Flatbush Flyer

It would be “worth it” if you change your travel habits in the next several years and already have GE before Homeland Security suspends acceptance of new applications (which are at an all time high and unlikely to slow down).

Perhaps you missed my post above where I gave you an example of at least one cruise line that does “quiet sales” through their preferred TAs while also giving them “pass through” funds to incentivize their clients. And this is in addition to added pass through incentive funds from certain TAs’ consortia. And all of that is before any commission sharing. In fact, we will soon be leaving on a month long cruise, where our TA is using pass through incentive funds to cover the gratuities while also sending us a rebate check for more than $2k. And that’s on top of a discounted fare to begin with. That said, great TAs are few and far between. But, doing your homework in selecting one (or two) will pay off. Reality check: As for having “control over your booking,” do you not realize that you (like me) are a mere rounding error in a cruise line’s daily bottom line? If you book direct, you may think you are “in control” of your booking while waiting “on hold” with a cruise line phone employee who really can’t bend the rules of the company for which s/he works. At the same time, I speed dial my “top twenty seller” of my preferred cruise line who, in turn, speed dials the regional cruise line rep and gets issues fixed before i hang up. Who’s really “in control?” Take some time to search here on CC for any of my several comprehensive posts on how to find a great TA.

When will folks learn to NEVER use the O Cart to buy tours (particularly if you’re doing a multi-segment cruise). Get the most current excursions pdf, cross check against the web listings and then call O to have a rep confirm which one(s) is/are accurate? and available (according to his/her access to the accounting system).

If you travel much, particularly from busy US airports, TSA precheck is well worth the effort and $. If your frequent travel includes international air, do Global Entry (which includes Precheck).

Time for a different agent. Do the extensive research to identify a well-respected agent who specializes in your preferred cruise line and who is a high volume seller of those cruises. Many of these TAs (e.g., the “elite” tier of Oceania’s Connoisseurs Club TAs) have access to occasional “quiet sales,” incentive pass through funds for customers AND are willing to share commissions at anywhere from 5 to 10% of the. commissionable fare (unless, of course, you require a ton of hand holding).

One of the things I like about United Airlines is its Travel Ready Center. Conveniently positioned on both its website and in its app, this United service automatically informs you if your ticketed itinerary requires any particular documentation for entry into your destination country including passport/visa specifics and health inoculations/tests, It also is a great first step in the complete documentation research needed for a cruise. But, why “first step?” From the Covid pandemic, we have learned that entry into a foreign country for travel in general, and cruises specifically, may involve numerous authorities - any one of whose own rules and regulations may differ from those of other authorities in the mix (and stop you dead in your tracks). We encountered the perfect example in Sydney in early 2023. Flying from San Francisco, we knew that Oceania was then itself requiring vaccination and recommending (but not requiring) Covid pretests. (Nonetheless, we brought and used our tests prior to embarkation.) A quick review of the United Airlines Travel Ready website as well as the US State Department’s destinations website AND the websites of the Australian (national), New South Wales (regional) and City of Sydney (local) public health departments stated that they too were not requiring testing for vaccinated folks. So, why were so many embarking passengers surprised when they arrived at the SYD cruise terminal where all were being asked for their proof of a negative Covid test? It was because there was one more authority - the SYD Port Authority which was requiring negative test results of sll cruise passengers and crew. (That morning, lots of unhappy folks had to shell out $95 and a few of them suffered the fate of some disappointing results). Was that the end of it? Not really. This was a month plus cruise with stops in numerous ports over several countries along the way - each with its own requirement. Lots of folks learned an important lesson in that cruise. Do your homework - ALL your homework!

You’re concerned more with an oft repeated blaming of O that gets you no solution. You may want to reevaluate your strategy and tactics.

Sorry but, here you go again: little tidbits of crucial info that you drop here and there like a dripping faucet. So, Oceania HAS interacted with your insurer. Did I miss that crucial but of info in an earlier post? If so, l apologize. But, in any case, please tell us that you have a copy of that exchange in writing.

