Travel Health Insurance: Myths and Misconceptions

This article describes some known myths and misconceptions about travel health insurance that commonly exist and which we hear quite often. Understanding why these misconceptions are incorrect can help you make a more informed decision regarding whether or not travel health insurance is right for you or your family.

Here is an interesting one…

1. Visitor is Healthy, So There is No Need for Travel Health Insurance

About 6 months ago, VisitorsCoverage received a call from a local customer who was inquiring about an insurance quote for his visiting parents from India. He said he needed insurance just for his mother, but not for his father.

Out of curiosity, the agent asked – “why not for your father?”

This was his exact response – “My father is ex-military and is in good physical shape, so I don’t think I need health insurance for him.”

After a few weeks, we got a call from the same person and he sounded nervous, seeking advice and requested if he could get an insurance policy for his father now as his father was admitted to the hospital the previous night due to an internal head injury – he fell from his apartment’s second floor stairs. His father was admitted to the hospital and the total bill was around $76,000.

It was too late; no insurance was going to cover this existing problem for him. We still worked with him to negotiate with the hospital to receive a discount and a flexible payment arrangement. However, the cost overall was still significant.

This is not the only incident which we have come across – there are many similar cases to this, however this is a simple example of just how risky such a wrong decision can be.

It is certainly a wrong perception that travel insurance is not needed for people who are physically fit on a given day, or have no health problem so far. Risk can come from anywhere if you are in a country like the USA, where the health care cost is extremely high as it can be financially and emotionally devastating if you get injured or sick.

2. Travel Insurance Companies will Deny All Claims by Saying It Is A Pre-Existing Condition

“Visitor insurance is not worth it since insurance companies deny all claims by categorizing them as pre-existing conditions”. Unfortunately, we hear this claim very often. Internet forums are infested with such questions and topics.

Interestingly, many people don’t say this out of their own experiences, but report that this is something hey have heard from other or read online.

Let us try explaining this –

“Visitor Insurance companies will deny all claims by saying it is a pre-existing condition.”  – is not a true statement.

It may be true to say this – “The majority of claims that are denied are due to pre-existing conditions.”

Most visitor’s health insurance plans do not cover pre-existing conditions. Many buyers are unaware of this fact, especially when they purchase an insurance plan and only look at the policy maximum amount assuming everything is covered. A claim denial for services given for an existing condition comes as a big shock.

So, naturally, a question arises – “Why are pre-existing conditions not covered, despite paying a high premium?”

Well, this is a topic in itself. In order to get to the root of it; we have to go into the details of this monster known as “pre-existing conditions”. To learn more about this topic in detail, refer to the FAQs – Travel insurance for pre-existing conditions and visitor insurance pre-existing conditions. If you have any additional questions about travel insurance, email us at [email protected].