I think you understand that if your parents leave the US they will not be covered by any medical insurance. Medical is not the same as Medicare. You cannot buy supplemental medical insurance.

They need a complete package. I don’t know where to direct you but I know in my area I would call Blue Cross/Blue Shield or maybe Kaiser. Be aware that the coverage price is extremely expensive. In addition, you need to make sure that international medical coverage is included.

Also, if your parents should be away from the US for a period of more than 30 days, they might have problems reinstating their Medical coverage.

Theilian - It just occurred to me that, as an expat living abroad, I am covered by a Cigna International medical ins program. Not sure if this is just for expats, but you might want to contact Cigna by phone or web.

Simone, I'm trying to understand your post. Most people over 64 in the US have Medicare. And they do BUY supplemental insurance that takes over where Medicare leaves off. And some of those supplemental policies will cover them when out of the country.

jody, actually a few years ago I was paying $500 a month with a $5000 deductible. Then Mutual of Omaha decided to drop all individual health policies in Florida. I nearly had a heart attack over that until I found Fortis, which is my current policy for slightly less with half the deductible, and being an international company (based in the Netherlands) I have full coverage in Europe as well.

Check out http://www.totaltravelinsurance.com

Patrick – Most people that are age 65 or over and are insured under the Social Security system are eligible for Medicare. When I say insured, it means they must have worked a certain number of years (a minimum of 10 years) to be able to collect Social Security benefits and be entitled to Medicare.

MediCal is a State program that covers anyone that cannot be insured under Medicare and is under a certain income limit.

My apologies. When you started a sentence with the word "Medical" I interpreted it simply as medical, since the capital M was necessary at the beginning of a sentence. Now I see what it was I couldn't understand. What a horrible term -- Medical spelled the same as the generic word medical. No wonder I was confused.

California has a way of trying to be different. Most other states will call this Medicaid.

Couldn't they at least call it MediCal?

Acutally, it is MediCal. My bad.

They do call it MediCal. I just made a mistake typing. Sorry! I start falling apart after 11:00 pm.

Oh, now i get it. Gladd I never make a misteak typping.

Yikes, Patrick! I'm glad our Medicare kicked in when it did! we had Mutual of Omaha too and I would not have wanted to go thru what you did!

I was reading through the responses for travel insurance and noticed no one mentioned the largest US travel insurance company that I always use, Travel Guard International. They have a wide variety of products from high-end products to low-cost budget insurance products. They even have car rental products that will save you a ton of money than what a car rental agency would offer you. They can be reached at www.TravelGuard.com or (800) 826-1300.

Does banana8peter work for Travel Guard, heavens, am I becoming one of the Fodor forum whistle blowers, TWEET TWEET ;;) Deborah

TravelGuard and CSA are both excellent.

underhill, you posting information here I take as much more creditable than someone who has never posted before and recommends a particular company with phone etc on a thread that has not been active for two months.
A_Traveller's post about www.insuremytrip.com has always been unbiased for those of us trying to decide about travel insurance. That was my point, I think the revival of this thread seemed suspicious in a business that is very competitive and can lead consumers to believe they are buying travel insurance coverage and it may not be the best for their particular needs. Deborah

Also see www.insuremytrip.com. They are not the insurer, but a website that lets you compare coverages and costs of many. They have been recommended in a number of travel magazines and were easy to use when I wanted to cover an expensive cruise trip for my inlaws.