Medicare Age

[Mary49]

Hi folks, does anybody know if you have Medicare would that be enough coverage when you cruise or would suggest buying Carnival's coverage? Thanks for the advice.

[BallFour4]

You question is wide-ranging, and has some gaps regarding supplemental coverage, what state, age, etc.

 

If I were a potential passenger over 65 or traveling with one I'd make sure to buy the additional insurance the day I booked my cruise.

 

.

Edited May 22, 2016 by BallFour4

[thinfool]

Hi folks, does anybody know if you have Medicare would that be enough coverage when you cruise or would suggest buying Carnival's coverage? Thanks for the advice.

 

Medicare coverage stops at any US border.

 

Some medicare supplemental plans have limited coverage outside of the US.

[Essiesmom]

Medicare does not pay anything outside the US (unless perhaps you can get medical care at a US military facility overseas). EM

[E&B]

Not enough, and depending on the medical event, Carnival's may not be enough either. You can get far better coverage for less money buying a policy through insuremytrip dot com.

 

 

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[klfrodo]

Hi folks, does anybody know if you have Medicare would that be enough coverage when you cruise or would suggest buying Carnival's coverage? Thanks for the advice.

 

Generally speaking, Medicare does not have any coverage outside the borders of the US.

Also generally speaking, Carnivals insurance has low coverage ($10,000 max limit)

Benefits to Carnivals coverage? cost is not age dependant, includes Cancel For Any Reason.

 

2 thoughts.

Educate yourself regarding travel insurance.

https://www.smartertravel.com/2013/01/31/travel-insurance-101-what-to-know-before-you-buy/

 

Number 2

Search sites like http://www.tripinsurancestore.com and compare what you need

[riffatsea]

Seniors of medicare age have many many different sorts of health coverage plans.

Our plan covers us for emergency care and urgent care around the world.

What is not covered is evacuation if needed to a USA hospital. I do not buy insurance from Carnival.

I have trip insurance (coverage for flights,luggage etc.) from my credit card.

We have a yearly travel health plan from Geo Blue for extra medical and evacuation etc. because we do more than 1 trip a year.

https://www.geobluetravelinsurance.com/

Your travel needs may be different from ours so you need to research the type of insurance offered.

One place to so that is on a site like:

http://www.insuremytrip.com

which will allow you to compare many different possibilities.

 

[Sparky2]

Not enough, and depending on the medical event, Carnival's may not be enough either. You can get far better coverage for less money buying a policy through insuremytrip dot com.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

 

Our Medigap supplement through USAA covers after $250 deductible with USAA paying 80% and us paying 20%. If we had to be medivaced out of the country it would be very costly.

 

For that reason, we get trip coverage through USAA which is slightly cheaper than same company through Insuremytrip.

[elliair]

Hi folks, does anybody know if you have Medicare would that be enough coverage when you cruise or would suggest buying Carnival's coverage? Thanks for the advice.

 

 

Medicare is not accepted outside of the US. As someone else said buy the insurance the day you booked the cruise. Don't you have a supplemental insurance to go along with Medicare? It covers what Medicare doesn't.

[hbrote]

As many people have reported Medicare will not cover you out of the Country. We ALWAYS have trip insurance and with my wife breaking her ankle in Rhodes, Greece we were saved the $8k in deductibles we had covering her problems when we returned. Best money I have ever spent.

Don't leave home without it.

[Elaine5715]

Seniors of medicare age have many many different sorts of health coverage plans.

Our plan covers us for emergency care and urgent care around the world.

What is not covered is evacuation if needed to a USA hospital. I do not buy insurance from Carnival.

I have trip insurance (coverage for flights,luggage etc.) from my credit card.

We have a yearly travel health plan from Geo Blue for extra medical and evacuation etc. because we do more than 1 trip a year.

https://www.geobluetravelinsurance.com/

Your travel needs may be different from ours so you need to research the type of insurance offered.

One place to so that is on a site like:

http://www.insuremytrip.com

which will allow you to compare many different possibilities.

 

 

Seniors of Medicare age may indeed have additional plans other than traditional Medicare but OP question seemed to be only about traditional Medicare.

