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Medical Evacuation Travel Insurance


TomOG
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Does anyone have any experience with Emergency Assistance Plus Travel insurance for medical transport, medical evacuation, etc?

I received an offer through my AA Advantage Membership but had not heard of this provider. Thanks.

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I got the same offer from AAA. Here is a key difference that made me stay with MedJet Assist:

 

If you are Traveling Away From Home and you sustain an Injury orsuffer a sudden and unexpected Illness and appropriate medical treatment is unavailable in your currentfacility, EA+ will coordinate and provide a medically supervised evacuation to a hospital that EA+determines to be capable of providing appropriate medical treatment

 

when a Medjet Member becomeshospitalized as an inpatient due to illness or injury while traveling 150 miles or morefrom his or her Residence Address as defined herein, Medjet will arrange for medicaltransportation and repatriation services to the hospital of the Member’s choice in theMember’s Home Country.

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I received the offer too. I tried to read the policy and decided it was just an assistance policy. For example, They will assist in getting you new eyeglasses if broken, lost, etc., but charge your credit card for the glasses but shipping is free, they will assist getting your lost luggage but will charge your credit card for expenses...you need to be hospitalised for an unknown term, your credit card charged before they step in to assist you.

 

Please correct me if I’m wrong but read the actual policy. I tore my offer up. Good luck.

 

 

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We just threw it out also. We have a yearlong policy with Geo Blue for health insurance while traveling and evacuation.

I don't think it is terrible to get care near where you have become ill as being transported while in an emergency state is not always a good idea.

I am going to check though about medjet to see what else it offers and pricing.

It appears that Medjet only offers the transportation aspect but doesn't pay for medical care while out of the USA. Most folks on Medicare do not have coverage for out of USA emergency care and need to be insured for that as well as for evacuation.

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Does anyone have any experience with Emergency Assistance Plus Travel insurance for medical transport, medical evacuation, etc?

I received an offer through my AA Advantage Membership but had not heard of this provider. Thanks.

 

A word of caution --

 

This company automatically renews the policy.

 

Read the fine print.

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I don't think it is terrible to get care near where you have become ill as being transported while in an emergency state is not always a good idea.

 

True - but if I'm going to be hospitalized for several months I would much prefer to be near my home than in Belieze - or even Hawaii for that matter.

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This past September my husband had a heart attack 4 days before we arrived home off our Transatlantic. After being diverted to ST Johns where he stayed in the hospital 9 days, our own Medical Insurance through United Health Care came and picked him up and flew him the 4300 miles back to So Calif and our hospital. I ended up paying nothing, not even a co pay. Cost $58,000. We had taken out a Travel Insurance through our Good Sam RV and they wanted $40,000 up front before they would pick him up. I cancelled them upon arriving home.

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This past September my husband had a heart attack 4 days before we arrived home off our Transatlantic. After being diverted to ST Johns where he stayed in the hospital 9 days, our own Medical Insurance through United Health Care came and picked him up and flew him the 4300 miles back to So Calif and our hospital. I ended up paying nothing, not even a co pay. Cost $58,000. We had taken out a Travel Insurance through our Good Sam RV and they wanted $40,000 up front before they would pick him up. I cancelled them upon arriving home.

Wow! Do you have a special plan through United Health? Is it Medicare Suplimental or other I'm interested in getting this type of coverage.

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Unless something has changed, another important difference between Medjet Assist and EA+ is that EA+ transports you on a commercial flight with a medical assistant if needed. Medjet flies you on a medical transport aircraft with medical assistance.

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I agree with CruiseBruce -- your medical travel insurance questions will be better served by using that Cruise/Travel Insurance forum. For the most part, on the Princess board, the vast majority of the replies will come from Princess cruisers. On the Cruise/Travel Insurance forum your will get exposure to cruisers from all cruise lines RCI, NCL, Celebrity, Princess, Disney, etc.

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Unless something has changed, another important difference between Medjet Assist and EA+ is that EA+ transports you on a commercial flight with a medical assistant if needed. Medjet flies you on a medical transport aircraft with medical assistance.

