If you are taking your family abroad for a holiday or on a trip to see relatives you really need to buy travel insurance. Most of the time, things will go well and you will not need to use it.
But, despite this fact, buying it is never a waste of time. Without the right type of international medical insurance should someone fall sick the bill can potentially run into tens of thousands.
Coverage for your medical bills
The cost of treatment alone can be very high. Healthcare costs vary, but they are never cheap. Even in India, which has one of the lowest-cost healthcare services in the world, a broken ankle could easily set you back $7,000. You would also need to add the cost of drugs, crutches and outpatient visits to that amount. In other parts of the world, you would pay an awful lot more to fix a badly broken ankle.
So, it is wise to buy a policy that provides sufficient coverage for your medical bills. It is also important to check if there is an excess. If there is make sure that you understand how much it is.
The types of treatments covered
Look at the small print to see what kinds of treatments are covered by your policy. For example, if a brain injury is suspected you would want to be able to have a scan rather than just an x-ray because that is all your policy covers.
Transport to the medical facility
Not all policies cover transportation to the medical facility. It is never wise to assume that this bill will a small one. Even in well-developed countries like the UK, you may have to be flown to a specialist hospital to receive treatment for something like a broken back. If you have not bought the right type of international medical coverage you will have to pay that bill. Again, that bill can easily run into tens of thousands.
Repatriation coverage
Should you, or a member of your travel party, be so ill that they cannot return home without a medical professional you will again be facing a huge bill. As you can see here, the cost of medical evacuation is currently running at between $25,000 and $250,000. So, again, it is very important to make sure that your policy provides adequate coverage for this eventuality.
Expenses for other members of your party
Often, someone will need to stay with you to take care of your immediate needs. Again, this can work out expensive. You will have to find the cash to pay for their accommodation, food, travel expenses and new tickets to get home. All costs that the right international medical insurance policy will cover.
The activities that are included in your policy
You also need to be sure that your medical travel insurance policy will kick in regardless of how you get injured or fall sick. The last thing you need is to break your leg on a hike only to find that an injury sustained while hiking is not covered. For some policies, the list of activities that are not is a ridiculously long one. So, always check the small print before actually buying your policy.
The above is not a comprehensive list of what you need to consider when buying international medical insurance. Just the most important things, so, before buying please take the time to do a bit more research.
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