Your bags are packed, the flights and accommodations are paid for, your itinerary is set! What could you be forgetting?
If you’re going overseas, I highly recommend getting travelers health insurance. This isn’t to cover lost luggage, flight cancellations, etc – it’s to make sure you’re not paying the medical bills in the event of sickness or injury. The policy also pays for medical evacuation if needed.
GeoBlue is my preferred vendor for such. Aside from being affordable, they give you access to a worldwide network of doctors who speak English proficiently and meet all standards of Western medicine.
Additionally, they have a 24 hour call center. If you stick with your conventional insurance and have a medical event, and if they agree to cover it, you’ll be trying to coordinate the insurance company and the medical provider through language barriers and different time zones. GeoBlue helps you avoid all that.
What about your experience?
I get GeoBlue each time I travel out of the country, and thankfully haven’t had to use it. A few of my clients have had that need, however, and while the circumstances were not ideal, they had an excellent experience with GeoBlue. On top of that, they didn’t have to pay anything for the care they received!
Injuries included:
- Broken ankle and leg, requiring surgery
- Sick kiddos and needing a prescription. GeoBlue got it handled.
- Food poisoning resulting in severe dehydration
- Broken leg from a skiing mishap.
There are many more such stories that GeoBlue could share, but these are experiences of my actual clients, all shared with permission.
GeoBlue has trip-length products, and also coverage for expatriots, missionaries, and students as well. I highly recommend checking them out.