According to one or two (or three?) of the OP’s many responses, s/he has no Oceania invoice - only the PAF invoice. And “test” money s/he “wired” to the PAF has been “returned” without explanation - rather it just reappeared in the bank account used. All very unusual and reportedly devoid of adequate/written two-way communications.

OP has said s/he has wired “test money” to the PAF that has been returned without explanation. That there has been no other contact from the PAF nor provision of contact info et al., is VERY strange and suggests there are significant missing pieces to this story. Hopefully OP is adept at summarizing evidence to make points that get results. In a separate post, I have asked OP to identify the perceived individual culprits interacted with and to prepare the type of factual document that would make it easiest for potential champions to work on his/her behalf.

What are the names and positions (including actual departments) of the individuals at Oceania and/or NCLH (and/or their contracted agencies who have refused to send you proof of their payment to the PAF or who you perceive to be “stonewalling.” It would also be helpful if you attached here copies of anything sent to you clearly demonstrating their “heel dragging”’or “lack of reasonable assistance” (of course, redacted for your personal info). Why? From your stated experiences so far, I trust you realize that anything not in writing is pretty much useless. As far as the US Congress is concerned, you may be very surprised at just how much a Congressman or Senator can accomplish when it involves a foreign government that relies on good relations with the US. That said, however, I strongly suggest that, when you do speak to someone in that office (or, in fact, anyone whose help you seek, you refrain from doing what you’ve done here (perhaps unintentionally) by dribbling clarifying information over way too many posts. In fact I recommend that you take all of your responses here, consolidate them in a chronological (non-repetitive) history complete with names, dates, facts and an opening statement pinpointing the main 3 issues at hand: you need time limited proof to complete a claim; despite your best efforts, you do not yet have it ; and what you seek as the remedy (whatever- proof or otherwise- it takes to spare you undeserved “out of pocket” expenses). And the biggest challenge: reduce it to no more than four typed pages with appropriate appendices. Folks here obviously want to help you get through this. But, what we need is objective/demonstrable data devoid of your dislike of O or NCLH.

And you’ve asked that “third party insurance processor” for a copy of their proof of payment to PAF and/or an explanation of “why not” in writing? Have you contacted your Congressman to seek assistance from the US State Dept folks in Portugal? I notice you’re in the Bay Area. Beside Elliott.org, have you talked to the consumer advocacy folks at the local TV Networks affiliates?

FWIW: There was another possible approach to this which probably would have made all less complicated. 1. Invoice for field rescue comes to patient from Portuguese Air Force 2. Patient pays Invoice 3. Patient submits proof of payment to insurance company (along with associated medical records) 4. Patient receives insurance reimbursement 5. if Oceania later bills patient for PAF field rescue, patient sends O their proof of payment to PAF. 6. If Oceania also pays invoice, Oceania requests refund from PAF.

We pay the premiums for government-administered programs whether or not we use them and, as is often the case with healthcare and health (or other) insurance, “the devil is in the detail.” Just look at all the misunderstanding about what exacting is “medical evacuation” and “pre-existing conditions” (both with different definitions in insurance vs healthcare).

If OP hasn’t (for many months) managed to get the necessary records required by the insurer (which, in addition to the Air Force cost, might also include the reason why its assistance was needed, e.g., ICD-10 Codes), I’m betting a US embassy or consulate’s diplomatic connections would be far more efficacious in getting their communications the desired responses. And that means there would need to be a signed release somewhere in that stack of paper.

As aforementioned, most first world countries also would not charge for a shipboard Field Rescue. Medical Evacuation (by insurer definition) is not the same thing.

Technically, you are not on Medicare. Rather you have chosen a Medicare approved substitute offered by a private company. From Medicare.gov: Medicare Advantage (also known as Part C) Medicare Advantage is a Medicare-approved plan from a private company that offers an alternative to Original Medicare for your health and drug coverage. These “bundled” plans include Part A, Part B, and usually Part D. In most cases, you’ll need to use doctors who are in the plan’s network. Plans may have lower out-of-pocket costs than Original Medicare. Plans may offer some extra benefits that Original Medicare doesn’t cover — like vision, hearing, and dental services.

