medical insurance

It's essential to have medical and especially evacuation/repatriation coverage. Should you break a leg or hip that requires special seating in an aircraft to get to back home, those charges can range from $50,000 to $100,000. I use this company:
http://tinyurl.com/q65jyhc

I wouldn't travel at any age without travel medical insurance. Anyone can suddenly get sick or get injured. We use www.roamright.com/travel-medical-insurance/

Medical evacuation insurance may be the more important insurance for the risk advise. My old boss suffered a head injury that resulted in brain damage and a coma. He was transported back to the States after a month plus in France on a special medevac flight with on board medical personnel.

The medical treatment cost in Europe is a related bargain compared to the States. A friend on Medicare needed five or six stints having suffered a heart issue in Germany. The German medical bill was something like $5000 US. Between his Medicare supplement and the trip insurance that he bought for the first time he paid nothing out of pocket.

In contrast coworker covered by the company private insurance plan suffered a heart attack that same month. One stint, not five and his out of pocket cost after insurance was $7000 US.

Germany: 5 or 6 stints $5000 US before insurance.
USA: 1 stint $7000 US after insurance.
Lesson learned is don't get sick in the US.

royal,

I agree with the others that having travel medical insurance is a really good idea, and could prevent severe financial consequences should something happen during a trip. I normally take out an annual policy as that allows me to take short trips spontaneously, without having to take out a policy for each trip.

Your profile doesn't indicate where you're located, so it's difficult to offer suggestions on travel insurance firms. The products available in my area will most certainly be different than what's available in your area. You could have a look at Travel Guard, which seems to be a very popular choice. You could also check with local travel agencies in your area or AAA offices. If repatriation is an issue that concerns you, have a look at MedJet Assist.

It's important to note that not all travel medical insurance policies are equal, and it's essential to read the "fine print" in terms of deductibles, exclusions (especially for pre-existing conditions) or limits on coverage. Another point to look at is whether the policy provides all funding right away, or whether the policy holder has to pay first and then reimbursed.

Good luck!

We do the same as Ken. We have annual travel insurance that includes medical, repatriation and trip cancellation as well as our health plan at work that also covers travel medical.

One thing to ensure, when you complete the documentation for the insurance, include ALL your medical history and pre-existing conditions. Anything left out is reason to deny coverage if its needed even if the issue abroad has nothing to do with the information left off your application. Your rates, I expect, will be higher because of your age but not near as high as the expenses would be if you didn't have coverage.

include ALL your medical history and pre-existing conditions.

Whenever I have purchased insurance I've never been asked for any of this nor is there any place on the website to put any of the info???

insuremytrip.com is a great place to start! Enter your basic information and then go from there based on your specific needs/concerns. The filters will direct you to companies that fit your needs.
I seem to always end up using Travelguard.
Make sure to get dental (it's easy to chip a tooth on some of that fabulous European bread...I've done it!), repatriation, medical evacuation (crazy expensive if you need it), lost luggage, flight cancellation, and hotel cancellation.
If you have specific health issues then you can also look for companies that will cover you for related expenses.

If your husband has Medicare and a supplement, check his supplement to see if it covers internationally. Some do and some don't. Medicare, of course does not cover out of the country.

I do not travel without medical insurance. Some people are comfortable without insurance, but in my pre-retirement work world I was a hospital social worker and believe me...I never, ever, ever go without medical insurance.

"Whenever I have purchased insurance I've never been asked for any of this nor is there any place on the website to put any of the info???"

I would read the terms and conditions for the insurance if I was you. If they haven't asked, its likely that they won't cover pre-existing conditions and that is somewhere in the insurance contract. If something happens on vacation and in their research after the fact they learn that the condition was pre-existing, its highly likely you won't be covered. Now, I've also never applied for insurance online. I honestly don't know how that works or how you tell them pre-existing conditions. I know that when my parents were travelling to the US, they bought insurance and had to disclose all medical concerns as well as their ages. The insurance rate was high, but worth it. We have annual insurance but there is a clause that states taht it will not cover for medical conditions that were treated within a certain period of time prior to travel. If we wish to have anything such as that covered, I would touch base with teh insurance company prior to departure. If you don't mind me asking, which website do you use? I'm curious.

Travel insurance with medical expense coverage is different from regular health insurance ( the US kind). Many travel insurance policies will cover pre-existing conditions IF ( and only if) you buy it within a specified time of the first payment toward our trip---booking airfare, making a down payment for a tour or apartment, etc. Most policies I have looked at require purchase within two or ar most three weeks of the first payment made for the trip. The pre-existing conditions do not have to be disclosed on the application, as Michael says, there is no place on the online forms to do so. But the time requirement is absolute. And the "look back"'period for the pre-existing condition varies between policies, but 60 days seems pretty common.

