If you're on the fence about travel insurance...

[cariann77]

Really glad that I paid for it after reading this story... Yikes!
Paradise Island Trip Turns to Medical Horror Story
http://www.fox2detroit.com/news/us-and-world-news/103360225-story

 

[MunFam]

Yup...pretty much. We will NEVER, ever travel without it.

 

[Danni75]

And again: getting insurance is good, but you might well be already covered by your credit card or other insurance policies you may have such as home or health insurance.
Verify your personal conditions to avoid paying for something you don't need.

 

[burne99]

My last trip to the USA for my mother and I was a $300 insurance policy. Estimates say my insurer paid out close to $2 million to get mum healthy and get us home. Get insurance. Every time.

 

[Danni75]

Yes, but if you were already covered it is 300 dollars too much...

 

[RRB]

Really glad that I paid for it after reading this story... Yikes!
Paradise Island Trip Turns to Medical Horror Story
http://www.fox2detroit.com/news/us-and-world-news/103360225-story

How would travel insurance help in this situation?

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

Yes, but if you were already covered it is 300 dollars too much...

What price peace of mind? If people feel better paying for something they KNOW will cover them versus potentially having to fight for coverage after the fact? I doubt many homeowner or health insurance policies cover international travel without additional cost/riders. Not everyone has a magical credit card that covers these things either, those are often special cards that carry annual fees,etc...

 

[burne99]

How would travel insurance help in this situation?

Travel insurance would have covered the $5000 to get "in the door" of the private hospital that may not have cut him open and possibly found out what was wrong

 

[burne99]

Yes, but if you were already covered it is 300 dollars too much...

Of course! People should always know what is covered and be informed.
My credit card company limits medical to $1000000. So that would have been an awkward bill to get in the mail...
Knowing the USA can have high medical, I always purchase unlimited coverage and I am very relieved I did.

 

[RRB]

Travel insurance would have covered the $5000 to get "in the door" of the private hospital that may not have cut him open and possibly found out what was wrong

Not trying to be argumentative, just trying to understand travel insurance as well as medical services when not in the US....
1 - does a person's health insurance NOT cover this type of situation in the Bahamas (or other foreign locations)?
2 - the article didn't say that he asked for a better/private facility than where he was taken. When abroad, are you supposed to request a private medical facility instead of public?
3 - when in a foreign country, how would anyone know where to go and not to go?

Thanks

 

[kamik86]

And again: getting insurance is good, but you might well be already covered by your credit card or other insurance policies you may have such as home or health insurance.
Verify your personal conditions to avoid paying for something you don't need.

This. My credit card has insurance for a lot of things. Not everything it doesn't cover me deciding to cancel the trip for anything but medical reasons, death, or the company cancelling. However I'm willing to risk losing the money for the trip on the very rare cases something else would have caused me to not go.

The only one I'm unsure about for my next trip is rental car insurance. I normally don't since my car insurance covers a rental car. However I'm nto sure how that works if I'm renting a car in a foreign country. I'll probably have to call my car insurance and check.

 

[kamik86]

Not trying to be argumentative, just trying to understand travel insurance as well as medical services when not in the US....
1 - does a person's health insurance NOT cover this type of situation in the Bahamas (or other foreign locations)?
2 - the article didn't say that he asked for a better/private facility than where he was taken. When abroad, are you supposed to request a private medical facility instead of public?
3 - when in a foreign country, how would anyone know where to go and not to go?

Thanks

Keeping in mind I didn't read the article:
I'm going to guess that US health insurance would cover at the out of network costs the foreign location. However it would probably be one of the cases where you would have to pay first and then get reimbursed later.

IN a real emergency in a foreign country I would think you would be at the mercy of those nearby (ambulance, the hotel operators etc) helping you find a place so you might not know where to go exactly. I wouldn't even think to look up which medical facilities are better in a new location, partially because I live in a location where we have one hospital that is less then an hour and 1/2 drive away. So the idea of shopping around for a hospital just doesn't cross my mind.

