GeoBlue annual policy ?

[Ashland]

I've been looking at the GeoBlue Trekker Choice annual policy.

Would love to hear any thoughts (pro/con) on those that have purchased/used this policy.

[Ashland]

In addition to my above question...now looking also at Travel Insured and Med Jet Assist.

[Ashland]

Should I have a reason to also add Med Jet Assist to a GeoBlue Trekker choice?

 

Hoping someone will try to give me their experience with my questions above.

[klfrodo]

I have Medjet assist.

The limits are that you must be more than 150 miles from home and that you MUST be registered as an inpatient at a "hospital". Not a clinic, not an urgent care clinic, not under the treatment of ie. Doctors Without Borders, but a bona fide Hospital.

[Babr]

The main advantage of MedJet is that you have a voice in the decision to be evacuated to the hospital of your choice.

 

The typical comprehensive travel plan requires the concurrence of the attending physician, the receiving physician, and the insurance company. The decision will be based on medical necessity.

[Ashland]

18 hours ago, Babr said:

The main advantage of MedJet is that you have a voice in the decision to be evacuated to the hospital of your choice.

 

The typical comprehensive travel plan requires the concurrence of the attending physician, the receiving physician, and the insurance company. The decision will be based on medical necessity.

Yes...So GeoBlue would pay medical expenses and get us to the nearest hospital.

 

Med Jet Assist would get us to the hospital of our choice near our home. Correct?

And do both of these plans provide transportation for the healthy spouse?

 

What about the expenses for the remaining one of us if a hotel is needed? 

 

Sorry for all the questions.

[GeezerCouple]

1 hour ago, Ashland said:

Yes...So GeoBlue would pay medical expenses and get us to the nearest hospital.

 

Med Jet Assist would get us to the hospital of our choice near our home. Correct?

And do both of these plans provide transportation for the healthy spouse?

 

What about the expenses for the remaining one of us if a hotel is needed? 

 

Sorry for all the questions.

 

MedJetAssist will allow the spouse (not totally sure about other traveling companion, as we wouldn't have paid attention to this) IF there is room in the Medevac aircraft.  However, IF it's a Covid medevac, with an isolation type of tube, then they have announced there will not be room.

(At least they now include Covid medevacs!)

 

IF someone is being moved in, say, commercial airliner Business class with a medical attendant, they will only pay for coach for the companion.

 

MJA doesn't cover anything other than that medical evacuation... no hotels.

We did have that situation overseas (I was in hospital, DH remained in our hotel), and our regular travel insurance paid everything, including when I was out of hospital but still not well enough to travel.

All meals, all room charges... and we had been in an extra nice room at a very nice 5* hotel (aren't they all!?), and there was never a quibble about the costs.  (If we were not *already* in that type of room at that hotel when I got ill... maybe there would have been some questions, but I have no idea really.)

 

You can get a copy of their terms, which are mostly pretty easy to understand.

 

But it's not only that MJA will take you to the hospital of your choice.  They'll do that even if there is NOT any demonstrated (or even claimed) medical necessity to move the patient.  You could be at a top hospital in London or Zurich or Tokyo, and unless you are too sick to be moved in an air ambulance, then "you say the word", and MJA will arrange the transportation.

 

Note that I can NOT speak at all about GeoBlue, as we have zero experience with that.

 

RM

[Ashland]

On 10/26/2021 at 12:29 PM, GeezerCouple said:

 

MedJetAssist will allow the spouse (not totally sure about other traveling companion, as we wouldn't have paid attention to this) IF there is room in the Medevac aircraft.  However, IF it's a Covid medevac, with an isolation type of tube, then they have announced there will not be room.

(At least they now include Covid medevacs!)

 

IF someone is being moved in, say, commercial airliner Business class with a medical attendant, they will only pay for coach for the companion.

 

MJA doesn't cover anything other than that medical evacuation... no hotels.

We did have that situation overseas (I was in hospital, DH remained in our hotel), and our regular travel insurance paid everything, including when I was out of hospital but still not well enough to travel.

All meals, all room charges... and we had been in an extra nice room at a very nice 5* hotel (aren't they all!?), and there was never a quibble about the costs.  (If we were not *already* in that type of room at that hotel when I got ill... maybe there would have been some questions, but I have no idea really.)

