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Obtaining Health Insurance for Your Next Trip Abroad
So youre planning the Big Trip to an exotic foreign land. Okay, maybe its not so exotic; maybe its Montréal. But its still foreign and youre pretty sure they dont speak much English up there. Youve got your passport, youve memorized the PIN number for your credit card, and you have the telephone number of the American Embassy where youll be. What about health insurance for your trip? While medical treatment can be complicated overseas, you can take a few pre-emptive steps to ensure that you are covered in the event of an emergency or for any other healthcare you may require. If you already have a health insurance plan, find out if it covers travel outside of the United States. If it does, make sure that you are comfortable with the amount of coverage your plan provides. You can always purchase additional coverage from another supplier. In preparation for your trip, be sure to get the contact information for your plans representative in your country or city of destination. If you do not have a health insurance plan that covers foreign travel, get one! Plans vary from basic (covering medical expenses only) to comprehensive (covering additional expenses such as emergency evacuation and ambulance transport). Ask yourself a few questions about your trip to determine the level of coverage you will require. Will you need a plan that includes air rescue? If you are visiting developed areas like the big European cities, probably not. But if youre trekking through the Australian outback, coverage for air rescue may not be such a bad idea! Other things to consider:
After assessing your needs, choose the type of coverage that will make you feel most secure while youre traveling. In terms of price, short-term policies can cost as little as $5 per day, while annual policies can be found for under $200 per year. Once youre ready to start shopping for a plan, you can find a list of travel insurance companies on the U.S. State Departments medical information page at http://travel.state.gov/medical.html. For the younger set:
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