This is why you need insurance !

[slabeaume]

Purple Dog---you mention that Carnival decides if you have to leave the ship or not. I'm not sure about Carnival, but I know that on at least one other ship that it's the Dr. who makes the recommendation to the captain. So, yes, the captain has final say, but I don't see him going against what the Dr. recommends. The medical group on board are not part of the cruise lines, they are hired on and don't have the equipment to treat critically ill patients for a long time. Most of their equipment is portable type which isn't convenient for long term use. I had the unfortunate experience of finding all this out on my Dad's and my first cruise when he almost drowned on one of the ship's excursions. We didn't have travel insurance, but fortunately he was retired military and Tricare paid for the medevac and hospitalization. I did have to pay his medical bill to the medical office before we could leave the ship, though, and he was able to get that back from his insurance company later. Definitely a big learning experience! Like you say---hotels, restaurants, changing air tickets, faxing Dr. releases to the airlines.

[pe4all]

Also - clear a credit card for use out of the country before you cruise! Our credit card company asks what ports we will be at on a cruise, and will stop any charges going through from the U.S. for that week, and allow only charges from those ports. A few years ago DD had an appendicitis attack on the Dream. (18 years old and no previous symptoms) We were off-loaded in Belize, and she spent 3 days in the hospital. Luckily I had grabbed our passports before I left the ship with her. As soon as we walked into the hospital, they wanted $500 before even touching her! Yes, I had Travel Insurance (travelguard - they were wonderful) but put up my credit card for quick payment so she could be looked at. 2 hours later they wanted another $500 to admit her. This isn't the U.S.! Between hospital bills, airfare home, hotel, food, $7,000 later we were done. Got back all but $5 from trip insurance. (still can't figure out what was denied for $5!!:p:D) Edited November 19, 2014 by pe4all

[Mary Ellen1]

[quote name='slabeaume']Purple Dog---you mention that Carnival decides if you have to leave the ship or not. I'm not sure about Carnival, but I know that on at least one other ship that [B][COLOR="Red"]it's the Dr. who makes the recommendation[/COLOR][/B] to the captain. So, yes, the captain has final say, but I don't see him going against what the Dr. recommends. The medical group on board are not part of the cruise lines, they are hired on and don't have the equipment to treat critically ill patients for a long time. Most of their equipment is portable type which isn't convenient for long term use. I had the unfortunate experience of finding all this out on my Dad's and my first cruise when he almost drowned on one of the ship's excursions. We didn't have travel insurance, but fortunately he was retired military and Tricare paid for the medevac and hospitalization. I did have to pay his medical bill to the medical office before we could leave the ship, though, and he was able to get that back from his insurance company later. Definitely a big learning experience! Like you say---hotels, restaurants, changing air tickets, faxing Dr. releases to the airlines.[/QUOTE]

slabeaume, I was going to say the same thing. We had a teenage member of our party (my nephew's BFF) who broke his leg, while playing basketball on the first night of the cruise. The ship's dr. explained to us that it was up to him to determine the patient's status, and whether he could continue his cruise or not.

He said there were 3 levels that they used to classify the patient:

[LIST=1]
[*]the patient was critically ill and needed to be med-evac'd immediately
[*]the patient was stable but needed to be hospitalized, or possibly flown home for further care, at the next port stop
[*]the patient was OK to continue their cruise.
[/LIST]

Our teenager was classified in the 2nd group, and, after a day at sea, he was tendered off the ship (a painful experience) at Grand Cayman, our first port. The sight of this beefy high school football player, in a lot of pain, with his leg in a brace, being lifted & carried onto the tender by ship's crew members who were about 1/3 of his size was quite something. And can you imagine being my sister :eek:, and making all those phone calls to the kid's mother? ("Yes, we'd love to take your son on our cruise with us. We're very responsible parents, and he'll have a great time! JUST KIDDING!" :p )

At least this kid didn't have to pay any costs for Grand Cayman hospital treatment, because he was put in a taxi & taken straight to the airport. Carnival helped us arrange the flights. My older nephew accompanied him home, and my BIL accompanied the two of them in the taxi to the airport, to make sure they got off OK.

After all that drama, the departure of the teenager any my older nephew opened up a couple of spots at our dining table, and BIL invited the ship's dr. and his staff to dine with us for the rest of the cruise. It was really interesting! We had the dr. most nights, and 1 or 2 of the nurses as well. :)

To get back to my original point, one caveat here is this: if you're ill enough to visit the ship's medical center, it's up to THEM whether or not you get to continue your cruise.