 

You can get a copy of their terms, which are mostly pretty easy to understand.

 

But it's not only that MJA will take you to the hospital of your choice.  They'll do that even if there is NOT any demonstrated (or even claimed) medical necessity to move the patient.  You could be at a top hospital in London or Zurich or Tokyo, and unless you are too sick to be moved in an air ambulance, then "you say the word", and MJA will arrange the transportation.

 

Note that I can NOT speak at all about GeoBlue, as we have zero experience with that.

 

RM

May I ask when you say your "regular travel insurance" which company do your use?

 

Having the benefit of the insurance cover the stay at the hotel would certainly be of interest to us also.

 

I haven't signed us up with GeoBlue yet and am open to any/all suggestions...We're especially interested in an annual policy since we have several trips planned for 2022 and at our age (72/74) insuring them individually is turning out to be quite expensive even though we are very healthy and no pre-existing conditions or such that we would consider them to be.

 

I was hoping you would find and respond to my post as I have always valued your extremely helpful information. Thanks so much for taking the time to respond....very much appreciated.

[GeezerCouple]

2 hours ago, Ashland said:

May I ask when you say your "regular travel insurance" which company do your use?

 

Having the benefit of the insurance cover the stay at the hotel would certainly be of interest to us also.

 

I haven't signed us up with GeoBlue yet and am open to any/all suggestions...We're especially interested in an annual policy since we have several trips planned for 2022 and at our age (72/74) insuring them individually is turning out to be quite expensive even though we are very healthy and no pre-existing conditions or such that we would consider them to be.

 

I was hoping you would find and respond to my post as I have always valued your extremely helpful information. Thanks so much for taking the time to respond....very much appreciated.

 

Happy to help, if I can.

After all, we found out about travel insurance right here on CruiseCritic, back in 2013, before our first major trip besides our honeymoon.

And... DH had a medical emergency less than 2 weeks before our planned departure date, and THANK GOODNESS we had taken out good insurance, because it was a pricey cruise, land trip, and business class tickets (with cash back then, not awards... we learned better very soon!).

Sure, we could "afford" the loss.  After all, everything was long since paid.  But we would have been SO ticked off to lose that money, that we may have decided not to do any more "nice traveling"!  Instead, during all of the medical visits during the next several weeks, we frequently mumbled, 'Thank goodness we won't have to pay again to take this trip later!" 

 

Anyway, we read about Steve, at www.TripInsuranceStore.com

[Heh... I just had a mental flash of that TV ad with "Jake, from State Farm" 😳 ]

 

Anyway, he, and his associates, were SO patient, with so many of my questions... "But what about THIS?" and "Well, what about THAT?" and on and on.

But that ended up with our getting just the right type of insurance for the type of travel we were planning and also the specific concerns/worries that we had - and that could be quite different for others.

The more you explain what type of traveling are doing, and especially what your concerns are (e.g., pre-existing medical conditions; elderly relatives staying at home; etc.), the better they can help.

Nope, I have no affiliation with them except as a satisfied customer.  However, we've had several claims including some large ones, and they've all been paid.

 

TIS helped us select Travel Insured, with a specific policy that works for us.  We need coverage for pre-existing conditions, and we also want to be able to Cancel For Any Reason [CFAR] and that costs extra, but it's what works for us, and some other specific needs.  Medical coverage is obviously important; I consider that almost a "given".

(We've not used annual coverage because there is at least one reason why it could leave us high and dry later in the "year", but that wouldn't be the same for everyone.)

 

And then we also get MedJetAssist, an annual policy.  Our concern was, what if we are taken to a "local hospital" overseas and the insurer considers the quality to be "adequate"?  WE may not think it's acceptable!  So rather than worry about needing to argue with bean counters or local medical staff, WE want to be able to decide to be taken to a hospital of our choice (assuming we are stable enough for an air ambulance situation).

 

Also, TIS will help with any claims if help is needed.  We never had any nonsense from Travel Insured, but it's good to know that TIS is standing behind us just in case.

 

If you aren't already familiar with travel insurance types, then looking over plan summaries might be helpful to get an idea of "what's out there", but don't rely on those in choosing.  There is a LOT of fine print, and it can't be captured in those summaries.  You may do better to get help narrowing the choices down.