 

This is not quite accurate. If you read the MedjetAssist policy it specifically says, "Affiliate aircraft used for the medical transport of Medjet Members are fully equippedintensive-care aircraft staffed with specially trained medical teams. However, if theMember’s condition permits, the Member will be transported by scheduled commercialairline, while in the care of a Medjet-authorized medical escort.

 

Bottom line is that you are deemed medically capable of flying commercial, this is what will be used. This is similar to language found in most med evac policies. The insurer will generally conference with the attending physician to determine the minimum level (in terms of cost) of transportation that meets the medical needs of the patient. Bottom line is that if the patient is deemed "fit to fly" commercial and an airline will agree to the transport then that is usually how it will be done.

 

Hank

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This is not quite accurate. If you read the MedjetAssist policy it specifically says, "Affiliate aircraft used for the medical transport of Medjet Members are fully equippedintensive-care aircraft staffed with specially trained medical teams. However, if theMember’s condition permits, the Member will be transported by scheduled commercialairline, while in the care of a Medjet-authorized medical escort.

 

Bottom line is that you are deemed medically capable of flying commercial, this is what will be used. This is similar to language found in most med evac policies. The insurer will generally conference with the attending physician to determine the minimum level (in terms of cost) of transportation that meets the medical needs of the patient. Bottom line is that if the patient is deemed "fit to fly" commercial and an airline will agree to the transport then that is usually how it will be done.

 

Hank

 

Fine and dandy. However, the EA+ simply says you will be transported by commercial air no matter what. Probably why I will pay extra for the advantage of a specialized medical aircraft if it is warranted and needed. It always pays to read the terms and conditions of any policy to make sure it covers the needs that are important to you and your situation.

 

YMMV

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Victory my husbands Insurance was through his Federal Plan as a Postal employee. I retained the same insurance as a surviving spouse although the plan was changed from a Self + 1 to Self, it cost me $177 and is taken from his Federal Retirement check each month. Our daughter met me in ST Johns and did most of the calling to get her father back to Palm Springs, the Travel Insurance through Good Sam which was worthless would only take him to Halifax but we wanted him in Calif & home so UHC came through for us. I was surprised that there wasn't a co pay, found that out after I got home and called them. Because Canada doesn't take medicare UHC paid for all the medical both in ST Johns Newfoundland and hospital at home. He was flown home on a Leer jet with a full medical team. I came home on AA the next morning.

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Fine and dandy. However, the EA+ simply says you will be transported by commercial air no matter what. Probably why I will pay extra for the advantage of a specialized medical aircraft if it is warranted and needed. It always pays to read the terms and conditions of any policy to make sure it covers the needs that are important to you and your situation.

 

YMMV

 

Our own insurance is simply an annual GeoBlue policy which includes $250,000 of med coupled with $500,000 of evacuation. After years of having this insurance we recently had to use it when DW injured her leg in Vietnam and we eventually (a week later) needed to get her back to the USA. The GeoBlue folks were quite wonderful and did pay Commerical/Business (so she could keep her leg elevated). They also did this even though she was technically not an inpatient in a hospital (she was receiving care on the ship). Under the terms of Medjetassist is is doubtful that they would have done the same because of their strict requirement about hospital to hospital. Bottom line is that all insurance policies are like being in a minefield. We have always considered Medjetassist the "Cadillac" of evacuation policies but now I am not so sure.

 

In our case there was kind of a perverse incentive for the insurance company to get DW home. Since our medical and evacuation were covered by a single company (unlike those who have Medjetassist) the insurance company had to evaluate whether the evacuation was a better option then perhaps having her admitted to a Japanese hospital. In either case that same policy would have provided coverage, but getting her home meant they were off the hook for any future medical costs. Not evacuating might have meant substantial medical bills. In a sense it was a win-win for both the insurance company and the patient :). Although our situation was somewhat unique it has caused me to completely reevaluate the type of insurance we need to carry because of our extensive travel schedule.

 

Hank

Edited by Hlitner
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It all comes down to understanding your policies and most importantly...let the person you are traveling with know what insurance, coverage you have...make sure they know where the international phone number is and policy number, so they can make contact once after the emergency settles down.

 

 

I just spent 2 days deciding what policy I wanted for a 40 day trip.....each trip I mix & match....

 

 

Thanks posters for relaying your stories about policies that worked for you.......

