Will travel health insurance cover what you need overseas? : Trip ...

It?s a gamble any time you leave home ? going across town or the planet. If you have only a couple of weeks a year of vacation one of the worst things that can happen is getting sick and missing the trip. That?s a great argument for travel insurance, where your travel costs are covered in the event that you can?t go.

If you are overseas and go to great lengths, and cost, to have travel health insurance ? is it worth it?

You know your health condition better than anyone, so start there with a few questions (and this is by no means exhaustive):

• Do I have health conditions that may be compromised during travel to other countries?
• Will the places I visit have medical professionals available if I need them?
• What would I do to replace or refill prescriptions when out of the country?
• What can I carry with me to make sure I stay healthy?

For example, if you need oxygen on a daily basis, make sure your airline is aware and make sure there are tanks on board for your use. It takes a bit of doing but is more common than you may realize. Also, make sure that where you are going has oxygen available and you can refill tanks easily. Advanced planning is key for most health conditions.
I just finished reading the Paris travel memoir, Meet Me Under The Eiffel Tower
and after venturing through the author?s, Natasha Donohue, romantic adventures, read of the issues that came up with her epileptic, adult son. There were some problems with having one airline respond or even let him travel (American Airlines) but the eventual flight on a different carrier went smoothly. In Paris, there were a few minor seizures but both Natasha and her son were prepared for signals and were careful with medication.

The worst episode ended up with them being driven by very expensive ambulance to a woefully understaffed hospital when all that was really necessary was to get back to her apartment, to medication waiting there and to rest. The rest of their trip went relatively well and memories were created that they?ll happily share forever.

Say you are in good health and traveling to Europe. Do you really need to get extended health insurance coverage? What I?ve heard from the many travel experts and expert travelers that I?ve met is probably not. Why? Because socialized medicine, local clinics and hospitals offer services below the costs you would incur and are, in most industrial countries, much less expensive than having insurance.

No one wants to forfeit their health and a dream vacation due to sickness or injury, so search your heart, study about the places you are visiting, see what the Center for Disease Control recommends and then choose the coverage you might need ? based on knowledge instead of fear, such as is ramped up in a recent article by Fox news. Make sure that you?ll get what you need when purchasing travel health insurance.

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Elaine J. Masters

Travel writer, Meetup host with Travel Well, Meet-Plan-Go-San-Diego and Travel Massive.

Top Ten Podcast, the Gathering Road, on The Women?s Radio Network.

Travel ease books and audio for flyers and drivers at: www.DrivetimeYoga.com

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Source: http://www.tripwellness.com/will-travel-health-insurance-cover-what-you-need-overseas/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=will-travel-health-insurance-cover-what-you-need-overseas

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