[Bluemoon319]

Medicare is not accepted outside of the US. As someone else said buy the insurance the day you booked the cruise. Don't you have a supplemental insurance to go along with Medicare? It covers what Medicare doesn't.

 

Not everyone can get supplemental insurance. I have Medicare, but because I am under 65, I have yet to find one that will accept me. :(

[Mary49]

Not everyone can get supplemental insurance. I have Medicare, but because I am under 65, I have yet to find one that will accept me. :(

 

Thanks Bluemoon for your info. :):)

[Hlitner]

We would add that not all supplemental insurance gives much coverage outside the US, so one needs to carefully check with their supplemental carrier (there are several different supplemental models allowed by the Medicare system).

 

And we would add our usual caution (already mentioned above) that the medical insurance coverage sold by cruise lines (as part of their trip insurance package) is dreadfully inadequate with limits generally no higher then $10,000. There are plenty of other various trip policies (or just travel medical policies) that give much better coverage and limits. So, folks might want to shop around for insurance,,,,if you decide to buy insurance.

 

Hank

[Pjnc]

Hi all

 

Medicare will usually pay for Emergency treatment only outside of the US.

 

That is the reason I always buy travel insurance with at least 250,000 primary medical and 250,000 medical evacuation.

 

pat

murrells inlet, sc

[Hlitner]

Hi all

 

Medicare will usually pay for Emergency treatment only outside of the US.

 

That is the reason I always buy travel insurance with at least 250,000 primary medical and 250,000 medical evacuation.

 

pat

murrells inlet, sc

 

What you say is absolutely NOT TRUE. Medicare does not cover anything (including Emergency Care) outside the USA or its Territories. The only 2 exceptions to that rule are there is coverage if you happen to be transitting Canada on your way to or from Alaska or, you can sometimes get coverage if you have emergency treatment on a cruise ship that is within 5 hours or a US Port (the interpretation of this clause can be interesting).

 

What is true, is that some (not all) Medicare Supplemental Policies (also known as Medigap) may cover some emergency or urgent car delivered outside the USA. But many folks do not have these Medigap policies (which are actually private insurance) and only some of these policies provide the coverage.

 

Hank

[donaldsc]

This is a fact sheet that I found in about 1 minute using Google

 

https://www.medicare.gov/Pubs/pdf/11037.pdf

 

Yet another government document

 

https://www.medicare.gov/people-like-me/outside-us/outside-us.html

 

I can't figure out why people do not do simple Google searches before going onto CC where they may get conflicting and inaccurate information.

 

DON

[Kartgv]

We've always known that Medicare insurance does not cover medical expenses incurred outside of the USA, but didn't realize until today that our Part B coverage DOES. Our Part B coverage is through AARP and we received a 'Healthy Living' newsletter today. Here's what they say:

 

"Whether you're injured in Iceland or have a fall in France, your AARP Medicare Supplement Plan will pay 80 percent of the billed charges for necessary emergency care. You must first meet a $250 deductible for the calendar year. And your plan has a lifetime limit of $50,000 for foreign travel emergencies.

 

In general, foreign care is covered if it:

- Begins during the first 60 days of your trip period

- Is sudden and unexpected

- Is medically necessary

- Is not covered by Medicare, but would have qualified as a Medicare-eligible expense in the U.S.

 

Because Original Medicare does not generally cover you outside the U.S, you are responsible for the other 20 percent of the charges."

So...check your plan to see if it also covers you abroad. You'll still need to pay any medical expenses upfront and then submit forms for reimbursement. We'll still buy extra insurance for trips to most areas outside of the US, but may not, for example, to Canada.

[Hlitner]

We've always known that Medicare insurance does not cover medical expenses incurred outside of the USA, but didn't realize until today that our Part B coverage DOES. Our Part B coverage is through AARP and we received a 'Healthy Living' newsletter today. Here's what they say:

 

"Whether you're injured in Iceland or have a fall in France, your AARP Medicare Supplement Plan will pay 80 percent of the billed charges for necessary emergency care. You must first meet a $250 deductible for the calendar year. And your plan has a lifetime limit of $50,000 for foreign travel emergencies.

