Anthem Blue Cross - Does NCL accept that insurance?

[ChuckRoastIndy]

Thinking of buying some medical insurance for the trip but didn't know if NCL would accept our Anthem Insurance or not. Anyone have any ideas?

 

Thanks,

[chengkp75]

No cruise line accepts any health insurance. It is cash, charged to your onboard account, and then it is up to you to file with your insurance company.

[packer99]

You need to buy travel insurance to help you pay for any medical costs on board.

[Silver Sweethearts]

Thinking of buying some medical insurance for the trip but didn't know if NCL would accept our Anthem Insurance or not. Anyone have any ideas?

 

Thanks,

 

As a rule, any medical expenses onboard will be charged to your shipboard account, and you are responsible for paying that. You can then file the bills/forms/etc. with your insurance company for reimbursement.

 

Whoops. Sorry chengkp75. You obviously posted while we were typing.

Edited September 11, 2017 by Silver Sweethearts
Answered a question that was already answered.

[njhorseman]

Cruise lines don't accept insurance on board . Any expenses you incur in the ship's medical center will be charged to your on board account and you will be directly responsible for paying those charges. After you return home from your cruise you can file a claim with your insurance company, which will determine what if any reimbursement you are due.

 

Please note that many health insurance policies, as well as Medicare, do not provide coverage when you're outside of the United States. You have to read your policy conditions to determine what you're covered for and where you have coverage.

 

You can purchase medical insurance specifically for your cruise or other travels as part of a package that includes trip cancellation and interruption coverage as well as medical evacuation coverage. In some cases stand-alone travel medical policies are available if you're not interested in trip cancellation coverage.

[cruisinmeme]

I was in the ship clinic with my grandson. I was talking to a lady that got sick at the start of the cruise. This was the day before we were due to get off the ship. Her bill was right at 4,000.00 already. I think a lot of people don't realize they are charged Johnny on the spot and may need several credit cards to get out of hock.

I had the NCL insurance and you have to file your own insurance first. Once it is rejected then you file with the NCL insurance. I am still waiting almost 5 months later for my SIL's insurance to reject.

[garycarla]

...

I had the NCL insurance and you have to file your own insurance first. Once it is rejected then you file with the NCL insurance. I am still waiting almost 5 months later for my SIL's insurance to reject.

 

Just to clarify, it is not exactly NCL insurance - they sell it.

 

Coverage under Parts A, B and C are underwritten by Transamerica Casualty Insurance Company. Services under Part D are provided by On Call International.

More details here > https://www.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise/booksafe

[zqvol]

You need to buy travel insurance to help you pay for any medical costs on board.

 

This is not always true. Our insurance covers us world wide, and would reimburse us for treatment on board

[phoenix1181]

Check with you medical insurer first to find out what they cover. Once you have that answer, you can determine what kind & how much coverage you'll need.

 

We're on Medicare now but my HMO covered the expenses I incurred onboard a few years ago. They covered everything except the bottle of Gatorade and my standard co-pay. I was given documentation with all the correct codes & information to submit to insurance. About a week after sending it in, I received a check for $2400.00. Nice & easy.....

[Loonbeam]

Note that if the bill is necessary and large, the cruise line WILL work with you, knowing that not everyone has a credit card that can take a $10,000 hit or has that much in cash available. You would be expected to sign legal documents stating you are aware of the amount you owe and agree to it however, usually due by a specific date.

[cruisinmeme]

Just to clarify, it is not exactly NCL insurance - they sell it.

 

Coverage under Parts A, B and C are underwritten by Transamerica Casualty Insurance Company. Services under Part D are provided by On Call International.

More details here > https://www.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise/booksafe

 

I should of been more clear. I do know it is not NCL insurance. I have used other companies before also, this trip I just went with NCL insurance they sell. We also buy insurance when we do land travel, even in the states....just feel better about maybe having to cancel once our trip is paid for (example bus trips)

Thanks for the clarification for those that may not know about the insurance.

[Big Feet]

Witch doctor would take that insurance? get it WITCH are these guys really Dr.s

 

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[NMLady]

Thinking of buying some medical insurance for the trip but didn't know if NCL would accept our Anthem Insurance or not. Anyone have any ideas?

 

Thanks,

 

You should be asking your Anthem Insurance if they cover out of country. That is the real question.

 

If they do cover, how much medical coverage, how much medical evacuation coverage. Is it enough?

 

If they do not cover, look at MedJetAssist.com for medical coverage.

 

Nothing is up to NCL since they only billyour seapass account.

[uneamie]

Hmmm....I just bought fairly good trip insurance, not the one NCL offers. I paid extra to make it my "primary insurance" not secondary. This way you do not have to submit to your own health insurance first, get rejected, then submit to the trip insurance. I can submit to the trip insurance first. However, if one has to be medivac-ed off the ship I'd like to know how that is billed? We certainly do not have that much credit on our Visa card to pay for something like that till we are reimbursed.

[njhorseman]

Hmmm....I just bought fairly good trip insurance, not the one NCL offers. I paid extra to make it my "primary insurance" not secondary. This way you do not have to submit to your own health insurance first, get rejected, then submit to the trip insurance. I can submit to the trip insurance first. However, if one has to be medivac-ed off the ship I'd like to know how that is billed? We certainly do not have that much credit on our Visa card to pay for something like that till we are reimbursed.

 

If you're medevaced off the ship by the US Coast Guard there's no charge...it's your tax dollars at work. I can't say how it would work if some other country's military is doing the job. If you're being evacuated while in a port you contact your insurance company first. They will make arrangements to guarantee payment to the company providing the service.

[uneamie]

If you're medevaced off the ship by the US Coast Guard there's no charge...it's your tax dollars at work. I can't say how it would work if some other country's military is doing the job. If you're being evacuated while in a port you contact your insurance company first. They will make arrangements to guarantee payment to the company providing the service.

.....I was under the impression that your trip insurance had to pay for a medivac aboard the ship while at sea. I've heard stories of it costing people hundreds of thousands of dollars. Now I am confused. Our Insurance listed that we were covered for this for up to "one million" dollars.

[chengkp75]

Various governments have taken responsibility for SAR (including medical evac) for given areas of the oceans. If practicable, an evacuation would be made by these government agencies, and it is provided free of charge, as required by law. If, however, the patient or family want a private evacuation from the ship, that is their decision, and their cost. Also know that the Captain, in consultation with the ship's Doctor, and most likely the cruise line's contracted Medical Advisory company, and also any governmental agency flight surgeon, has the final say as to whether a helicopter evac can and will take place, and in dealing with private medevac companies, there may be more chance of it not being allowed, as many of these companies do not have the training to land or winch a patient from a ship at sea.

[Loonbeam]

It's policy based. Some cover it, some do not, some have smaller limits (ours is typical $250K).

 

There are two kinds of medical evac flights. One is off the ship to the nearest possible hospital, the other is from that hospital to the US if you cannot travel commercially.

 

Typically the first are provided by entities like the coast guard and are not charged (and as a side note only the Captain of the ship or equivalent watch officer can request one).

 

 

The second are typically billable, can be quite expensive, and billing practices change according to provider. Had to get someone home on a medical evac from a hospital in Argentina to Chicago for basically an emergency transplant and the bill was $200,000+ point to point (2 choppers and a plane all with medical staff - this is a worst case rush scenario though). Thankfully they did have coverage and the insurance company paid directly. If not they would have been liable for the full amount or the husband would have died.

 

.....I was under the impression that your trip insurance had to pay for a medivac aboard the ship while at sea. I've heard stories of it costing people hundreds of thousands of dollars. Now I am confused. Our Insurance listed that we were covered for this for up to "one million" dollars.

[NMLady]

Hmmm....I just bought fairly good trip insurance, not the one NCL offers. I paid extra to make it my "primary insurance" not secondary. This way you do not have to submit to your own health insurance first, get rejected, then submit to the trip insurance. I can submit to the trip insurance first. However, if one has to be medivac-ed off the ship I'd like to know how that is billed? We certainly do not have that much credit on our Visa card to pay for something like that till we are reimbursed.