But in the end, make SURE that you READ THE POLICY.  If you don't understand something, then ask!

Many of the complaints I've heard about insurance are due to misunderstandings about what a policy covers, or how it works.

One big issue:  If you have a medical need to change something, you MUST get physician directions to make a change or cancel a trip, etc.  You can't just declare you were sick.  I read that complaint a lot.  The insurance will pay for the medical visit if you are away from home; that becomes part of the claim. The other one is SAVE RECEIPTS.  If you don't have a receipt, then in a way, you never paid anything.  Obviously, these are so the insurers can try to avoid fraud.

 

We haven't had any claim at all denied, except for the one time we didn't have receipts for the tip for taxi fare. We had receipts for the fare, and should have just asked the driver to write something about the tip.  But that was such a small amount, not a problem.  It was a cheap lesson.

 

Let me know if you have other questions, but I do suggest you call TIS.  Anyone there can help you.

We are each just a few years older than the two of you.

Note:  Some types of coverages need to be started within 10-20 days of the FIRST payment (refundable or not), but all that needs to be "covered" then is that deposit.  You can add more coverage as you make more payments, etc.  The deadlines vary by company or state of residence (as does the types of coverage offered.)

 

(Sorry for the long essay.)

And enjoy your travels!

 

GC

 

 

 

[Hlitner]

We have long been a big fan of the GeoBlue Annual Trekker policy.  But lets be very clear that this is only a Medical/Evacuation policy and does not cover cancelation or interruption issues (a priority for many cruisers).  I have also previously posted that we had a major medical emergency about 3 1/2 years ago (while cruising in Asia) and GeoBlue did reimburse all of our medical bills (on the Golden Princess and at an Osaka hospital) as well as paying $10,000 for medically evacuating DW from Japan back to our home town.  

 

Is GeoBlue perfect?  No insurance is perfect!  But Geoblue does not play any of the pre-existing condition games (an issue with many travel policies) and we found them easy to work with when going through the claims process.   

 

I will again emphasize some very important tips about any medical insurance!  Get the insurance company involved at the earliest possible time (I actually called GeoBlue while DW was being treated in an Osaka hospital) so you establish an active case and claim number.  Keep the insurance company informed about what is happening and get a contact person/case manager so you can have some continuity with your case.  And it is very important to document everything and detailed medical info...even if you must pay to get the copies.  We came back from that Asian trip with over a hundred pages of related documents including a DVD with X-rays and CT Scans.   Insurance claims examiners want to see proof...not hear unsubstantiated tales.  The burden is on you (the claimant) to document everything related to your claim.  So do not leave a hospital without necessary documents/records with the expectation that you can later get all that "stuff."  

 

By the way, speaking of paying for documents it can become necessary.  DW was treated (for days) on the Golden Princess where the physician and staff were terrific and very helpful.  But when we asked for very detailed medical records (before we left the ship) we had to pay over $50 to get copies of everything!  GeoBlue did reimburse us for that cost which was a nice surprise.  But when it comes to getting records do whatever you must do to get copies.

 

Hank

[Ashland]

3 hours ago, Hlitner said:

We have long been a big fan of the GeoBlue Annual Trekker policy.  But lets be very clear that this is only a Medical/Evacuation policy and does not cover cancelation or interruption issues (a priority for many cruisers).  I have also previously posted that we had a major medical emergency about 3 1/2 years ago (while cruising in Asia) and GeoBlue did reimburse all of our medical bills (on the Golden Princess and at an Osaka hospital) as well as paying $10,000 for medically evacuating DW from Japan back to our home town.  

 

Is GeoBlue perfect?  No insurance is perfect!  But Geoblue does not play any of the pre-existing condition games (an issue with many travel policies) and we found them easy to work with when going through the claims process.   

 

I will again emphasize some very important tips about any medical insurance!  Get the insurance company involved at the earliest possible time (I actually called GeoBlue while DW was being treated in an Osaka hospital) so you establish an active case and claim number.  Keep the insurance company informed about what is happening and get a contact person/case manager so you can have some continuity with your case.  And it is very important to document everything and detailed medical info...even if you must pay to get the copies.  We came back from that Asian trip with over a hundred pages of related documents including a DVD with X-rays and CT Scans.   Insurance claims examiners want to see proof...not hear unsubstantiated tales.  The burden is on you (the claimant) to document everything related to your claim.  So do not leave a hospital without necessary documents/records with the expectation that you can later get all that "stuff."  

