Insurance

Old Oct 14th, 2007, 07:36 PM
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Insurance

I had been meaning to share regarding what happened when we went to Europe over the summer - I started a trip report but never finished. Life gets busy.

As some may or may not recall - Our family went to Europe for the first time in June/July of 07. We were to travel to Paris, South Africa, then up to Rome and home. The South Africa trip got canceled due to our youngest dd health issues.

We went to Europe, Dr. said it was fine as long as we were within good health care range. Sure enough she did fall ill again and by the time we hit Florence (half way through the trip) she needed medical care.

We went to a Pharmacy and they called a Dr. and he came there and saw her in the back! He was very kind, we paid in cash - he gave us a receipt and we paid for her meds (3 different kinds). She got better again with the medication within a few days. (her immune system was pretty weak and she ended up with a double ear infection and broncitos <sp>).

I got around about a month after we were home to submitting the reciepts to Atena our insurance carrier. They were in Italian, I sent a cover letter along with the claims form. I honestly did not expect to see any of the money. (it was not that much - about 150.00 total).

Wouldn't you know? I DID get a check several weeks ago... so the advice I recieved here was on the money again - not to purchase over sees health insurance after looking at my own.

Just wanted to share
dawnnoelm is offline  
Old Oct 14th, 2007, 07:41 PM
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I don't buy trip insurance for the 'health coverage'... I buy it for the costs associated with delayed/cancelled arrangements, baggage loss, and for medical evacuation (very costly if it ever happens to you).

I hope your daughter has fully recovered by now, and that she and all of you were able to enjoy your vacation.
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Old Oct 14th, 2007, 08:19 PM
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Oh yes Travel - and I should have purchased that insurance - I did not and it was too late by the time I looked into it.

Our dd is doing well now - thank you for asking - it was most bizarre.

We had a lovely vacation over all and we are all so glad we went.

I would love to return to Italy and Switzerland someday.
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Old Oct 15th, 2007, 05:35 AM
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Glad it turned out well, D.
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Old Oct 15th, 2007, 05:53 AM
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Waving hi to Ira - in many ways thanks to you! Your advice was right on target and very appreciated throughout the planning and the unplanning and replanning!
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Old Oct 15th, 2007, 06:18 AM
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Once again, misunderstanding is possible because of indiscriminate ue of the term "trip insurance."

There are 2 kinds of insurance for foreign travel. One is "trip insurance" which not only covers medical emergencies but ALSO refunds for the cost of a package trip or cruise which the person has paid for up front. This is usually QUITE expensive.

The other kind is mainly for medical (often with smaller add-on features like insurance for trip delay,baggage loss, and 24/7 phone assistance). This type will cover on-the-spot med/surgery needs and -- as a previous poster noted -- costs of an evacuation. Example, if you get in car crash or hit by scooter, fall off cliff in Crete mountains, are in body cast & must be flown home etc).

This actually is very reasonable for peace-of-mind, particularly if you are traveling alone. I just priced such a med policy for a 45-year-old friend for 2 weeks in Greece. FOr $50,000 coverage for med insurance and $250,000 coverage for evac., plus all the extras = $34.

If you go to InsureMyTrip.com and check "Quotes" and put in "0" both for Trip Cost line and for Med Limit line -- you will be given a long list of policies you can check out for features u want and make a choice.

I go to Greece for 3-4 weeks per year, some of it spent on my own in islands I haven't been to before. Medicare and my MEdigap policies don't cover things overseas. This type of travel med Policy has cost me $35-48. And i HAVE used the 24/7 phone assistance which solved a huge travel hassle.

I have no stake in this except to prevent any confusion for people who are considering coverage. I hope I have been helpful.
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Old Oct 15th, 2007, 07:14 AM
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So glad to learn that your daughter is doing well. It is also so refreshing to hear a report of an insurance company that does what is expected - certainly not what we normally hear. Kudos to Aetna!
I also want to highlight what you mention about checking your existing policy before purchasing additional coverage. This is especially true for anyone on Medicare, which provides NO coverage outside the US on its traditional plan. For individuals who have left traditional Medicare and opted for one of the "Medicare Advantage" plan this may or may not be true. My Mom was enrolled in one of the Medicare Advantage HMO's, and when she required hospitalization in Switzerland it was all covered - we never even saw a bill. That was also Aetna, BTW.
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Old Oct 17th, 2007, 03:07 AM
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Most travel insurance companies that offer "package" policies allow you to remove the trip cancellation/interruption coverage by showing a 0 trip cost. Doing that will cause you in most cases to lose the ability to cover pre-existing medical conditions. However, if that's not a concern than it's a very cost effective way of providing basic insurance protection for your trip. One thing you should keep in mind is that most travel medical coverages are "secondary" which means that if you have any other medical coverage than you must first submit your claim to them before the travel insurance company will consider their payment of the difference. There are some companies that offer "primary" coverage where they don't care what other insurance you might have.

A good place to find information is at www.quotewright.com. They are the only site that will show you the same plans with and without the trip cancellation coverage. Their "package" tab shows the plans with the trip cost added in and their "travel medical" tab shows the plans with the trip cost shown as 0.
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