![]() If you have health insurance in the U.S., the first step is to check with your insurance company to establish what kind of coverage you have. Your travel health insurance plan can also come in handy when it comes to paying for a medical evacuation, which are at times accompanied by a six-figure price tag. Emergencies are rare but everyone should have a contingency plan. The assistance company will also be available to help with other travel related problems such as legal troubles, lost passports or credit cards, etc. It gives you a vital lifeline in the form of 24/7/365 access to a company that will assure that you're getting appropriate treatment locally, or if necessary arrange an evacuation for you with a creditable evacuation company. The solution? Most travel medical insurance includes a medical assistance benefit, which is critical. ![]() Medical evacuations are often too complicated to arrange yourself in addition to finding a receiving facility, you also need to ensure you are working with a trusted transportation provider. In addition, traveling for medical attention-either to a place with higher quality medical care or to return home where your regular insurance is accepted-can be difficult. Of course, for this to work the hospital must accept foreign credit cards and you must have a sufficient credit limit. Such guarantees are commonly provided by the travel medical insurance provider (in conjunction with assistance providers) but rarely by other types of insurance Without a travel medical plan, you'll have to pay in advance, perhaps as much as tens of thousands of dollars, with your credit card. This guarantee is essentially what allows direct billing between the healthcare provider and the insurance company. 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. Why is Travel Health Insurance so critical for international travel?Īccessing healthcare in some parts of the world can be tricky. This leaves travelers caught in unfortunate situations to absorb what could be prohibitively high costs up front, in order to receive vital medical care. Under employer-sponsored health plans, even if a sudden onset of illness or injury is covered, the services are usually rendered on a pay-and-claim basis. The choices left to you in the absence of a comprehensive travel medical insurance plan might be 1.) Government-sponsored programs (such as Medicare) which categorically do not cover care received in a foreign country or 2.) Employer-sponsored health plans which are limited in their international travel medical insurance and very rarely cover medical evacuation. Many global citizens, leisure travelers and business travelers still do not have robust international health insurance protection while overseas.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |