Health insurance: 8 useful tips for travelers and expats
Table of contents
- Find out the specifics of your national health insurance
- Choose an insurance policy depending on the type and duration of the trip
- Think about what risks you would like to be protected against while traveling
- Look for a policy that offers some benefits in addition to medical services
- Choose a policy that offers comprehensive coverage and 24/7 support
- Familiarize yourself with the components of a health insurance policy
- Always keep important information about your health insurance policy with you when you travel
- If an insurance incident happened to you during the trip, carefully save all the information
Are you planning a trip abroad? Check out our article for tips on taking out health insurance and make sure you have sufficient insurance coverage for your safe trip to another country
Obtaining health insurance is a mandatory stage of preparation for any trip, because most national health policies do not provide protection during a stay abroad. Travel insurance also usually offers additional benefits such as trip interruption compensation or medical evacuation.
How to choose an insurance policy that would be perfect for you? 8 useful tips from experienced travelers further.
Find out the specifics of your national health insurance
Most national health policies cover incidents that occur in your country of origin, but usually do not cover international travel. That is, if you need medical assistance during a trip abroad, you will have to pay all the related costs yourself.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the cost of medical evacuation from an isolated region to a hospital where you can receive proper care can exceed $100,000. Therefore, before traveling, contact your insurance agent and ask him in detail about the specifics of your national health insurance.
Choose an insurance policy depending on the type and duration of the trip
Depending on the planned activity, there are different types of trips: tourism, business trip, studying or working abroad, etc. A special policy should be selected for each type of travel. For example, take out travel insurance while on vacation. If you are going abroad to study, you may need an international student health policy. When moving to a permanent place of residence, it is necessary to have a health insurance policy.
Be sure to consider that most insurance documents do not cover extreme sports. If your trip will include hang-gliding, parasailing, rafting, etc., make sure you get extreme travel insurance before you travel.
Also, if you plan to travel often, check whether your policy covers multiple trips.
Current rules for entry, stay, job search, study or treatment in any country of the world for a citizen of any state are collected on the Visit World portal.
Think about what risks you would like to be protected against while traveling
Make a list of the main problems that may arise during your trip. For example, you are worried about the quality of medical services in the country of travel, or you want to have protection in case of illness, or you have decided to protect yourself from emergency situations during the trip. This simple step will help you remember nothing when searching for the perfect policy.
Look for a policy that offers some benefits in addition to medical services
There is a difference between travel and health insurance. However, many travel medical insurance policies also provide additional benefits - compensation in case of trip interruption, delay during the journey, loss of luggage, etc. You can learn more about the differences between the policies at the link.
Choose a policy that offers comprehensive coverage and 24/7 support
It is very important to choose health insurance that has a wide base of hospitals. This will allow you to find a doctor as quickly as possible in an emergency. It is also important that you have 24/7 support under your policy. Additional services are convenient - notifications and warnings about travel, tracking of lost luggage and assistance in case of loss of passport or travel documents.
Familiarize yourself with the components of a health insurance policy
It will examine in detail in which cases you can count on the help of the insurance company and the amount of compensation. If your trip will take place in a region where medical care is not up to your country's standards, having such an important benefit as emergency medical evacuation will be a necessity. It is also worth knowing that most policies do not cover the costs of:
- Scheduled medical examinations.
- Antenatal care, pregnancy care, delivery and postnatal care.
- Medical expenses in connection with an injury received during extreme sports.
- Medical expenses caused by an injury or illness sustained while under the influence of alcohol or drugs that were not prescribed by a doctor.
Always keep important information about your health insurance policy with you when you travel
Take a copy of the policy with you on your trip, preferably several. Keep a copy of your identity document (passport) in your wallet and luggage. Also, keep the contact number of your health insurance provider in your phone and wallet.
If an insurance incident happened to you during the trip, carefully save all the information
Keep every receipt and every piece of paper, including medical records describing your treatment. You will need them to receive compensation.
Therefore, health insurance is an important document that is needed by everyone who plans to travel abroad. You can take out an international health insurance policy from reliable insurance agents on the Visit World portal. The insurance provides emergency medical care, treatment of acute diseases, emergency care, outpatient and inpatient treatment, injuries and burns, evacuation and repatriation, etc.
Products from Visit World for a comfortable trip:
Medical insurance all over the world;
Legal advice from a local specialist on visa and migration issues (to receive the service, select the country of interest and citizenship).
Treatment abroad: do Ukrainians need health insurance in Europe?
Is it necessary to have travel insurance for a trip to Europe? Find out here.
5 important travel insurance services you may need.
Health insurance for traveling abroad: a detailed guide.
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