 

If you have contacted your insurance carrier first they will work with whoever is doing the evacuation and the insurance company will take care of paying.

 

That was smart of you to make sure your insurance is primary.

[jetskier]

We had a friend that broke her back onboard a ship. They put her off in Antigua. It was $20,000 for the med flight to the "closest US hospital" which was Miami. She lives in Arizona. It was going to cost another $20,000 to get her home. We had to raise $10k through a gofund me as the trip insurance only covered $30k. So read the policies careful as to the amount of the med flight and where they are willing to take you to.

 

Another policy out there is Nationwide Choice. They are the only ones that I am aware of that gives you port protection. If the port is cancelled before the sailing, you get $750pp. If cancelled after you sail or there is a 3 or more hour delay, you get $200pp. The rest of the policy is the same as other travel insurance.

Dave\

[uneamie]

If you have contacted your insurance carrier first they will work with whoever is doing the evacuation and the insurance company will take care of paying.

 

That was smart of you to make sure your insurance is primary.

Thanks....and I don't think a lot of people realize that unless you specify or pay for the option many trip insurance companies are "secondary" and require you to access your own health insurance first even if you know they won't cover it, the trip insurance company wants to know in writing that your own insurance is rejecting the claim...which can take time that you might not have.

[Mistizoom]

Thanks....and I don't think a lot of people realize that unless you specify or pay for the option many trip insurance companies are "secondary" and require you to access your own health insurance first even if you know they won't cover it, the trip insurance company wants to know in writing that your own insurance is rejecting the claim...which can take time that you might not have.

Travel insurance can be fairly complicated, sometimes secondary coverage is actually better than primary, see link at: https://tripinsurancestore.com/how-primary-and-secondary-travel-insurance-medical-coverage-works/

 

And as PP noted most medical evacuation is not to hospital if choice, it is to nearest suitable hospital. You need something like MedJetAssist if you want to be transported somewhere other than where your travel insurance covers. There's a whole board here on CC about travel insurance that had good info.

[Medtech2]

Witch doctor would take that insurance? get it WITCH are these guys really Dr.s

 

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Actually this is somewhat true in that when we filed a claim with Federal BC/BS years ago they would not reimburse as they said we did not have the required documentation to prove the doctor was a "real" doctor! And when I called NCL for documentation they were clueless and said they could not provide that!

 

It was not worth ruining what had been an almost perfect trip to fight it so we just dropped it...

[fshagan]

Travel insurance can be fairly complicated, sometimes secondary coverage is actually better than primary, see link at: https://tripinsurancestore.com/how-primary-and-secondary-travel-insurance-medical-coverage-works/

 

Yep, because trip medical insurance usually doesn't have co-pays and deductibles. If your health insurance covers part of the cost, the amount they don't cover goes to the secondary insurer up to their policy limits. But if the secondary insurer is primary, the amount they DON'T cover because of the premium maximums is still subject to co-pays and deductibles before paying.

 

$300,000 bill, regular insurance primary:

• Regular insurance primary: Pays "reasonable and customary" charges of $100,000 less $5,000 deductible and $1000 co-pays.
  
• Trip insurance secondary with $250,000 coverage: Pays the $100,000 remaining AND the $5,000 deductible and $1,000 in co-pays.
  
• Expense paid in full
  

$300,000 bill, trip insurance primary

• Trip insurance pays policy limit of $250,000
  
• Regular insurance pays remaining $50,000 LESS the $5,000 deductible and $1,000 in co-pays.
  
• You end up paying $6,000
  

It's not always best to make the travel insurance "primary" depending on how your primary medical insurance works.

 

 

 

The other thing to watch for is that some policies may cover costs in selected foreign countries, but often don't cover while "on the high seas" and not in any country. So check specifically for your coverage in the countries you will visit and while "on the high seas" between countries.

 

 

The people with national health insurance, such as Oz's Medicare, may be covered while on the cruise ship traveling from one of their home country's ports to another, but only if the physician billing for the on-board care is a registered provider .... and many are not.

[WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot]

No.