Cruising after a Kidney Transplant

[lovedisney123]

My daughter want to take a friend on our next cruise. Her friend had a kidney transplant last year. Normally we do not buy travel insurance for our 3 or 4 night cruise, but I am guessing in this case it would be important. Can anyone recommend a travel insurance that would be good for her friend? And how much would travel insurance cost for a 4 night cruise? Thanks!

 

[lanejudy]

You can go to an online comparison site, type in something like "travel insurance comparison" and the most popular ones will be at the top. You can enter the information about the cruise and passengers and get some options. Then I suggest calling to speak with a rep to make sure what you need/want is actually included. You'll likely need coverage for a pre-existing condition, which is best to get within a couple of weeks of making the initial deposit.

I'd also suggest speaking with the child's parent(s) about any concerns.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[SDJEL]

If you do take this child with you, make sure you are comfortable with all of her meds and you know what to watch for. Transplant patients are often on immunosuppressive medications and are at high risk for infections.

 

[Dug720]

If you do take this child with you, make sure you are comfortable with all of her meds and you know what to watch for. Transplant patients are often on immunosuppressive medications and are at high risk for infections.

Also make sure you have a power of attorney for the period of travel if there is an emergency where a decision about medical treatment has to be made and the parents cannot be reached.

 

[lovedisney123]

Thank you! I probably should have said my daughter will be 25 and her friend will be 27. My adult kids still like to vacation with us. Nice thing is now they can pay their own way. Her friend has never been on a cruise and wants to join us (we may be taking other adult friends as well, they have 2 rooms reserved and are inviting other friends). I feel bad for this friend because they are young and just want to do what everyone else does. So I am hoping this works out, but I do think travel insurance is important. I will google and see if I can find anything. If anyone reads this and has traveled after a kidney transplant, I would love to hear any advice or perspectives you have on it. Thanks!

 

[NancyIL]

Thank you! I probably should have said my daughter will be 25 and her friend will be 27. My adult kids still like to vacation with us. Nice thing is now they can pay their own way. Her friend has never been on a cruise and wants to join us (we may be taking other adult friends as well, they have 2 rooms reserved and are inviting other friends). I feel bad for this friend because they are young and just want to do what everyone else does. So I am hoping this works out, but I do think travel insurance is important. I will google and see if I can find anything. If anyone reads this and has traveled after a kidney transplant, I would love to hear any advice or perspectives you have on it. Thanks!

How long ago did they book this cruise? To get a waiver of pre-existing conditions (which your daughter's friend ideally should have) - the insurance needs to be purchased between ~ 14-30 days (depending on the policy) after the first trip payment was made. A few companies have a waiver of pre-existing conditions as long as the insurance is purchased before the final trip payment is made. Look at CSA, Nationwide, and Global Alert.

 

[lovedisney123]

We booked while on board last month and won't be cruising until a year from this week (March 4th 2019). The transplant was done this past October. So it will be almost a year and a half after the surgery that we will be sailing. Thanks for the suggestions, I will look at those companies.

 

[lanejudy]

A pre-existing condition (PEC) waiver often must be purchased within a very short time after initial deposit - and the $250 placeholder is considered a “deposit” (though it sounds like you booked an actual date). Some companies it’s as soon as within 7 days. PEC coverage can be obtained later, but is likely to cost much more.

One key point is that the individual with the PEC may need to prove s/he was well to travel as if the date the insurance is purchased. This girl may need to contact her medical team for documentation just in case.

And one other question to ask the insurance agent is whether separate policies may be needed since I assume she does not live with you. Rules vary by company, but some require separate policies based on residence.

Best of luck to your DD’s friend with the transplant recuperation. Enjoy your cruise!

 

[NancyIL]

A pre-existing condition (PEC) waiver often must be purchased within a very short time after initial deposit - and the $250 placeholder is considered a “deposit” (though it sounds like you booked an actual date). Some companies it’s as soon as within 7 days. PEC coverage can be obtained later, but is likely to cost much more.

One key point is that the individual with the PEC may need to prove s/he was well to travel as if the date the insurance is purchased. This girl may need to contact her medical team for documentation just in case.

And one other question to ask the insurance agent is whether separate policies may be needed since I assume she does not live with you. Rules vary by company, but some require separate policies based on residence.

Best of luck to your DD’s friend with the transplant recuperation. Enjoy your cruise!