 

By the way, speaking of paying for documents it can become necessary.  DW was treated (for days) on the Golden Princess where the physician and staff were terrific and very helpful.  But when we asked for very detailed medical records (before we left the ship) we had to pay over $50 to get copies of everything!  GeoBlue did reimburse us for that cost which was a nice surprise.  But when it comes to getting records do whatever you must do to get copies.

 

Hank

Hank so happy to hear from you also. So you only have the GeoBlue Trekker policy and you had to pay all costs upfront yourself they weren't the first payer?. Any reason you didn't feel the need to add MJA? 

We have some very pricey cruises and so would need the cruise ins...yes/no?

 

Please be patient with me as this is all so new. We used to insure each trip but now that's getting a bit pricey.

[Hlitner]

30 minutes ago, Ashland said:

Hank so happy to hear from you also. So you only have the GeoBlue Trekker policy and you had to pay all costs upfront yourself they weren't the first payer?. Any reason you didn't feel the need to add MJA? 

We have some very pricey cruises and so would need the cruise ins...yes/no?

 

Please be patient with me as this is all so new. We used to insure each trip but now that's getting a bit pricey.

In terms of travel insurance we only have the GeoBlue policy.  In addition, our Medicare Aetna Advantage Plan does provide coverage for out of the country Urgent and Emergency care although I do not depend on that coverage.  Since GeoBlue is primary they did not even coordinate our past claim with Aetna.  In addition we have a Chase Sapphire Reserve card which has an included benefit of up to $10,000 per person ($20,000 maximum) for Cancelation and/or Interruption for good cause (this only applies to what was actually charged on the card).  When DW and I had to cut our Asian cruise short (to evacuate DW home) we had about 1 month left on the cruise.  After some negotiation the Chase folks finally sent us a check for $10,000 (trip interruption) which made us nearly whole.  

 

I have long advised both friends and foes (LOL) that insurance is a very personal matter and folks should carefully examine their own needs, wants, and give lots of consideration to their own risk tolerance and financial situation.  For over forty years, DW and I have chosen to essentially self-insure our risk of cancelation/interruption (the Chase card benefit only became a factor about 5 years ago).  We once did a quick calculation and figured that we were over $100,000 ahead because of all the money we have saved by NOT buying expensive trip cancellation insurance.   That $100,000 calculation is based on not having bought insurance for far more then 100 cruises (some over 60 days long) and numerous land trips.  In reality we are probably about $200,000 ahead but I like being conservative.

 

There are annual trip medical policies (such as GeoBlue and Allianz) and also some annual Trip policies that include various cancelation/interruption coverage.  I do think most folks need some help working out the options which is why I have long suggested that talking to a decent trip insurance broker (Steve Dasseos is often mentioned here on CC) .  The advantage of dealing with a broker (as opposed to a specific company or travel agency) is that decent brokers represent multiple companies and should do their best to match the policy/company to the needs of their clients.  For those that prefer to tackle the insurance issue on their own there are some web sites such as insuremytrip.com and squaremouth.com that provide some comparison information.  

 

As to your pricey cruise issue (we also have some pricey bookings) it still is a matter of your personal situation and risk tolerance.  Fully insuring an expensive cruise can be costly and is not a decision many of us take lightly.   Also keep in mind that most annual policies do limit the days of coverage (per trip).  So, for example, the annual Geoblue policy only covers the first 70 days of any trip.  A person taking a longer cruise (some World Cruises are far longer then 70 days) should keep that in mind.

 

Hank 

[Ashland]

4 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

In terms of travel insurance we only have the GeoBlue policy.  In addition, our Medicare Aetna Advantage Plan does provide coverage for out of the country Urgent and Emergency care although I do not depend on that coverage.  Since GeoBlue is primary they did not even coordinate our past claim with Aetna.  In addition we have a Chase Sapphire Reserve card which has an included benefit of up to $10,000 per person ($20,000 maximum) for Cancelation and/or Interruption for good cause (this only applies to what was actually charged on the card).  When DW and I had to cut our Asian cruise short (to evacuate DW home) we had about 1 month left on the cruise.  After some negotiation the Chase folks finally sent us a check for $10,000 (trip interruption) which made us nearly whole.  

 

I have long advised both friends and foes (LOL) that insurance is a very personal matter and folks should carefully examine their own needs, wants, and give lots of consideration to their own risk tolerance and financial situation.  For over forty years, DW and I have chosen to essentially self-insure our risk of cancelation/interruption (the Chase card benefit only became a factor about 5 years ago).  We once did a quick calculation and figured that we were over $100,000 ahead because of all the money we have saved by NOT buying expensive trip cancellation insurance.   That $100,000 calculation is based on not having bought insurance for far more then 100 cruises (some over 60 days long) and numerous land trips.  In reality we are probably about $200,000 ahead but I like being conservative.

 

There are annual trip medical policies (such as GeoBlue and Allianz) and also some annual Trip policies that include various cancelation/interruption coverage.  I do think most folks need some help working out the options which is why I have long suggested that talking to a decent trip insurance broker (Steve Dasseos is often mentioned here on CC) .  The advantage of dealing with a broker (as opposed to a specific company or travel agency) is that decent brokers represent multiple companies and should do their best to match the policy/company to the needs of their clients.  For those that prefer to tackle the insurance issue on their own there are some web sites such as insuremytrip.com and squaremouth.com that provide some comparison information.  

 

As to your pricey cruise issue (we also have some pricey bookings) it still is a matter of your personal situation and risk tolerance.  Fully insuring an expensive cruise can be costly and is not a decision many of us take lightly.   Also keep in mind that most annual policies do limit the days of coverage (per trip).  So, for example, the annual Geoblue policy only covers the first 70 days of any trip.  A person taking a longer cruise (some World Cruises are far longer then 70 days) should keep that in mind.

 

Hank 

Our Medicare doesn't cover out of the US and GeoBlue says medical coverage is limited to 100k this gives me some concern.

[Hlitner]

1 minute ago, Ashland said:

Our Medicare doesn't cover out of the US and GeoBlue says medical coverage is limited to 100k this gives me some concern.

Having spend a lifetime working in the government healthcare insurance world I would not suggest anyone depend on Medicare when out of the country.  While some Advantage plans give some out of the country coverage (such as our Aetna plan) regular Medicare and many Advantage policies give no out of the country coverage (except in two very rare situations).  

 

GeoBlue does drop to $100,000 coverage at age 70 and I will admit to having felt more comfortable when we were in our 60s and had $250,000 of coverage.  Finding reasonable cost annual plans that cover more then $100,000 for we 70+ folks might be very difficult to impossible.  However, one can certainly buy single trip policies that have high limits.  Last year Dec2020, we realized that GeoBlue's Annual policy did not cover COVID (Geoblue has since added COVID back to their coverage) and we live most of the winter in Mexico where we do need to have insurance.  Because of our concern about COVID (keep in mind this was before we had vaccines) we purchased a single trip policy with $1 Million of medical coverage (we never used a penny of that insurance).  That one policy cost us about 4 times the price of the annual GeoBlue Trekker Policy but was money well spent since our risk tolerance was shaky due to our COVID concern.  

 

Only you can determine what best fits your financial situation and level of concern.  A friend of mine likes to talk about "risk tolerance" in terms of the "sleep quotient" which means how much insurance do you need before you can sleep well :).  

 

So the question is will $100,000 be enough to give you a good night's sleep?  While the odds certainly favor not having a medical situation that will exceed $100,000 it can happen.  But consider that the vast majority of cruisers who buy trip insurance simply purchase the policy/waiver sold by their cruise line.  Most of those cruise line policies only have $10,000 - $25,000 of medical coverage which is terribly inadequate.  Folks will pay a lot of money to get Cancel for Any Reason coverage for a few thousand dollars but have little concern about their medical coverage which is much more important in terms of preventing personal bankruptcy.  

 

Hank

[Ashland]

30 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Having spend a lifetime working in the government healthcare insurance world I would not suggest anyone depend on Medicare when out of the country.  While some Advantage plans give some out of the country coverage (such as our Aetna plan) regular Medicare and many Advantage policies give no out of the country coverage (except in two very rare situations).  