Another caveat: if you think you don't need insurance because you're young & healthy, think again... :(

[NavarreCruiser]

[quote name='PAPERBKWRITER']To those who never buy it. Do you still buy home-owner's insurance or car insurance even though you've never had an accident or fire?[/QUOTE]

Yes, we still buy home-owner/ car insurance. But after 94 cruises, we would have spent more on cruise insurance than a missed cruise or a hospital bill would cost.

[PurpleDog]

[quote name='slabeaume']Purple Dog---you mention that Carnival decides if you have to leave the ship or not. I'm not sure about Carnival, but I know that on at least one other ship that it's the Dr. who makes the recommendation to the captain. So, yes, the captain has final say, but I don't see him going against what the Dr. recommends. The medical group on board are not part of the cruise lines, they are hired on and don't have the equipment to treat critically ill patients for a long time. Most of their equipment is portable type which isn't convenient for long term use. I had the unfortunate experience of finding all this out on my Dad's and my first cruise when he almost drowned on one of the ship's excursions. We didn't have travel insurance, but fortunately he was retired military and Tricare paid for the medevac and hospitalization. I did have to pay his medical bill to the medical office before we could leave the ship, though, and he was able to get that back from his insurance company later. Definitely a big learning experience! Like you say---hotels, restaurants, changing air tickets, faxing Dr. releases to the airlines.[/quote]

I am sure both you and MaryEllen are correct. =)

It was decided very quickly - in fact before my wife and I even arrived down in the medical area - that my sister was going to be be taken off the ship to the hospital in Grand Cayman.
It was a very rushed process because we were within 90 minutes of the ship sailing for Cozumel.

Despite being told that the doctor would speak with us, the doctor never did.
All were were told was that my sister fell and that she hurt her back.
No one ever explained why they thought it best that she needed to get off the ship asap.

They had me fill out the accident report because my sister could not use a pen and clipboard.
As I have mentioned before, we were told that someone had to leave the ship with my sister and we quickly decided that my wife and I would leave.

We were given literally just 15 minutes to pack up our belongings and make it down to the tender area.
We were - the entire 15 minutes - constantly being told by the ships purser and his staff to "hurry up."

We were throwing stuff into our luggage and did not realize what we had and what we had left behind until we checked into the hotel many hours later. =)

[RDC1]

[quote name='kelkel2']Thank you.
This post has been an eye opener to say the least.
Not to mention my Grandma and her husband were traveling in Italy this past month and she was reaching for something in a store and fell. She fell hard and hit her head. She takes blood thinners due to a heart condition and they could not get the bleeding to stop and so she was rushed by ambulance to the nearest hospital. Where THEY KEPT HER PASSPORT until the balance was paid. Now tell me how messed up that is. Is it legal? Who knows? But I sure wouldn't want to have to pay for that bill. I guess they kept the passport to ensure they would get paid before she fled the country. But geesh...[/QUOTE]

That is interesting because in Italy an accidental injury is usually covered by the national program, even if you are a visitor to the country. A friend of mine had an accident while on a bicycle trip there. When they asked about charges they were told it was covered because it was an accident. Was she taken to a private hospital or was it ruled to not be an accident.

As far as keeping her passport, that is not uncommon in European countries.

[pe4all]

[quote name='kelkel2']Thank you.
Where THEY KEPT HER PASSPORT until the balance was paid. Now tell me how messed up that is. Is it legal? Who knows? But I sure wouldn't want to have to pay for that bill. I guess they kept the passport to ensure they would get paid before she fled the country. But geesh...[/QUOTE]
They did the same thing to us in the Belize hospital - but they said it wasn't because of the bill. They kept our passports to make sure dd was well enough to be discharged from the hospital and fly back to the U.S. Once the doctor gave her the okay, our passports were returned to us.

[katiel53]

[quote name='Sparky2']We always buy Travel Insurance and it is costly because we are in our early 70s. I cringe whenever we buy it! Medicare does not cover out of the US. Our Medigap policy would cover 80% after a $250.00 deductible. However, if it was a $50,000 Medivac bill it would still be very expensive.

We purchase through InsureMyTrip and choose one that is PRIMARY. Carnival's insurance is SECONDARY so you have to submit to other insurance first.[/QUOTE]

I just wanted to mention that several years ago we had insurance and it was considered secondary, but since Medicare didn't cover expenses out of the country, they did pay the doctor bill and meds while I was on a ship. I do realize that is not the same as being evacuated, but if there is no primary insurance because the insurance you have doesn't pay out of the country, you might still be covered. Also, things might have changed, but it is worth asking about before paying the extra expense if there is one for the primary part.

