or wants :). That is why each individual should assess their own needs (and risk tolerance) and purchase what works best for them.

 

In our case, because of our extensive travel schedule (6-7 months a year out of the country) we simply choose to purchase an annual travel med policy (GeoBlue). That annual policy costs about $450 which is the total cost for both DW and myself. When you consider that in 2016 we would have spent over 100 days on cruises plus 2 months in Mexico....that $450 is a pretty reasonable cost. That single policy covered us for all those trips and a few other shorter jaunts. Since my personal pet peeve is to have adequate medical insurance...this is the area on which we focus. Our policy covers $250,000 of medical and $500,000 of Medical Evacuation.

 

Hank

Did/do you just purchase this policy online? Thank you so very much for the info.

Did/do you just purchase this policy online? Thank you so very much for the info.

Yep, you can buy them direct (just Google Geoblue) or go to https://www.geo-blue.com. Their policies are also sold by quite a few third party outfits including some highly recommended here on CC. However, we again want to emphasize that this insurance thing is not a one size fits all deal. You need to carefully assess your own needs. It does seem that a majority of cruisers prefer policies that include some kind of trip cancellation insurance....which Geoblue does not!

Hank

Yep, you can buy them direct (just Google Geoblue) or go to https://www.geo-blue.com. Their policies are also sold by quite a few third party outfits including some highly recommended here on CC. However, we again want to emphasize that this insurance thing is not a one size fits all deal. You need to carefully assess your own needs. It does seem that a majority of cruisers prefer policies that include some kind of trip cancellation insurance....which Geoblue does not!

 

Hank

Yes...I do realize this...Again, many thanks.

Has anyone had problems putting in a claim at Geo Blue?

Linda