Actually, the USCG and equivalent services in most other first world countries do not charge for field rescues and transport to an initial facility capable of rendering emergency treatment and stabilization.

Good idea. Of course, OP might need to formally give HIPAA permission to the consulate to have access to medical records. And local congressman could certainly “grease the wheels.”

In this case, it’s “really a thing” since the reimbursement is for payment made to the Air Force (whether O pays it or the OP pays it). Someone needs to produce the bill from and payment to the service provider - the Air Force.

From your reply: We have in our possession a bill from Portuguese Air Force identifying us as the recipients of the service and ultimately responsible for the bill. So: I’m still unsure what any of this has to do with NCL unless you mean NCL Holding. Even then it appears that your concern is that Oceania has not provided you proof of their being billed nor their paying that bill in a timely fashion. In any case, you are fortunate to have the California Dept. of Insurance available to you. I suggest you talk with them about for guidance. In particular, ask them about this possible strategy: Inform Oceania by certified mail (the CEO if you can’t get a correct contact person (check with Elliott.org regarding who that might be)) that you have been informed in writing (add copy to your certified letter) by the Portuguese Air Force that you are ultimately responsible to pay the bill and (not having received any proof of payment by, or even a bill from Oceania) you are submitting the Portuguese Air Force bill to your travel insurance company within the required claim time limit. Then, your insurer can pay the bill and, if O also did pay the bill without responding to your request for proof, O will need to seek a refund of overpayment from the Portuguese Air Force. That call to the CA Department of Insurance and any contact with Elliott.org needs to happen ASAP. In short you need to make your problem O’s problem and get out of the middle of the mess.

Chris Elliott - world renown syndicated Travel Columnist who also runs a non-profit consumer advocacy group. One of its services is to provide direct contact info for top execs of various companies if they find your situation warrants it.

When people get the run around with anything related to travel, among the the first folks to contact in your research is elliott.org

Sorry to hear about your grief. But your post raises a bunch of questions. Are you saying that the Portuguese Air Force performed a “field rescue” of your partner from the deck of an Oceania ship? And where did the helicopter take your partner? Were YOU sent a bill directly by the Portuguese Air Force for the “field rescue” to the land facility that provided first emergency treatment and/or were you billed by that Air Force for “medical evacuation” from the land site of emergency treatment to a hospital for inpatient treatment/care? If YOU made any payment of that nature, that bill and your payment proof should satisfy the insurance company (along with the various medical documentation you have demonstrating the MD(s) diagnosis and orders for field rescue and/or medical evacuation. However, it sounds like you’re saying that Oceania Cruises or it’s NCLH consortium or a specific Portugese Port Authority or Oceania’s Port Agent may have been billed by the Portugese Air Force and cannot produce possibly the bill and definitely not any proof that the paid it. If this is true, are you then saying that one of those non-Air Force entities has now billed YOU for reimbursement? If that’s the case, any entity(s) claiming that they paid anyone should be able to demonstrate with documentation that A) it/they were billed AND B) it/they paid it/them AND C) it/they have provided you with copies of A and B AND D) it/they are billing you for reimbursement. As for your insurance company, it makes sense that they want proof of necessary treatment incl. emergency transport of any particular type AND proof of billing and payment. AND, likewise so should you. I want to ask if you have talked with your insurer about this - particularly if the none of the entities above can demonstrate that they were billed by and/or paid the Air Force. And, yes, I understand that you may be under the gun with time allowance to make a claim. But, do you even have a basis for a field rescue reimbursement claim if it wasn’t you who paid or you who was billed by the Air Force? So we’re back to many unanswered questions related to your post. And I’ll add one suggestion/question. Have you spoken with your insurer and/or insurance broker regarding what can be done to direct whoever may want payment from you (now or in the future) directly to your insurer? (Just like what would happen with an auto insurance claim). I’m no attorney. But I’m guessing that the insurer’s or your own attorney could inform whoever from the above group that bill and payment proof is required before XX/XX/XXXX date to be considered and decided.