[Christine in MO]

No flames please because I do think that purchasing insurance is important but why would Carnival not be responsible/liable in anyway? Obviously, we do not what exactly caused her to fall BUT if the Lido deck was wet or spilled food/grease/soda, etc wouldn't the cruise line be responsible in someway? I'm not a sue-happy person and have never personally sued anyone in my life but I did work for an insurance company for many years and I know that if someone falls on my property or is sitting in one of my kitchen chairs and the chair breaks and they are injured I have liability insurance for such things. For example my step-sister stepped off the edge of someones driveway while carrying her baby to the car and twisted her ankle. That homeowner had liability insurance that helps pay for her medical bills. Again, no flames please but I just don't understand how Carnival can write off any liability so quickly.

[sparks1093]

[quote name='Christine in MO']No flames please because I do think that purchasing insurance is important but why would Carnival not be responsible/liable in anyway? Obviously, we do not what exactly caused her to fall BUT if the Lido deck was wet or spilled food/grease/soda, etc wouldn't the cruise line be responsible in someway? I'm not a sue-happy person and have never personally sued anyone in my life but I did work for an insurance company for many years and I know that if someone falls on my property or is sitting in one of my kitchen chairs and the chair breaks and they are injured I have liability insurance for such things. For example my step-sister stepped off the edge of someones driveway while carrying her baby to the car and twisted her ankle. That homeowner had liability insurance that helps pay for her medical bills. Again, no flames please but I just don't understand how Carnival can write off any liability so quickly.[/quote]

They might have some liability, they might not. I'd rather have an immediate way to cover the bill now and let the lawyers fight it out later (rather than using my money to pay the bill now and wait for the lawyers to fight about it).

You may also get injured while ashore when it is no one's fault and still need coverage for the bill.

[twinklen01]

[quote name='lcgvol']PurpleDog,
I have a friend that had a severe case of diverticulitis while on their cruise and was left in Cozumel with his father in law at the local hospital. He was there for 5 days before they were able to fly back to Florida. The rest of the family stayed and finished the cruise. The trip was paid for by his in laws and was the first time they DID NOT purchase travel insurance. However, when they returned home, they realized they had coverage through the credit card that was used to pay for the trip. Any chance you used a card with coverage?[/QUOTE]

To OP hope your sister has a speedy recovery. Thank you for posting this. We've only been on 2 cruises and have purchased trip insurance. We are planning a 3rd cruise a short one 3-4days and dd15 doesn't want to go. Shes afraid of Ebola and all of a sudden whales. We told her she can stay with grandma. Well dh says well if shes not going then we don't need trip insurance and I'm like I guess. Now that I read your post, I'm like what was I thinking of course we need it!!!! If something happens to dd and we need to get back trip insurance covers that right..family emergency??


Credit card coverage- I forgot creditcards offer trip insurance if you use the card. Now I'm curious which cards offer the best coverage

[frangran]

My credit cards have dropped the travel insurance in the past few years.

Over the years I've read such heart breaking stories from people who didn't think they needed insurance. It's NOT that expensive!

I have Humana (Medicare) which has some limited coverage outside the USA, but I always get complete trip insurance from insuremytrip.com .

I always get a policy which covers me if the cruise/tour company goes under (what was that really big tour company that went bankrupt in the 80's or 90's & left thousands of tourists stranded? Travelcoa or something like that.)

[bayoubabe516]

My daughter who was 14 at the time had an appendicitis beginning the morning we were getting off the Jewel of the Seas. Luckily it was not the day before... When we were in the middle of the Gulf. This was the only cruise I didn't have insurance because we had won it at bingo. Everything was ok but it's a great lesson.


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[freagan]

8 Grand? You were lucky.

My bill came to 70K all in. Thank you insurance.

[Mary Ellen1]

Just wanted to mention... If you skip the trip cancellation insurance, you can still purchase just a med-evac policy, which is significantly cheaper.

After our situation with the teenager who broke his leg (see my earlier post), we started getting medical trip insurance. Back then, DH & I had 10-12 cruises where we hadn't bought ANY insurance. The full insurance policies (covering cancellation AND medical) run about $100 a trip for the two of us, so I figure that's $1200 we didn't spend, and that means we're self-insured against a cancellation (for an inexpensive Inside cabin). So now we get the medical policies, usually for $40-something total for the two of us. They cover medical treatment and med-evac situations.

Check out the insurance board here on CC -- it's got lots of good info.

Here's hoping you never need the insurance... :)