Health insurance coverage
 

Hello travelers,
We are traveling in Spain And Portugal for 90 days. We are 64 and 68 - basically healthy. However one never knows when a mishap might happen- twisting ankle on a cobblestone street, etc. I have purchased Alianz Travel Insurance- is this enough coverage for medical emergency? Our own policies do not cover us while out of the country

From my experience, the high costs that need coverage would be a potential repatriation and reimbursements for travel costs related to a cancelled vacation (plane flights, possible pre-paid cruise, etc.)

My wife broke her ankle in Italy where emergency room care is free. We then spend the recovery time in France: 6 weeks, with two sessions of putting on and cutting off a cast, daily nurse's visit with injection, weekly blood test to make sure that the blood was not getting too thin, two visits to the orthopedic surgeon, rental of a wheelchair--total: approximately $1000, which I would have considered affordable, although in our case most was reimbursed minus the the expected co-pays. We are not insured for repatriation, which I have read can run in the thousands of dollars. In our case, staying in France, even with a six week rental (not applicable), was a cheaper option.

Worry less about the actual cost of medical care in Europe, but consider insurance to cover repatriation and pre-paid travel costs.

No one can answer your question without knowing the details of the specific policy. However, simple medical insurance is, as Michael says, inadequate. You need evacuation AND repatriation as well. Evacuation gets you to the nearest hospital, repatriation gets you home. I buy mine from Seven Corners.

Our own policies do not cover us while out of the country>

One has Medicare and my gap insurance covers me in Europe - for others going to Europe in Medicare chose a gap insurance company that covers you in Europe (well reimburses your expenses) - I still only pay $122/mo for such gap coverage.

Look at the fine print, but Allianz policies usually cover everything that could possibly arise. They are a highly reputable company, and most travel insurance companies provide assistance abroad in an emergency (help with English translations with doctors) etc. that is useful.

You say you are in good health (no pre-existing conditions) so it is hard to imagine you need to purchase any more insurance. Also rest assured that the last thing -- not the first thing, the last thing -- Europeans doctors or pharmacists will ask if you need medical help is: "Do you have insurance?" You will get high quality medical care and assistance.

Have a great trip!

-Also rest assured that the last thing -- not the first thing, the last thing -- Europeans doctors or pharmacists will ask if you need medical help is: "Do you have insurance?"-

This was not the case when I broke my shoulder in Spain in 2014. I went to the emergency room in a public hospital and they refused to admit me until I produced an insurance card. And of course I did not have it with me (it didn't even occur to me to carry it - lesson learned!) And then once I produced it an hour later, they did not want it, they wanted to give me a bill and then I had to go to a bank and send them a wire transfer.

I doubt that would have happened in Italy because emergency care is essentially free. But it did in Spain, because (at least in my experience) it is not free.

I did have Allianz travel insurance, and they paid the 450 euro emergency room bill (less the deductible) but they did NOT pay for the follow up visits. I had an MRI, more xrays, and two visits in a private hospital and Allianz did not cover them. But it was not very expensive! The private hospital did not give a fig about my insurance, they just wanted my credit card, which I willingly produced.

Allianz also reimbursed me for a flight I could not take because of the injury.

Nanael, because you will be there for so long, you might make sure the insurance covers you for any follow up visits.

Allianz was great, I would definitely recommend that company to anyone.

" the last thing -- Europeans doctors or pharmacists will ask if you need medical help is: "Do you have insurance?" "

Not necessarily true. When I broke my wrist in Switzerland the FIRST thing the hospital in Interlaken asked about was insurance. In Italy I paid an emergency room for non-emergency treatment, although not the Guardia Medica. On my last visit I paid a French doctor. Currently emergency care is free in the UK, but that is likely to change soon.

"One has Medicare and my gap insurance covers me in Europe"

Read the fine print. I think you will find you have lifetime coverage up to $50,000 max, and coverage is at 80%. And not all gap policies cover foreign travel at all. I do not consider $50,000 adequate, and there is no coverage for evacuation or repatriation. Otherwise, I'd like to know what policy you have.

I was injured while in London and I was continually reassured that they would not be charging me for my medical care unless I needed surgery and then it would be minimal. After discussion with the Doctors in London and my Doctors in the USA, it was decided I could fly home and have the needed surgery in the USA. I had Allianz insurance and they covered the cost of the cruise we missed, flight changes, etc. I was very pleased with them and also very pleased with the medical care I got in London.

