The one answer you must have before obtaining travel medical insurance is what’s covered?
That’s a critical, if admittedly obvious, pearl of wisdom anyone thinking of booking a cruise would be smart to follow.
Unfortunately not all travel medical insurance polices offer the same coverage. To help you come to grips as to what’s covered there are some questions to ask before you sign the check.
Taking the kids? Some health insurance for overseas travel policies cover minors under 17 years old if their parents buy a policy. It pays to ask.
What if you get sick on the cruise and have to see the ship doctor? Are you covered?
What if when taking in the sights sightseeing you injure yourself on a rented scooter? Unlikely but another reason why having supplemental travel health insurance might be a wise move. As long as your policy covers such things.
What if your situation gets bad enough that you need to be life-flighted back to the mainland? Seems this is exactly why you want to make sure the policy covers emergency evacuations.
This ain’t going to be cheap. Even a one way trip from the scene of an accident at home to a nearby hospital can easily amount to $10,000 in some cases. So you can expect the bill to be med flighted from a ship at sea will likely be more. Which might also be more than the credit limit on your credit card can stand.
You also want to make sure all promises made by the sales person when it comes to coverage are in writing.
Not that they would purposely mislead you. But there’s nothing worse than knowing to ask the right questions only to be given the incorrect answers.
For that reason don’t be afraid to drag out your magnifying glass to pour over the tiny print of your health insurance for overseas travel policy. Meticiously. Sure it won’t be nearly as much fun as pulling into say Hamilton in Bermuda for the first time. But that doesn’t mean it’s any less important.
Hopefully these tips have helped. In most cases don’t use “too expensive” as the excuse for not obtaining travel medical insurance. Especially given the alternatives. Which make the cost of coverage a bargain in comparison.