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In our case there was kind of a perverse incentive for the insurance company to get DW home. Since our medical and evacuation were covered by a single company (unlike those who have Medjetassist) the insurance company had to evaluate whether the evacuation was a better option then perhaps having her admitted to a Japanese hospital. In either case that same policy would have provided coverage, but getting her home meant they were off the hook for any future medical costs. Not evacuating might have meant substantial medical bills. In a sense it was a win-win for both the insurance company and the patient :). Although our situation was somewhat unique it has caused me to completely reevaluate the type of insurance we need to carry because of our extensive travel schedule.

 

Hank

 

Very good info....cause it really comes down to the bottom line for these companies...not the best care for you....

 

 

Unfortunately on a river cruise I have experienced a travel mate die in Russia, he never stabilized enough in 2 different hospitals to return home.

 

If your incident is serious and you are old to start out with, do u really think they are gng to transport u if u are unconscious/unstable.

In another country their hospital/doctors are calling the shots not you or your insurer.

Edited by land lover
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Our own insurance is simply an annual GeoBlue policy which includes $250,000 of med coupled with $500,000 of evacuation. ... Bottom line is that all insurance policies are like being in a minefield. We have always considered Medjetassist the "Cadillac" of evacuation policies but now I am not so sure. .... Although our situation was somewhat unique it has caused me to completely reevaluate the type of insurance we need to carry because of our extensive travel schedule.

 

Hank

 

Thanks for this, Hank

Our situation is we're both over 65 and I'm retired Navy so we have Medicare (which doesn't cover on cruise) and Tricare for Life (which does cover OCONUS) and so we get MedJet Assist to get us back home. An initial look at GeoBlue Trekker annual policy for about the same cost as MedJet is very attractive. Will dig deeper into it when my MedJet comes due for renewal.

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We also have the year long Geo Blue policy.

Our United Healthcare/medicare plan covers some emergency care out of the USA but not enough to make me happy. The Geo Blue medical care +evacuation is the best fit for us. They cover pre existing conditions too. Glad to know that Hank had good things to say about them. We have so far not needed to use the policy but having it makes me feel more secure.

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We also have the year long Geo Blue policy.

Our United Healthcare/medicare plan covers some emergency care out of the USA but not enough to make me happy. The Geo Blue medical care +evacuation is the best fit for us. They cover pre existing conditions too. Glad to know that Hank had good things to say about them. We have so far not needed to use the policy but having it makes me feel more secure.

 

They reimbursed us for nearly all of our medical claims in less then 3 weeks. We are currently appealing their one small rejection which had to do with ground transportation. I was very pleased on the medical claim stuff as there were no questions or issues about the actual cost. They simply reimbursed everything minus the $50 deductible.

 

Hank

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Our own insurance is simply an annual GeoBlue policy which includes $250,000 of med coupled with $500,000 of evacuation. After years of having this insurance we recently had to use it when DW injured her leg in Vietnam and we eventually (a week later) needed to get her back to the USA. The GeoBlue folks were quite wonderful and did pay Commerical/Business (so she could keep her leg elevated). They also did this even though she was technically not an inpatient in a hospital (she was receiving care on the ship). Under the terms of Medjetassist is is doubtful that they would have done the same because of their strict requirement about hospital to hospital. Bottom line is that all insurance policies are like being in a minefield. We have always considered Medjetassist the "Cadillac" of evacuation policies but now I am not so sure.

 

In our case there was kind of a perverse incentive for the insurance company to get DW home. Since our medical and evacuation were covered by a single company (unlike those who have Medjetassist) the insurance company had to evaluate whether the evacuation was a better option then perhaps having her admitted to a Japanese hospital. In either case that same policy would have provided coverage, but getting her home meant they were off the hook for any future medical costs. Not evacuating might have meant substantial medical bills. In a sense it was a win-win for both the insurance company and the patient :). Although our situation was somewhat unique it has caused me to completely reevaluate the type of insurance we need to carry because of our extensive travel schedule.

 

Hank

 

I'm sure there would be "something that didn't quite fit" for just about any policy, unfortunately.

 

First, glad your wife got home safely, and hope she is fully recovered.

