Health/Accident Insurance questions

You can research a wide variety of travel insurance options on insuremytrip.com or squaremouth.com. You'll need to read the policy details very closely, many medical plans are secondary payers. Price will depend on your age, destination, and levels of coverage. Medical evacuation is common insurance.

This post may provide some information about Italy specifically. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/universal-health-care-question

Medical expenses in Europe for routine problems is very reasonable and I am prepared to pay that out of pocket. However for something like a heart attack, stroke, serious accident, etc., I want home and as quick as possible. Medical evac can be very expensive so that is what I want insurance to cover. We carry an annual medical emergency evac policy that covers anytime we are more than 500 miles from home. At 82 that is my main concern regarding medical insurance.

Note-
For pre-existing conditions coverage, you need to buy travel insurance within about two weeks of the first booking for your trip. Good luck and safe travels.

I don't need to buy regular medical insurance for travel since my US policy provides coverage overseas. However, I know there have been several positive comments here from folks who have used GeoBlue. That is not coverage that will get you back to the US in the event of a serious medical problem. << It appears I am wrong about the lack of evacuation coverage, per frzummo87's post below. Do check the details.

I'm reading that the Italian government covers this for tourists to some degree

I have never heard that, ever. You'd better be really sure about it before you depend on it.

Since you are probably past the 14-days of first trip payment to cover pre-existing conditions, you can consider GeoBlue which covers medical and has no pre-existing clause. https://www.geobluetravelinsurance.com/ Don't count on coverage from the country you are visiting; it is for residents.

For medical evacuation, consider Medjet. https://medjetassist.com/ Evacuation can cost $100,000. My neighbor's friend was recently evacuated from Costa Rico to home for brain surgery.

Neither one is comprehensive so will not cover trip delay/cancellation, baggage lost, etc. If you don't need or want to cover pre-existing conditions you can look at comprehensive trip insurance.

The answers to your questions is how much risk are you willing to take? Neither GeoBlue or Medjet coverage is expensive.

Buon Viaggio! I did Village Italy tour in September. It's great!

GeoBlue does offer medical evacutation up to $500,000 coverage.

Frzummo, when I bought an annual GeoBlue medical policy last year, the phone rep said they did not cover med evac except to the nearest facility. That didn’t concern me since I buy Medjet annual policies. Like everything, it pays to read the fine print. Annual and per-trip policies could have different coverage.

I've had good luck finding policies with Trawick International that include medical coverage plus emergency evacuation and some trip interruption features - at reasonable rates.

Regarding health care for tourists in Italy being covered, some excerpts from a couple of prior threads:

"Italy may have "free national healthcare" but I believe that's primarily for residents who pay taxes there. I've used emergency medical care in Italy and part way through my care, I was presented with a bill summary that was already thousands of Euro at that point. Thankfully I always travel with comprehensive travel medical insurance, and I let them deal with that."

"My father in law had to go to the ER last year in Milán, and as soon as he arrived, they asked for his passport and kept it until he left. He was handed a bill, that was about €700, code green or yellow, he paid it and then his insurance reimbursed it."

This from an Italian citizen:
"It isn't free for Italians and it shouldn't be free for tourists, either. They are supposed to ask for your name and address to send you a bill. Years ago, if you did not make clear you had a travel insurance, most employees registered tourists as undocumented foreigners and the administrative office decided not to waste time mailing bills nobody would have paid.These days this way of treating foreigners is more and more uncommon. If you can't pay right away, sooner or later you should receive a letter from Italy asking for the (Italian) cost of the medical treatment you received."

We've ALWAYS bought insurance that includes medical evac when traveling abroad. That's the cost that can really break you if you need it.

I am sure there are a number of good policies out there. I use Allianz as an expat in Europe. So far has paid 100% of my claims with no fuss and no muss. For the most part I go to a clinic that they have a direct relationship with so its like the US, I show my card, smile and leave. They have clinics in most of Europe. For something larger, like a hospital and extended care, its going to be a bit more complicated. Wont know till I try, but I am expecting to have to pay and then get reimbursment. While I am an expat, I dont qualify for "free" (no where is it really free) medical so the insurance is a must for me. I also have the MedJet, if things get bad enough I can go home and my Medicare will take over in a US hospital.

You are going to Italy so this should be easy, but from time to time I see posts about going to Level 3 or 4 countries (Egypt for instance). Thats another whole can of worms that I had to research for a questionable trip I took in January. Lots of luck.

Many thanks to all of you for taking the time to share your ideas and advice. Truly appreciated!
I've got enough info now to do a whole lot of research based on what you've provided.

All the best to all of you!
-- Michael & Cynthia