Re: If they haven't asked, its likely that they won't cover pre-existing conditions and that is somewhere in the insurance contract.

Pre-existing conditions may be covered if purchased very shortly after initial trip deposit is made. See terms and conditions.

Eg. http://www.travelguard.com/pre-existing-medical-waiver/

on many Travel Guard policies purchasing your travel insurance the same day you make your first trip deposit (or shortly after) may
qualify you for the pre-existing medical condition exclusion waiver.
With the waiver it's possible to be covered for some medical issues on
your trip, despite your pre-existing condition.

To qualify for this waiver, certain conditions need to be met
including:

Purchasing the travel insurance with your first trip deposit, or
shortly thereafter as explained in the policy; The amount of coverage
purchased equals all prepaid, non-refundable trip payments or
deposits, and the cost of any subsequent arrangements added to the
same trip are insured by the date of payment or deposit for the
additional arrangements; You are medically able to travel when your
travel insurance policy is purchased.

Ok. This may be a difference between US and Canadian companies as well.

Most medicare gap plans cover care abroad and presumably your insurance covers you but you need to check that. My work coverage also paid for evacuation if needed which is by far the costliest problem. An acquaintance had to fly his daughter home from Cairo over 10 years ago after she was hit by a car; the cost was 50K and they had to mortgage their home to do it.

At medicare age, travel insurance that includes evacuation is very prudent unless you can easily afford that kind of flight tab. Medical care abroad is actually fairly inexpensive -- it is the cost of medical evacuation that is likely to break the bank.

I've seen some policies on insuremytrip.com that include pre-existing conditions with broader purchase/timing constraints. That's where the site's ability to compare and eliminate/narrow down comes in very handy. Squaremouth.com does this too.

Great peace of mind.

Peg

To add to the comments about "pre-existing conditions", my experience is much the same as Joanne describes. I always prefer to deal with a "live" agent when purchasing that sort of thing, so that I can ask questions if necessary and clarify anything I'm not sure about. They usually DO want to know about pre-existing conditions if you're above a certain age (can't remember which age for sure but it may have been 60 years old), and especially any conditions which have been treated in the previous month or so before the policy was issued.

Another issue that became apparent after I retired was which agency would be considered "first payer". I used one brand of travel medical insurance for many years, but found that I had to choose a different one after retirement. The policy that I had been using, paid for medical costs from my retirement benefits first and only when those were depleted would they begin paying. That's absolutely NOT acceptable as my retirement benefits have a lifetime maximum, and once they're gone I get no more. I found a different policy that pays everything and doesn't touch my other benefits, so that's the one I've been using. My pension provider has just chosen a new agency to provide that on April 1, so I'll have to go through the "fine print" in the next few weeks to find out what they cover.

Given the different types of medical coverage between the U.S. and Canada, YMMV. In any case, it's very important to be clear on the terms of the policy.

The www.medexassist.com TravMed Choice policy covers "controlled" per-exisiting conditions at any age without the requirement of disclosure.

Make sure you read the fine print, and if you have any questions, talk to a representative via telephone.

Keep in mind that many ( if not most) so called, 'travel medical insurances', act as secondary insurance, so they will only pay
what your primary medical insurance does not pay, and there are usually exclusions, limitations, etc, etc...

Edit: Check this company that was recommended to my daughter who will be traveling abroad: http://www.csatravelpro.com

Thank you to everybody who has taken their time to respond. You have been very helpful.
I am wondering what Edgar meant by "making your first trip deposit"?
also, any ball park figure as to what insurance might be for a 65 year old person for just 38 days?

thank you in advance. you are kind and generous with your time. Linda

Thank you to everybody who has taken their time to respond. You have been very helpful.
I am wondering what Edgar meant by "making your first trip deposit"?
also, any ball park figure as to what insurance might be for a 65 year old person for just 38 days?

thank you in advance. you are kind and generous with your time. Linda

Making your first deposit means the first date you spend non-refundable money on the trip. Often this is the date you purchased your flight tickets.

Are you thinking of just insurance for your husband? Do you not need medical coverage too?

For costs, it took me 5 minutes to check prices in insuremytrip.com for a 38- day trip starting in May for one traveler age 65. I picked a trip cost of $3500 ( that is again for one person). Prices for regular policies with trip cancellation, baggage loss, medical coverage and evacuation ranged from $156 to $569.

I compared two policies. The $156 policy includes $25k in medical coverage ( secondary), $100k in evacuation, and a 14-day purchase requirement for waiver of pre-existing conditions ( meaning it has to be purchased within 14 days of your first trip payment). A $469 policy includes $100k in medical coverage, $1 million for evacuation, and requires purchase within 30 days to get waiver of pre-existing conditions.

We are younger so our policies cost less ( plus we go for shorter times). I look for something between those two, like $50,000 in medical coverage.