Travel medical insurance provides medical coverage for unforeseen medical conditions, injuries or accidents that may occur while on your trip. Depending on the insurance company, it is also called travel health insurance, international travel insurance, international medical insurance or worldwide medical insurance.

Traveling abroad can be exciting and fulfilling. Many people plan for their foreign vacations and trips months in advance. People may also do research about famous tourist places to visit, what to wear, where to eat, souvenirs and more. However, without proper travel medical insurance, if they were to get sick or injured in a foreign country unexpectedly, medical bills may be significant.

Why buy travel medical insurance?

Many people mistakenly think that their domestic health-insurance plan will cover them abroad as well. The fact is that most domestic health insurance plans, even if they provide any coverage, will limit what they cover, and the expenses would be considered out of network. That means higher copay, deductible, coinsurance and out-of-pocket expenses. In any case, they will not provide the important coverage necessary while traveling. Medicare does not provide any coverage outside the United States.

Travel medical insurance is helpful to anyone traveling abroad including but not limited to vacations, parents or relatives visiting from a foreign country, anyone going on a tour or cruise, international business travelers and students studying abroad.

Travel medical insurance can help you with high medical bills and high out-of-pocket medical expenses. Travel health insurance companies are also experienced in navigating the foreign health system in various parts of the world in different languages.

How much does the travel medical insurance cost?

The cost of travel medical insurance depends on several factors.

Travel medical insurance will cost more for older people than younger people.

As travel medical insurance prices are typically per day, insurance for longer trips will cost more compared to the shorter trips.

The price to include the United States in the coverage area would cost more than excluding because the cost of health care is extremely high in the United States.

There are other factors such as policy maximum, deductible and whether you purchase any additional riders such as hazardous sports coverage, liability coverage and others.

Even though the exact price varies on the above factors and the plan you choose, the plans cost anywhere from about $1 a day to $3 per day.

Travel medical insurance is typically cheaper than trip-cancellation insurance.

What does travel medical insurance cover?

Unlike trip cancellation insurance that is focused on protecting your prepaid, nonrefundable trip costs, travel medical insurance is primarily focused on medical coverage, as the name suggests. You can purchase it for any duration from five days to one year, and some plans even allow renewing for up to three years. Various combinations of medical maximum, ranging from $25,000 to $8,000,000 are available and numerous deductibles, ranging from $0 to $5,000, are available to choose from.

In addition to the medical coverage, travel medical insurance also provides emergency medical evacuation. If you get seriously sick or injured in a remote area where excellent medical facilities are unavailable, it will help make arrangements to evacuate to a hospital where an adequate care can be given.

No one would like to think about passing away while on vacation. However, in such an unfortunate event, travel medical insurance can either pay for local cremation or for sending your remains to your home country. This could be immense value to the family.

Many travel medical insurance plans also provide coverage for trip interruption, accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D), baggage loss and emergency assistance. Dental coverage is typically provided only for an injury to sound natural teeth in an accident.

Most travel health insurance products don't cover hazardous sports such as bungee jumping, skydiving, zip lining, snow skiing and so on. Therefore, you should purchase optional coverage at a higher price if you are planning to engage in any such activities.

Is travel medical insurance mandatory?

Even though purchasing travel medical insurance is not mandatory for many destinations, it is always advisable to do so.

However, if you need a Schengen visa for a trip to Europe, you will need a compliant Schengen visa insurance. If you are traveling to Cuba, Cuba travel insurance is mandatory as well.

Additionally, exchange visitors traveling to the USA must purchase compliant J1 visa insurance that meets U.S. Department of State requirements.

Conclusion

As there are many travel medical insurance plans available, it is best to get instant quotes from various products, compare them side by side and make an immediate purchase online. You can do all of that right here on this website. For any help in selecting the most appropriate travel medical insurance plans, please feel free to contact us during our regular work hours.