 

GeoBlue does drop to $100,000 coverage at age 70 and I will admit to having felt more comfortable when we were in our 60s and had $250,000 of coverage.  Finding reasonable cost annual plans that cover more then $100,000 for we 70+ folks might be very difficult to impossible.  However, one can certainly buy single trip policies that have high limits.  Last year Dec2020, we realized that GeoBlue's Annual policy did not cover COVID (Geoblue has since added COVID back to their coverage) and we live most of the winter in Mexico where we do need to have insurance.  Because of our concern about COVID (keep in mind this was before we had vaccines) we purchased a single trip policy with $1 Million of medical coverage (we never used a penny of that insurance).  That one policy cost us about 4 times the price of the annual GeoBlue Trekker Policy but was money well spent since our risk tolerance was shaky due to our COVID concern.  

 

Only you can determine what best fits your financial situation and level of concern.  A friend of mine likes to talk about "risk tolerance" in terms of the "sleep quotient" which means how much insurance do you need before you can sleep well :).  

 

So the question is will $100,000 be enough to give you a good night's sleep?  While the odds certainly favor not having a medical situation that will exceed $100,000 it can happen.  But consider that the vast majority of cruisers who buy trip insurance simply purchase the policy/waiver sold by their cruise line.  Most of those cruise line policies only have $10,000 - $25,000 of medical coverage which is terribly inadequate.  Folks will pay a lot of money to get Cancel for Any Reason coverage for a few thousand dollars but have little concern about their medical coverage which is much more important in terms of preventing personal bankruptcy.  

 

Hank

Thank you so much Hank.

[emptyhouse]

Hi All, We're about to start the whole travel thing again so I've read this thread with great interest.  Not booked on a cruise until October 2022 but we have several other trips planned before hand...and of course I'd let all of our travel insurance policies expire.  Frankly, I'm much more concerned about medical coverage than I am  about losses based on the trip itself.  H is 68 and I'm 62.  Based on what I have learned here I think the following should cover all of our bases:

 

1. Charge all trip costs to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card.  This covers us up to 20K per trip for those thing not medical.

 

2. Purchase the GeoBlue Annual Trekker policy - we had that in place every year - prior to COVID

 

3. I have an Amex travel policy which covers medical costs up to 100,000 per person//per instance.  They no longer offer this to new customers but I've held on to ours for probably 10 years.  It's running $18/month.  The one time we had to use it the process was easy as they are primary.  Didn't even want info on other insurance and said they would not take it upon themselves to notify our regular carrier.

 

4. Considering a MedJet membership.  That one falls under the 'I would sleep better' heading.  Somewhere in the recesses of my brain I seem to remember MedJet requiring you to be not only hospitalized by the RIGHT kind of hospital but also required that you'd been hospitalized for a certain number of days before they would provide coverage...can anyone here speak to this?

 

I agree with those who say, that while frustrating and irritating, we can afford to lose the cost of a trip.  We've never purchased individual trip insurance thru either a travel agent or the cruise line.  We had a cruise (Oceania) booked for March 2022.  But, payment was due 4 months before sailing date (an extra amount of time is added because the travel agent requires it).  We decided we are not comfortable with this quite yet.  So instead booked a land based trip which is completely cancellable 72 hours before we leave.  That is also under 'I sleep better' heading.

 

 

 

Edited November 23, 2021 by emptyhouse

[GeezerCouple]

1 hour ago, emptyhouse said:

Hi All, We're about to start the whole travel thing again so I've read this thread with great interest.  Not booked on a cruise until October 2022 but we have several other trips planned before hand...and of course I'd let all of our travel insurance policies expire.  Frankly, I'm much more concerned about medical coverage than I am  about losses based on the trip itself.  H is 68 and I'm 62.  Based on what I have learned here I think the following should cover all of our bases:

 

1. Charge all trip costs to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card.  This covers us up to 20K per trip for those thing not medical.

 

2. Purchase the GeoBlue Annual Trekker policy - we had that in place every year - prior to COVID

 

3. I have an Amex travel policy which covers medical costs up to 100,000 per person//per instance.  They no longer offer this to new customers but I've held on to ours for probably 10 years.  It's running $18/month.  The one time we had to use it the process was easy as they are primary.  Didn't even want info on other insurance and said they would not take it upon themselves to notify our regular carrier.

