Sorry, Question (again) about Medical Evacuation Insurance

We use Travel Guard for our travel insurance, including medical evac.

Ditto. Click on the "view all plans" button to find the medevac policy at their website.

I have not done independent research on this topic (though I really should), but others have stated here that some medical evacuation policies cover medically-necessary airlifts to a qualified facility of their choice, not yours, whereas MedJetAssist will get you back home (assuming necessity) even if there are closer qualified options. If the distinction matters to you, do verify exactly what the evacuation policies of the various providers provide.

My mother became seriously ill (ICU-level ill) during a trip we took to Greece. She was hospitalized for about two weeks and needed another week of recovery before she was fit to travel home. I had to extend my vacation for two weeks to stay with her. Fortunately, I was able to do so; not everyone is that lucky. Solo travelers might also want to consider the disadvantage of a hospitalization in a foreign country. Even for an English-speaker in the US, being in the hospital without a family member to serve as your advocate is a bit risky.

Appreciate the heads up about Travel Guard and I just went to their website. They seem to have a per trip but not annual policy, but still worth checking out. Unfortunately, as a solo traveler (although sometimes on a tour) I have little choice about hospitalization. To quote an old tautological truth: It is what it is.

There is another company called Global Rescue. I only know of them because they have an office nearby. Not sure of prices but I believe their policies are annual.

Here is information on Travel Guard's Annual Policy

acraven

"Solo travelers might also want to consider the disadvantage of a hospitalization in a foreign country. Even for an English-speaker in the US, being in the hospital without a family member to serve as your advocate is a bit risky."

Hospitalization in a foreign country may be a necessity rather than a disadvantage, and medical evacuation may not be possible right away. Having a family member to be an "advocate" may not be totally effective if they can't speak the language.

I checked Travel Guard again. There is certainly the possibility that I am dense, but I still cannot find an annual MEI policy. Where I follow their procedures for "compare best plan" and enter the info, I get a price quote for a single trip MEI plan. Not bad mind you, but not an annual policy. Their single trip quote (paying it twice for my 2 trips this year) would be significantly less than taking the annual MEI from AirMed and MedJetAssist. So I will seriously consider that. Looking into others mentioned as well. Thanks for the help.

At the Travel Guard website, on the top bar, put cursor on "All Products" and then in the drop-down menu, click on "Select from our product list" then enter your state or province of residence. You will get a list of products. In that list are Medevac Per Trip Plan and the Annual Travel Rite Plan.

@Ray: See "All Products" at top of page, then "Select From Our product List" will get you there.

"Hospitalization in a foreign country may be a necessity rather than a disadvantage, and medical evacuation may not be possible right away. Having a family member to be an "advocate" may not be totally effective if they can't speak the language."

Agreed, but having no one with you when you're seriously ill or injured, possibly in a country where medical facilities are not staffed even as well as they are in the US, could be really frightening. And if you have to wait for the availability of local airlift capability or spend ten days on a ward because there are no beds available in private or semi-private rooms, it adds risk and stress.

Many overseas doctors studied medicine in English-speaking countries, so communication with the doctors is not necessarily difficult. I was surprised (in a good way) about that, but the ward nurses did not generally speak English, and communication with them was challenging. The key thing is that staffing was thin enough that most patients seemed to have a family member with them most of the time. Also, the ward nurses did not appear to be trained to RN level. Since I was alone, the admitting physician suggested that I hire a night-duty nurse to be with my mother.

Ray, for a couple years now, we've purchased an annual plan from Emergency Assistance Plus (EA+). We get it through the UofO Alumni Association, but you can purchase directly from EA+. I don't know how the price compares to the others mentioned above, but you might check it out. Like you, we have overseas medical coverage, so we're only interested in emergency evacuation coverage.

Thanks all for the info. Am checking (again) into travel guard (although after I enter my info I get only a one time MEI policy---of course, my trip has been purchased for some time which may be the "fly in the ointment") and the other policies mentioned. Appreciate it. Will likely make a decision soon, although I do have time before the trip actually leaves.

acraven,

"Agreed, but having no one with you when you're seriously ill or injured, possibly in a country where medical facilities are not staffed even as well as they are in the US, could be really frightening. And if you have to wait for the availability of local airlift capability or spend ten days on a ward because there are no beds available in private or semi-private rooms, it adds risk and stress."

My comments above were based on personal experience. If a solo traveller finds themselves in a situation like that, the only thing possible is just to deal with it as best as possible under the circumstances. I've found that in Italy some Doctors can speak English in varying degrees, and some are completely fluent. The same is true for Nurses and other staff.

I recently joined Medjet. Hopefully I won't have to use it. You might also check out the divers alert network. Very reasonable but it has limits. You don't have to be a diver.

...after I enter my info I get only a one time MEI policy.

Wish I could help you, Ray, but we've only purchased our policies on a per-International-trip basis. As we're unable to leave the country on an annual basis, we don't need an annual policy.

I don't have an objection to a per trip policy and their price is actually less than a yearly policy (for me, given how much I travel) from other companies. But I just don't get the choice of a year long policy. Again, perhaps it is because I booked the trip (and paid for it) very early to get a discount. Appreciate everyone's input though.

Travel Guard does not sell Medical Evacuation Insurance by itself. It is included in an annual policy that included health and travel benefits.

Right. As Frank said, evac is part of a larger policy which includes other benefits: we don't (or can't) purchase it singularly.

Wow, this (which came from the Travel Guard/All Product/Medical/Medevac Per Trip Plan):

*

MedEvac Per Trip Plan

Planning an extended stay overseas? The Travel
Guard MedEvac plan can provide worldwide travel medical and evacuation
coverage for trips up to 364 days in length. MedEvac can cover the
cost to transport you to the hospital of your choice or home if
medically necessary, and can cover any qualified accompanying medical
expenses you may incur. MedEvac also includes optional adventure
sports and baggage coverage. MedEvac is our recommended plan for
travelers applying for a Schengen Visa

*
sure looked like per trip MEI to me. What am I missing? TIA

Ray, here's an idea that most people don't think of these days......call Travel Guard and ask.

But if you read it carefully, it is a medical plan with medevac included.

Fair enough. I e-mailed Travel Guard today and we'll see what they report (if they bother to respond at all.)

Well, I don't want to resurrect this particular topic for additional discussion. We left it at Travel Guard may or may not offer a separate Medical Evacuation Policy. I e-mailed them (on their website) over a week ago with that fairly simple question and there has been no answer. Personally, I am loath to give business to someone too "busy" to answer a reasonable question. Thanks for the responses and help. I am pretty sure I have a policy selected.

They may or may not have received the email. Unfortunately technology doesn't always work as it should. Try calling them at 1-800-826-4919 and perhaps you can get an answer from a live person.

to compare a bunch of different insurance companies - go to
squaremouth.com

link to squaremouth

Interesting.....I went to Squaremouth and entered my information. Two of the largest insurance companies, Travel Guard and Alliance, didn't even show up. I am considering those two for a travel insurance policy because of their reliability.

I think Squaremouth is an insurance broker.

I may check Squaremouth, but I have done quite a bit of research and have appreciated the input on this question in the forum. While I technically could call Travelguard, I doubt if I would use them. My feeling is they do want to sell me something and if their service is so bad when trying to sell it, imagine how bad it is when you are trying to get them to pay up. That may not be true of Travelguard, but it has generally been my experience. There are plenty of trusted companies out there who are willing to answer emails to get some business. Thanks again to everyone.