Travel insurance?

[Hlitner]

Great thread and should be a "must read" for most cruisers. We worked in the healthcare insurance industry for over 30 years and would not dream of traveling outside the US without some type of decent health and med evac coverage. This is even more important for those on Medicare which will pay zero for services outside the US (with a rare exception for transit travel through Canada). We ourselves carry an annual travel med policy that costs us only $349 a year (total cost for 2) and provides $250,000 or med coverage and $500,000 (this is overkill) coverage. Our policy is effective for the first 70 days of any trip (no limit to the number of trips) for an entire year.

 

As to Trip Cancellation....we prefer to self-insure since our maximum liability is the cost of the trip which we would have spent anyway. Since we do a lot of travel, the cost of cancellation insurance is expensive and we figure we are over $200,000 ahead of the game by having self-insured for many years.

 

When asked, we always tell travelers that their potential liability for medical costs is unlimited...and one should never gamble on the lack of coverage.

 

Hank

[agabbymama]

Not true. I checked with Aetna and they will cover me while I travel. Worst case is I pay up front and then am reimbursed. In fact, my employer has medical coverage specifically tailored for employees stationed outside the USA.

 

Here is a bit from an Aetna web page:

 

What emergency coverage do I have while I am traveling?

We cover emergency care 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – anywhere in the world. Generally speaking, an emergency is a situation when you could reasonably expect that the absence of immediate medical attention would result in serious jeopardy to your health, or if you are a pregnant woman, to the health of your unborn child. This definition may vary based on state regulations.

 

igraf

 

If you ever need it, I certainly hope you find this to be true!

[Tampa Girl]

Hi...Doubt that our insurance would cover the medi-vac...but...the Travelguard does of course cover any flight that is needed to get you to the...nearest...hospital....Maybe I am wrong, and someone please correct me, but even Travelguard is not obligated to fly you to the hospital of your choice, just the closest hospital wherever.

 

I believe Medi-vac will go the distance to get you where you need to go to get the care that you want.

 

The Medi-Vac can be purchased separately and if one travels a lot...you can purchase a policy for the year or pay a high one time fee. If we were to do more cruising and traveling, I would be tempted to buy a one year membership with them.

 

 

We just returned from a trip, carrying Travel Guard Med-Evac one-time insurance. It is exceedingly reasonable. I think ( have since thrown the policy away), that it does provide for transportation to your hospital of choice and then back to the U.S. And it covers 100% of the cost.

[igraf]

Strange that there is so much doubt about medical coverage outside the USA. Here is the Kaiser Permanente policy:

 

"Enjoy peace of mind when you travel, knowing that you are covered for emergency care anywhere in the world. If you become ill or injured while outside of your service area, please call Member Services as soon as possible so we can help coordinate your care."

 

 

It is mostly just the US government sponsored medical plans that are restricted to the USA.

 

 

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you ever need it, I certainly hope you find this to be true!

[Hlitner]

Strange that there is so much doubt about medical coverage outside the USA. Here is the Kaiser Permanente policy:

 

"Enjoy peace of mind when you travel, knowing that you are covered for emergency care anywhere in the world. If you become ill or injured while outside of your service area, please call Member Services as soon as possible so we can help coordinate your care."

 

 

It is mostly just the US government sponsored medical plans that are restricted to the USA.

 

 

igraf

 

Not always so simple. One needs to read the fine print in the plans. While many will "reimburse" the "reasonable out-of-network") costs, subject to co-pays and deductables, this is not always as good as it sounds. In many cases you would have to first pay all the medical bills (before they let you leave a hospital) and later seek reimbursement. Many insurance companies insist you get an itemized copy of all charges in English...which is always not easy. And the insurance company might say that some of your charges are not "reasonable and customary" and refuse to pay that part of your cost.

 

Some of the providers, like the Blues, do actually have recommended providers in foreign countries.....but others have nothing.