 

In general, foreign care is covered if it:

- Begins during the first 60 days of your trip period

- Is sudden and unexpected

- Is medically necessary

- Is not covered by Medicare, but would have qualified as a Medicare-eligible expense in the U.S.

 

Because Original Medicare does not generally cover you outside the U.S, you are responsible for the other 20 percent of the charges."

So...check your plan to see if it also covers you abroad. You'll still need to pay any medical expenses upfront and then submit forms for reimbursement. We'll still buy extra insurance for trips to most areas outside of the US, but may not, for example, to Canada.

 

We have oft discussed the issue regarding Medicare Supplemental Policies which come in various forms (prescribed by regulation). But you might be confusing Part A, Part B, Supplemental Plans and Advantage Plans. In your case, I suspect that your supplemental policy actually includes Part A (hospitalization) along with Part B (medical professionals). Certain (Medicare Approved) supplemental models do include some emergency/urgent care outside the USA (subject to various limitations). But the limitations can be a real killer. The policies do not necessarily pay everything that is billed. And unlike in the USA where many hospitals/physicians agree to accept Medicare payment amounts....outside the USA this is not the case. So, if you are in Country X, and are billed $20,000 for hospitalization, your supplemental policy might only pay $5000 (for example) saying that is their normal payment for that service. You would be responsible for the other $15,000 since the foreign provider is under no obligation to accept the Medicare payment amount as payment in full.

 

Medical Insurance is always a minefield...and International Claims are a worse minefield..and international claims involving Medicare Providers a much more worse minefield :).

 

And to make it even crazier, most Travel Policies or Travel Medical Policies are "secondary" payors. What this means in practice..can be devastating. Say you are hospitalized in Country X and your total bill is $20,000. You would first be totally responsible for that $20,000 and they might not even let you leave the hospital until you settle the bill. Once you get home, you can submit the bills to your Medicare Supplemental Provider...who will likely want a detailed bill (not always easy to get) in English (not always easy to get). You then might wait several months (or longer) until they review your claim and pay you something...which will be a lot less then the $20,000. At that point, you can submit the medical bills, along with the Medicare Supplemental settlement (the Primary Payor) to your travel medical provider...and again wait months until they decide how much they will pay.

Meanwhile, you are out all that money.

 

And it gets worse if they reject some or all of your claim and you must appeal...as this process can take many more months. We are skeptical that your plan would simply pay 80% of "billed charges" without subjecting those "charges" to their own standards for "reasonable charges."

 

Hank

Edited June 21, 2016 by Hlitner

[LDVinNC]

Thanks for the excellent explanation, Hank. I think you really show why trip insurance with primary medical coverage is pretty much essential for trips out of the USA for those of us in Medicare. I had originally thought our Plan F medigap policy was adequate, but its limitations could cause us lots of headaches should one of us need medical care in a foreign location.

[Hlitner]

Thanks for the excellent explanation, Hank. I think you really show why trip insurance with primary medical coverage is pretty much essential for trips out of the USA for those of us in Medicare. I had originally thought our Plan F medigap policy was adequate, but its limitations could cause us lots of headaches should one of us need medical care in a foreign location.

 

We will admit to having an annual trip medical policy (covers the first 70 days of every trip we take within the policy year) which is "secondary" to our Medicare Advantage Plan. While primary coverage would be a better option, it is also much more expensive (if you can even find it). The major downside to secondary coverage is the delay in resolving a claim...since the secondary provider cannot possibly process your claim until they know exactly what willl be covered/paid by your primary provider. In the business this is called "TPL" or Third Party Liability! In most cases it will all get resolved in time...but many folks may find they are out the cost of all the medical bills for many months.

 

How the claims get processed is interesting. A good secondary policy will coordinate their benefits directly with your primary insurance. But some policies will put the burden on the patient which means you must file with the primary insurer and then wait for the claim resolution (be it payment or rejection) before having your secondary policy process the claim. Some insurance companies do go out of their way to help the claimants..and others will drag out the processing as long as possible!

 

Dealing with insurance companies is often akin to walking through a minefield with large heavy boots :(.

Hank