Bluecross insurance coverage of medical evacuation?

[PAcruiser2014]

Hello all,

 

We called our Bluecross medical insurance provider in Pennsylvania regarding coverage of medical evacuation from cruise ships. We were told that medical evacuation will be covered through "Bluecard worldwide", although he would not specifically comment on the "from cruise ship" aspect of the question. I did not find this stated in writing anywhere, and nor did I find the evacuation coverage maximum limit. Can anyone confirm Bluecross policy on this, and their evacuation maximum limit?

 

Otherwise, we are thinking about buying the Geoblue Voyager Choice insurance, mainly for medical evacuation coverage.

[Suzanne123]

I have Highmark Blue Shield PPO, and I was told that they do cover "air ambulance," but as an out of network provider I would pay 20%. I'm not sure the girl on the phone understood "air evacuation," but I decided to just go ahead and get the Geoblue Voyager Choice with the largest deductible ($500, I think). The coverage for almost three weeks in Europe was $121.

[klfrodo]

I asked my personal medical insurance provider the same question.

My understanding was that Yes, it is covered just as if an ambulance is called to your house to transport you to the nearest hospital. The air evac is covered to the nearest facility.

However, that's where the coverage ends.

I asked the follow-up question of, OK,,,, I now require medical transportation back to my hometown in the States for continued care,,, is that covered by my medical plan? No, that would be the patients responsibility.

Follow-up to the follow-up,,,, Ok,,, I've been transported to the nearest facility,,, things didn't go well and I passed away. Does my current policy cover the return of my remains to my hometown? No

 

I've got international medical coverage.

I still purchase Travel Insurance

[sail7seas]

I asked my personal medical insurance provider the same question.

My understanding was that Yes, it is covered just as if an ambulance is called to your house to transport you to the nearest hospital. The air evac is covered to the nearest facility.

However, that's where the coverage ends.

I asked the follow-up question of, OK,,,, I now require medical transportation back to my hometown in the States for continued care,,, is that covered by my medical plan? No, that would be the patients responsibility.

Follow-up to the follow-up,,,, Ok,,, I've been transported to the nearest facility,,, things didn't go well and I passed away. Does my current policy cover the return of my remains to my hometown? No

 

I've got international medical coverage.

I still purchase Travel Insurance

 

 

When you purchase evacuation coverage, it often includes repatriation which would cover the return of your remains to your home. Of course, you should verify with any policy you are buying but it is more likely than not that is included.

 

[klfrodo]

When you purchase evacuation coverage, it often includes repatriation which would cover the return of your remains to your home. Of course, you should verify with any policy you are buying but it is more likely than not that is included.

 

 

Maybe you misunderstood my post,,, or I didn't communicate it very well.

 

OP is/was talking about coverage he/she receives from her work provided healthcare coverage.

I was talking about the same thing, my work provided healthcare coverage.

They provide emergency transportation to the nearest facility (to included evac),,, however,,, that is the end of the coverage as provided by my work provided healthcare coverage.

When specifically asked,,, they do not and will not cover repatriation of remains.

 

As a side note: My BIL was killed in a cross country motorcycle crash. Neither his motorcycle insurance company nor his medical insurance company would help pay to return his remains to his home state. To reduce expenses, SIL had to pay for creamation, then bring the ashes back home for a memorial.

[sirwired]

To answer your "from the ship" evac question. No private insurer covers this, as it's very difficult to deliver. (It has to be done via helicopter; range restrictions mean that it would take a truly ridiculous number of choppers and highly trained pilots to cover even a small portion of the world's oceans. Jet-based evac can cover the entire world within a 12-hour response time with a handful of aircraft.)

 

People ask about this a lot, thinking it's a common thing, but evacuation from the ship is quite rare; for it to take place, all of the following MUST be true:

- It has to make sense for your condition. This generally means you need emergency surgery on something that the ship's doctor is not able to treat.

- You need to be unstable enough that it can't wait until the next port with an airstrip and/or suitable medical facility.

- You have to be stable enough to survive the trip without the life-support equipment you might be using in the ship's hospital.

- You need to be in range of a country offering this service; generally only 1st-world navies/coast guards will have the advanced equipment and well-trained crew to make this safe.

- The weather has to cooperate.

 

If all those criteria are met, it will generally be done free of charge by whatever government performs the evac.

[hmstins]

I was on a transatlantic cruise once when a casino employee was medi-vac'd for a tubal pregnancy. She had to wait a couple of days until we were in helicopter range of the Azores before she could be taken off the ship. I often wondered if the cruise line covered the cost. She had surgery and was fine, we were informed, but I always wondered.