 

Hank

[Shmoo here]

Strange that there is so much doubt about medical coverage outside the USA. Here is the Kaiser Permanente policy:

 

"Enjoy peace of mind when you travel, knowing that you are covered for emergency care anywhere in the world. If you become ill or injured while outside of your service area, please call Member Services as soon as possible so we can help coordinate your care."

 

 

It is mostly just the US government sponsored medical plans that are restricted to the USA.

 

 

 

igraf

 

That sounds nice, but not exactly true. We have Kaiser. When BIL got sick onboard, he had to pay out of pocket for seeing the doctor onboard, file a claim with Kaiser, be denied, and then file with his travel insurance. Now, we were on a Hawaii cruise, so, when we got to the islands, he was able to go to a Kaiser clinic there, with only whatever charges he usually pays for doctor visits/pharmacy.

 

Of course, now that we're entering the Medicare arena (even though we're Kaiser), we feel more comfortable getting the travel insurance. Through Kaiser, if you're covered under Medicare, Medicare is your primary, so travel outside the US isn't covered.

[igraf]

I did mention earlier in this thread that in some cases I might have to pay up front and then get reimbursed. One thing going our way is that the cost of medical in the USA is far higher than most anywhere else, so our "reasonable" cost structures should be plenty!

 

There is no recommended provider requirement for foreign emergency care, and I think that the travel insurance company is also going to want readable receipts!

 

Again, why all the doubt? And why do you think that some third party travel insurance company is better than Aetna or Kaiser?

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

 

Not always so simple. One needs to read the fine print in the plans. While many will "reimburse" the "reasonable out-of-network") costs, subject to co-pays and deductables, this is not always as good as it sounds. In many cases you would have to first pay all the medical bills (before they let you leave a hospital) and later seek reimbursement. Many insurance companies insist you get an itemized copy of all charges in English...which is always not easy. And the insurance company might say that some of your charges are not "reasonable and customary" and refuse to pay that part of your cost.

 

Some of the providers, like the Blues, do actually have recommended providers in foreign countries.....but others have nothing.

 

Hank

[Watson's aunt]

hi

 

On my last cruise Nov 8 A pax died the first or second night. later in cruise A pax fell down the stairs and left in abulance, bags oacks and wife with him, another pax has a problem and fell was injured. Another PAx got sick and left the ship. Si tou never know when you need it

 

 

Mary

[Shmoo here]

And it's not necessarily just the actual medical expenses - medical evacuation is really expensive.

[startwin]

Just watched the local news here, an item on someone who drove down across the line to go shopping, and got hit by a drunk driver. No travel insurance. Health costs are now up to $750,000 - only a very tiny portion of that is covered by our provincial health coverage. It's never wise to forego insurance, when travelling out of country, even if it's just a few miles away, and just for a few hours.

[igraf]

Depends on the cruise. Transatlantic, yes. Alaska or Canada/New England with a port stop almost every day, no. If one is going on a risky cruise (e.g. several days out from port and a bad heart condition) then one should check their regular health insurance details regarding medical evacuation from a ship.

 

If your policy does not cover you when you are traveling abroad, then buy travel insurance. If you are already covered while traveling, then you don't need to buy extra insurance. It is as simple as that.

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

And it's not necessarily just the actual medical expenses - medical evacuation is really expensive.

Edited November 21, 2013 by igraf

[Arwen]

We just returned from a trip, carrying Travel Guard Med-Evac one-time insurance. It is exceedingly reasonable. I think ( have since thrown the policy away), that it does provide for transportation to your hospital of choice and then back to the U.S. And it covers 100% of the cost.

 

 

I am the OP...and we have received our quote from Travelguard for the usual cancellation/medical coverage.

 

Thank you for your post...as I have considered purchasing the Travelguard Med-Evac Insurance. We have our own excellent top notch health care coverage (will cover out of the country, too). However, as a retired RN...if anything serious happened to me or my husband, I would want to be flown back to the U.S. or nearest top notch hospital for care. For our upcoming trip, we can take the financial hit if we must cancel for some reason...but I have always feared hubby or me, if a serious emergency popped up, being flown to just the nearest hospital, because the regular travel insurance is only obligated to do just that.