The simple fact is that many international travelers do not have
appropriate insurance protection. Government sponsored health programs
such as Medicare almost never cover care received in a foreign country.
Employer-sponsored plans often limit overseas coverage to emergency
care only (and the burden will be on you to prove it's an emergency).
Emergency medical evacuation is almost never covered. Even if you're
traveling on business, you may have significant gaps in your health
insurance coverage.
Obtaining healthcare in some parts of the world can be tricky. Some
hospitals won't provide any treatment-or won't allow a patient to be
discharged--until the hospital has received a guarantee of payment.
Such guarantees are commonly provided by travel insurers, in
conjunction with assistance providers, but rarely by other insurers or
managed care plans. This means you'll have to pay in advance, perhaps
as much as tens of thousands of dollars, with your credit card. Of
course, for this to work the hospital must accept foreign credit cards
and your card must have a sufficient credit limit.
In addition, remember that leaving your destination-for a place with
higher quality medical care or to return home where your regular
personal injury insurance is accepted--can be difficult. Medical
evacuations are tricky to arrange and there are some air ambulance
providers who should be avoided. Worse, local authorities may have
financial ties to certain evacuation companies. Emergencies are rare
but everyone should have a contingency plan, an international travel
health insurance can save a great plenty of money for you in such case.
To get one, the first step is to check with your insurance company and
establish what kind of coverage you have. If you have difficulty
getting a straight answer, that alone should be a warning. If you don't
have insurance, consider that you might need it more than ever when
traveling-and recognize that the coverage can be cheap - as little as
$1.50 to $4.00 per day. If you take a group policy, or a travel
health insurance - you'll certainly get a good discount.
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