 

We've thought about situations like this, and figured that what would happen, if it was truly serious, is we'd get off the ship at the first chance there was a hospital (at least a facility that was same or better than the ship's med center, etc.). At that point, if one of us was seriously ill, he/she would no doubt be admitted, and then... call to MedJetAssist.

IF we could just get home ourselves, even if in J or F air, we could cover that if needed if no medical services were required. But we'd first check with our travel or regular medical coverage, too.

 

One of the best features of MedJetAssist, in our mind, is that WE would get to decide to be taken elsewhere, and WE would decide where that "elsewhere" would be.

 

Mostly, we hope we don't need it, although we came much too close 2 years ago, when I landed in hospital overseas. Just as we were thinking of calling them, I turned the corner. And fortunately, after a bit more medical care and some recuperation, we were able to continue the rest of our trip, although I didn't do much more than "look" at all the nice places we were.

 

We will also be finding out in the next year or so, what MedJetAssist's screening is for those who have turned 75. I've spoken with them, and it seems it will work okay, at least if health continues as it is...

 

GC

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got the same offer from AAA. Here is a key difference that made me stay with MedJet Assist:

 

"If you are Traveling Away From Home and you sustain an Injury orsuffer a sudden and unexpected Illness and appropriate medical treatment is unavailable in your currentfacility, EA+ will coordinate and provide a medically supervised evacuation to a hospital that EA+determines to be capable of providing appropriate medical treatments"

That is the same thing our Travel Guard policy gives. IMHO, there is nothing special about the EA+ unless it also does everything TG and other companies do at a lower price.

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I'm sure there would be "something that didn't quite fit" for just about any policy, unfortunately.

 

First, glad your wife got home safely, and hope she is fully recovered.

 

We've thought about situations like this, and figured that what would happen, if it was truly serious, is we'd get off the ship at the first chance there was a hospital (at least a facility that was same or better than the ship's med center, etc.). At that point, if one of us was seriously ill, he/she would no doubt be admitted, and then... call to MedJetAssist.

IF we could just get home ourselves, even if in J or F air, we could cover that if needed if no medical services were required. But we'd first check with our travel or regular medical coverage, too.

 

One of the best features of MedJetAssist, in our mind, is that WE would get to decide to be taken elsewhere, and WE would decide where that "elsewhere" would be.

 

Mostly, we hope we don't need it, although we came much too close 2 years ago, when I landed in hospital overseas. Just as we were thinking of calling them, I turned the corner. And fortunately, after a bit more medical care and some recuperation, we were able to continue the rest of our trip, although I didn't do much more than "look" at all the nice places we were.

 

We will also be finding out in the next year or so, what MedJetAssist's screening is for those who have turned 75. I've spoken with them, and it seems it will work okay, at least if health continues as it is...

 

GC

 

Things do not always go as planned and one needs to sometimes think out of the box. DW was injured on a beach in Vietnam. After applying decent First Aid (I used to be a paramedic) the folks at the Vietnam beach club suggested they get us an ambulance to take her to a local Vietnamese Hospital. My decision (and hers) was to refuse that service and I managed to get her back to the tender pier in a taxi and then to the ship where she got excellent care. Several days later she was treated (outpatient surgery) in Osaka where I knew the medical care was world-class. Three days later we medically evacuated her from Tokyo while the ship was docked at Yokohama :). If I had allowed her to be admitted (as an inpatient) in Japan she may have been under treatment (in Japan) for several weeks. The Japanese doctors stabilized her condition and suggested I arrange to get her home since even they did not think it made sense to stay in Japan for weeks (or longer) for her care when she could safety be sent back home.

 

My point is that many medical emergencies are unique situations that do not fit neatly into the language of every insurance policy. I think that the best insurance is to have somebody who can carefully think through each problem (and obstacle) and develop reasonable options. Unfortunately, in many emergencies neither the patient or their spouse (or companion) can clearly think through a problem since they are often overwhelmed. At that point one is at the complete mercy of the healthcare folks and insurance companies who often have other agendas, A good insurance company will have Case Managers who truly try to do what is in the best interests of the patient...but there are many other cases where Case Managers do what is in the best interests of the insurer. oops. Pardon me for some degree of skepticism when it comes to insurance companies. Perhaps that comes from my 30+ years in the government medical insurance industry...or perhaps I am just old and crass )..

 

Hank

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