 

4. Considering a MedJet membership.  That one falls under the 'I would sleep better' heading.  Somewhere in the recesses of my brain I seem to remember MedJet requiring you to be not only hospitalized by the RIGHT kind of hospital but also required that you'd been hospitalized for a certain number of days before they would provide coverage...can anyone here speak to this?

 

I agree with those who say, that while frustrating and irritating, we can afford to lose the cost of a trip.  We've never purchased individual trip insurance thru either a travel agent or the cruise line.  We had a cruise (Oceania) booked for March 2022.  But, payment was due 4 months before sailing date (an extra amount of time is added because the travel agent requires it).  We decided we are not comfortable with this quite yet.  So instead booked a land based trip which is completely cancellable 72 hours before we leave.  That is also under 'I sleep better' heading.

 

 

My understanding of MedJetAssist coverage is that one must be admitted as an "inpatient" (not ER, not observation, etc.), but not that there is any required length of time once you are formally admitted.

 

But you should be able to find that in the policy terms and conditions fairly easily.

And also, for peace of mind (that SWAN effect - Sleep Well At Night!), call them to double check.  But don't just call... also make sure you have it in writing somewhere. 

 

We keep the annual policy with MJA, but let it lapse since mid-2020 when that most recent policy ended, for obvious reasons. 😞   We'll get it again when we start traveling again.

We *almost* used them once.  I was in hospital overseas, and at just about the time we were mumbling... "should we call MJA now after all" ... I seemed to start getting better.

We are very glad we didn't call just then.  I did recover, and our regular travel insurance stepped in by covering all sorts of extra costs so that we could at least recover the final part of our trip, even though some of the plans needed to be changed.  (Mostly, I just sat in the sun, and I was able to enjoy a private boat charter around the lake for a day, mostly also just sitting there... but it was absolutely beautiful.  MUCH better than if we had headed home early instead.)

 

Why do you use a travel agency that requires advance payment/penalties that are "worse" than the cruise line would require?

GC

[pcur]

I just got off the phone with AirMed, and confirmed as far as the medical evacuation is concerned, they pay as primary. 

[pcur]

Now, I just got off the phone with GeoBlue and got some clarification on the primary vs secondary.

 

The reason they require the insured to have primary health coverage INSIDE their home country is for pre-existing conditions.  Even though GeoBlue policies cover pre-existing conditions, they want the coverage in place inside the US, but I think it's also to cover them for continuation of medical services when back in the US if GeoBlue provides their services internationally.

 

Outside the home country, they are primary insurance for any of their benefits.

 

Big relief to me, because I am Kaiser/Senior Advantage, and my call to Member Services said that medical services outside the US are covered, but ONLY REIMBURSABLE after I've paid.

[Jersey42]

27 minutes ago, pcur said:

Big relief to me, because I am Kaiser/Senior Advantage, and my call to Member Services said that medical services outside the US are covered, but ONLY REIMBURSABLE after I've paid.

"Primary" does not mean the travel insurance will pay the provider directly, it only means that you can file directly with the travel insurance company, without having to coordinate benefits with your medical insurance such as Kaiser.  Virtually all travel insurance plans are “indemnification” plans (you will be reimbursed – indemnified) after your trip by the insurance company. Travel insurance is not a “pay on behalf of” plan. You don’t just give the medical facility a card. In some cases, a few companies can advance payment to the medical facility, but it’s on a case-by-case basis.

 

@iamtrustworthy from Trip insurance store has a nice explanation:

https://tripinsurancestore.com/how-primary-and-secondary-travel-insurance-medical-coverage-works/

 

That said, GeoBlue has a network of foreign providers.  If you use one of those providers, the medical bills can be sent directly to GeoBlue.  I have not had any experience with this, so I don't know how easy it is to find network providers. Ship medical facilities are not part of this network.

[Hlitner]

22 hours ago, pcur said:

Now, I just got off the phone with GeoBlue and got some clarification on the primary vs secondary.