Emergency room care isn't free in Italy. I've had to take visiting American friends and relatives to the emergency room four times: dog bite, appendicitis, fainting, and suspected heart problem. Twice they were not charged and twice they were. The charges were both times under €100. The other times, I think the staff either didn't know how the procedure or didn't want to be bothered by the paperwork.

"You need evacuation AND repatriation as well. Evacuation gets you to the nearest hospital, repatriation gets you home."

In some policies, repatriation refers to the return of one's remains to one's home. For getting home while alive, some policies use the phrase, "evacuation to the hospital of one's choice." So be sure to read the terms carefully, and if in doubt, make sure you know what you are getting before you purchase!

Even as a European the first thing they wanted to see in Spain was proof of insurance, in my case an EHIC.

Britain will begin charging foreigners for emergency care soon I believe.

Read the small print carefully, check it covers not only the costs of hospital care but the costs of one of you having to extend your stay, cancel flights, or have a special flight home.

Repatriation of a body is complicated and expensive, I have experience of it when my aunt died whist on holiday in Italy. Luckily she was insured and the insurance company were great and dealt with most of the technicalities, as well as the expense. Friends weren't so lucky when their parents were knocked down by a hit and run in Portugal. The mother died, the father spent weeks in hospital. His costs were covered by his EHIC, but getting the mother home, and the father when he was fit enough fell to our friends to organise and finance. Luckily between the siblings it wasn't too much of a burden financially, but the bureaucracy was a strain. I hope it doesn't come to that of course, but it is well worth checking if that is covered.

We live in the U.K. and have worldwide annual multi-trip travel insurance. The amount for medical emergency and repatriation is £10 million (about $15 million).

My brother in law was taken ill while in Columbia, and had a pacemaker fitted in hospital there. The insurance company flew his daughter (fluent in Spanish) out to be with him, and he was accomapnied back to his home in the U.K. by a doctor and nurse. Once the insurance company takes over responsibility for your care, they don't want anything to go wrong.

I know a woman whose husband died while they were in the US. They had no travel insurance, and the cost of repatriation was prohibitive. So she had him cremated there, and smuggled his ashes back to Italy in her luggage. Once there, they had a funeral mass and his ashes were deposited in the family vault.

I hope none of my family feels obligated to repatriate me if I bite the dust abroad.

Every company offers different types of policies. Allianz may be a great company, but the specific policy may or may not cover such things as evacuation, pre-existing conditions, trip cancellation for any reason. You can compare the types of policies offered by different companies at insuremytrip.com

Some types of coverage require that you purchase the insurance within a certain period after paying your first costs of the trip. I believe this is true at least for the policies which cover pre-existing conditions and possibly for those that allow cancellation for any reason.

Alas, I always suspected I lived in paradise and now I know its true. Sorry others have had a different experience of getting health care in Europe, but I don't disbelieve your stories.

However, if the first question asked by European doctors is: Do you have insurance? Then the answer is yes if you have purchased Allianz standard travel insurance coverage, but if you have any doubts after reading your policy, call them and ask what the policy you purchased covers.

Actually, I think the first question I was asked by the Swiss hospital was about my EHIC (or whatever it was called at the time), as I have an English accent. The second question was about my insurance. Same difference. At the time I had group insurance through my employer, which covered the costs, although they paid me and I had to pay the hospital.

We too have world wide permanent travel insurance. Apart from the time DH was taken to hospital after collapsing mid flight, we have never had to use it. Even on that occasion it was the EHIC that covered it all, but it was the first question asked of me, both in the ambulance and at the hospital.

Just check what your policy covers, and if you need help make sure you know how to get in touch with them.

We have (and have had for some years) Travel Medical Protection through American Express. The cost is about $135 every six months for the two of us.

Allianz and a few other travel insurance policies are a FAR cry better than paying the ridiculous and less-than-adequate gap Medicare insurance. Good luck even getting in touch with Medicare if something should happen to you while traveling in Europe.

It depends, of course, on what, exactly, you purchased from Allianz, but it's a very reliable company.

Unfortunately, as far as I can tell, the travel insurance available in the US is (in general) more expensive and less comprehensive than that available in Europe. Especially as you get older. Although I believe that policies bought in Europe are cheaper if they exclude the US, for obvious reasons.