An onboard placeholder booking with no specific cruise booked isn't necessarily a “deposit” for purposes of the waiver of pre-existing conditions. It depends on the policy: https://tripinsurancestore.com/initial-trip-deposit-date/

 

[Neptune's Fork]

Also make sure you have a power of attorney for the period of travel if there is an emergency where a decision about medical treatment has to be made and the parents cannot be reached.

True this. Wise suggestion.

 

[lanejudy]

An onboard placeholder booking with no specific cruise booked isn't necessarily a “deposit” for purposes of the waiver of pre-existing conditions. It depends on the policy: https://tripinsurancestore.com/initial-trip-deposit-date/

Thanks! I guess it depends on the policy

 

[lovedisney123]

Well we haven't listed any friends in their rooms yet. Right now, there is just one room with my daughter and her sister and a room for my husband and me. We were going to add names of friends once they were able to commit to going. But this friend does make things more complicated, and I would hate for it to turn into something bad financially (but I also understand the desire to do what everyone else is doing). Thanks for the information. I will suggest to my daughter to have her friend check into this before committing.

 

[NancyIL]

Well we haven't listed any friends in their rooms yet. Right now, there is just one room with my daughter and her sister and a room for my husband and me. We were going to add names of friends once they were able to commit to going. But this friend does make things more complicated, and I would hate for it to turn into something bad financially (but I also understand the desire to do what everyone else is doing). Thanks for the information. I will suggest to my daughter to have her friend check into this before committing.

Has your daughter's friend been booked in a cabin but just not named, or has she not been added to the cruise at all? If the latter, then the deadline to get a waiver of pre-existing conditions isn't figured until a deposit has been paid for her.

 

[lovedisney123]

Has your daughter's friend been booked in a cabin but just not named, or has she not been added to the cruise at all? If the latter, then the deadline to get a waiver of pre-existing conditions isn't figured until a deposit has been paid for her.

We haven't listed any friends yet. We have two rooms, each with two people (my husband and me in one room, my two daughters in the other). We are next to each other. We figured whomever can go, we will add on to these two rooms. No one can commit this far out (except we go on this same cruise every year, but most people don't "get it" as to why we do this. lol). So if we don't add her friend until the fall, then we can have them look into the cruise insurance. By then it would be more known how well the transplant is going (its been 5 months now since the transplant).

 

[LWhitt]

We do travel insurance for my mom when she comes with us. She has had two knee replacements and is in her late 70s. It is important- a friend's mom had a heart attack in Tortola during a Disney excursion and didn't have insurance. It took an act of God to get her back to the States. She should definitely appoint someone as her power of attorney in case... Hopefully she enjoys the trip and cruise

 

[CyndiLouWho]

We haven't listed any friends yet. We have two rooms, each with two people (my husband and me in one room, my two daughters in the other). We are next to each other. We figured whomever can go, we will add on to these two rooms. No one can commit this far out (except we go on this same cruise every year, but most people don't "get it" as to why we do this. lol). So if we don't add her friend until the fall, then we can have them look into the cruise insurance. By then it would be more known how well the transplant is going (its been 5 months now since the transplant).

I would suggest she look into the insurance now. She may not be insurable that close to transplant. Insurance company might want her to be more than 1 year out before they will insure. If she checks now and they won’t cover, she doesn’t get her hopes up too much. If she knows when they’ll cover and when she can plan accordingly. As another poster mentioned, insurance is critical and she should have medical transport covered to make sure she can get back.
One of my college professors was stuck in Puerto Rico for over 6 months as his wife had a stroke while there and insurance didn’t cover medical transport. They had to stay until she recovered enough to fly commercial

 

[lovedisney123]

I would suggest she look into the insurance now. She may not be insurable that close to transplant. Insurance company might want her to be more than 1 year out before they will insure. If she checks now and they won’t cover, she doesn’t get her hopes up too much. If she knows when they’ll cover and when she can plan accordingly. As another poster mentioned, insurance is critical and she should have medical transport covered to make sure she can get back.
One of my college professors was stuck in Puerto Rico for over 6 months as his wife had a stroke while there and insurance didn’t cover medical transport. They had to stay until she recovered enough to fly commercial

Wow that is scary! I twill be a year and 4 months after transplant that we actually sail (but it hasn't been a year yet). I will mention that. I just want her friend to be able to enjoy the same things others are doing. It is such a hard thing to go through a transplant and especially hard when you are in your mid 20s and just off of your parents insurance. It has been a rough year. My daughter has offered to stay in Orlando and just go to parks while we sail, if the cruise does not work out, so we will see.