However if I knew there was a better paid facility vs a public one (which the article gives no indication that he did) then yes I would probably pay for the better one if the issue was something serious or where I was very unsure of what was wrong (if I just I broke my arm I probably wouldn't on the idea of how much damage could the not-as-good facility really do there worst case I get it fixed back home)

I do have to wonder if he was in that facility for that length of time and then in the hotel room after why he didn't go home. Was he told he couldn't fly for a number of days? My first thought would be to get me home as soon as I was stable enough if I wasn't in a location where I really trusted the medical care.

 

[ZephyrHawk]

Okay, so, my parents always get travel insurance when they go outside the US. Always. But they booked something of a last minute cruise this last January. It was just the Caribbean, which they've done 100 times before, so they didn't think it was important. Well, guess what happens the one time they cruise without insurance? Yep, my dad got super sick and had to be in the ship's version of "intensive care" for a couple days. They're looking at a boatload of medical bills.

 

[RRB]

Did some checking on the web - looks like BCBS is accepted in the Bahamas and at least 150 foreign countries. You may have to pay for services then ask for reimbursement later and not every single facility accepts it. How about on the ships? Are individual insurance plans accepted for treatment on-board?

 

[MaleficentRN]

Really glad that I paid for it after reading this story... Yikes!
Paradise Island Trip Turns to Medical Horror Story
http://www.fox2detroit.com/news/us-and-world-news/103360225-story

I wonder why the company he was working for didn't cover the expense? And then I'd be getting a lawyer to tell that hospital to stick their bill where the sun don't shine.


Edit: Re read story.

 

[lanejudy]

I'm going to guess that US health insurance would cover at the out of network costs the foreign location. However it would probably be one of the cases where you would have to pay first and then get reimbursed later.

Please don't "guess" it would be covered as out-of-network, pay and submit for reimbursement. There are simply WAY TOO MANY different health/medical insurance policies in the U.S. and all have different terms of coverage. Many will not cover anything out of the country. Some will cover with an out-of-network deductible. Some will cover it in full. I can't stress enough to know your policy.

Did some checking on the web - looks like BCBS is accepted in the Bahamas and at least 150 foreign countries. You may have to pay for services then ask for reimbursement later and not every single facility accepts it. How about on the ships? Are individual insurance plans accepted for treatment on-board?

Correction... your BCBS plan apparently covers those locations. Not all BCBS plans cover medical in foreign countries. Mine does not. Everybody needs to check their own personal plan for details of coverage outside the U.S.


Onboard the ship, no insurance is accepted. You must pay out-of-pocket and submit for reimbursement to whatever policy -- travel, personal medical coverage, etc. And again, reimbursement will depend on whether the policy covers it or not.

Please, folks, be informed about your own coverage and needs.

 

[Danni75]

I am glad that subjects are of interest. Insurance cover is very important but many people do not know what their policies cover or do not cover.

It is important to find out and be in charge. Sometimes adding more cover to your existing policy costs less than an additional travel insurance AND might cover you for several trips.

 

[cheermom2four]

Before we did our first cruise, we had called our insurance company etc and nothing was covered internationally and I have whats considered excellent insurance IF its used in the US. Plus traveling with kids, if my youngest who gets sick so very easily cant travel, I'd rather know I'm covered if I had to cancel. I would rather have that $300 coverage than not having it and needing it.

 

[cariann77]

How would travel insurance help in this situation?

He would have been able to go to the private hospital vs the public if he had the travel insurance. That's what I gathered from the article any way.

 

[hubbard53]

wow. Speaking of travel insurance, I've never purchased it. However, I am spending a week in the bahamas (not DCL) and would like to get travel medical insurance. My credit card only covers trip interruption, not medical.

What do most people use? I just got a quote from MEDEX with $500,000 medical coverage, medical evac, and lost luggage -- for under $60. Now, if I add trip cancellation to the policy, it jumps to almost $1000 (I dont want trip cancellation, jsut medical)

For those that DO purchase travel medical insurance, does this seem reasonable or should I look elsewhere?