 

The reason they require the insured to have primary health coverage INSIDE their home country is for pre-existing conditions.  Even though GeoBlue policies cover pre-existing conditions, they want the coverage in place inside the US, but I think it's also to cover them for continuation of medical services when back in the US if GeoBlue provides their services internationally.

 

Outside the home country, they are primary insurance for any of their benefits.

 

Big relief to me, because I am Kaiser/Senior Advantage, and my call to Member Services said that medical services outside the US are covered, but ONLY REIMBURSABLE after I've paid.

Just a mild warning that GeoBlue is often "reimbursable" after you have made full payment out of your own funds.  While GeoBlue can sometimes work out an "assignment" deal if you happen to be in certain facilities, this is not always the case.  When DW was injured in Asia our cruise ship's physician arranged for her to be treated at the major teaching hospital in Osaka, Japan.  This was actually set up through their local Agent in Osaka, Japan.  This hospital (like a large majority of hospitals around the world) did not accept "assignment" through GeoBlue.  Before DW was discharged we had to settle the entire bill (which we did via credit card that had a high credit limit).  Once we returned home it took a couple of weeks for me to put everything together and submit a detailed claim to GeoBlue who did fully reimburse me within 3 weeks.  

 

Hank

 

[Ashland]

On 12/22/2021 at 9:29 AM, Hlitner said:

Just a mild warning that GeoBlue is often "reimbursable" after you have made full payment out of your own funds.  While GeoBlue can sometimes work out an "assignment" deal if you happen to be in certain facilities, this is not always the case.  When DW was injured in Asia our cruise ship's physician arranged for her to be treated at the major teaching hospital in Osaka, Japan.  This was actually set up through their local Agent in Osaka, Japan.  This hospital (like a large majority of hospitals around the world) did not accept "assignment" through GeoBlue.  Before DW was discharged we had to settle the entire bill (which we did via credit card that had a high credit limit).  Once we returned home it took a couple of weeks for me to put everything together and submit a detailed claim to GeoBlue who did fully reimburse me within 3 weeks.  

 

Hank

 

Well this is concerning....Not what I thought at all....What happens if someone doesn't have a high enough limit on their card...then what ?

[Hlitner]

49 minutes ago, Ashland said:

Well this is concerning....Not what I thought at all....What happens if someone doesn't have a high enough limit on their card...then what ?

That would depend on the healthcare facility.  GeoBlue is somewhat unique in that it has enrolled "Network Providers" around the world.  If you happen to be admitted to one of those network providers, they are supposed to accept assignment (direct payment from GeoBlue).   But if you are admitted to a facility that is not a "Network Provider" you would likely be on your own to work out a payment method with the facility.  That is exactly what happened to us in Osaka where the hospital was not a network provider.  GeoBlue does claim to have providers in over 180 countries, but whether you can get to one of those providers in an urgent or emergency situation 

 

You can certainly call GeoBlue and ask what enrolled network providers they have in the places you will visit.  

 

[pcur]

On 12/22/2021 at 9:29 AM, Hlitner said:

Just a mild warning that GeoBlue is often "reimbursable" after you have made full payment out of your own funds.  While GeoBlue can sometimes work out an "assignment" deal if you happen to be in certain facilities, this is not always the case.  When DW was injured in Asia our cruise ship's physician arranged for her to be treated at the major teaching hospital in Osaka, Japan.  This was actually set up through their local Agent in Osaka, Japan.  This hospital (like a large majority of hospitals around the world) did not accept "assignment" through GeoBlue.  Before DW was discharged we had to settle the entire bill (which we did via credit card that had a high credit limit).  Once we returned home it took a couple of weeks for me to put everything together and submit a detailed claim to GeoBlue who did fully reimburse me within 3 weeks.  

 

Hank

 

When I talked the GeoBlue rep, I was referring only to the medical evacuation benefit.

[klfrodo]

3 hours ago, Ashland said:

Well this is concerning....Not what I thought at all....What happens if someone doesn't have a high enough limit on their card...then what ?

It happened to a couple of people just prior to the pandemic. He was hospitalized in Cozumel. They saved his life (had diabetes issue) but they didn't have $14,000 to pay the hospital bill. Of course it wasn't their fault. They felt the hospital was kidnapping them. Anyway, they did a ***** page, they asked for help from family and friends. Eventually a celeb from their hometown helped them out.