Heart attack onboard, some observations

[phillygwm]

12 minutes ago, sanger727 said:

we are also not terribly concerned about the cost of the cruise so we don’t purchase comprehensive trip insurance. I have gotten single trip policies through geoblue at a significant discount over full trip insurance. As in $20-$30 for 2 weeks vs $400 for the comprehensive insurance.

Funny, I'd never heard of GeoBlue until a couple days ago when I passed their corporate office on my way to Costco and Googled them 🙂  Their plans seem the most reasonable of the ones I've seen.  

 

I'm going to Europe (non-cruise) next month and the 8 days cost <$50 for a $1 Million policy.  My friends' are older so it's proportionately more, but still under $90.

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, phillygwm said:

Thanks for sharing your experience.  I've never gotten insurance aside from the basics offered by NCL and my credit card but this has given me pause.  I'm not terribly worried about the cost of my cruise, which is mostly covered by CAS, but what happens if I have The Big One while onboard and require a medevac, or hospitalization outside the US?  

Yes, you can look at the cost of the cruise as something you were going to spend anyway. It is the possible cost of hospitalization and evacuation from a foreign country that can unexpectedly wipe out all your savings. You should hope you do not have to use it, but were glad you had the peace of mind of knowing you were protected.

[MagnoliaBlossom]

3 hours ago, Sixtytwo said:

Do you mind sharing the company you get your annual policy from?

Let me go get the card because I don’t recall - 

Emergency Assistance Plus

 My group plan (although I don’t know if that matters is Unted Mileage Plus

customer service number 1-877-815-5567

 

we discovered this plan when we got a Chase United Airlines Credt card.  I’m sure there are lots of other providers.  You might check at insure my trip.com

[brandybit]

we also have bought GeoBlue for many years.  Thankfully never had to use it, but reassuring to have it just in case!   

[Sea Monster 2]

I would like to add to this conversation that the US and peer countries have permanent staff in most countries whose job is to provide assistance to their citizens experiencing distress— I used to do this for a living. If you experience a medical emergency, lose a passport, get arrested, etc, you should always ask to be put in contact with your embassy or consulate. They can assist with medical care, air evacuation, repatriation of remains, issuing a new passport, getting emergency funds wired or processing a loan,  etc. US citizens always register their international travel plans at www.state.gov to facilitate any needed services— other countries have similar services.

[mpk]

3 hours ago, sanger727 said:

we are also not terribly concerned about the cost of the cruise so we don’t purchase comprehensive trip insurance. I have gotten single trip policies through geoblue at a significant discount over full trip insurance. As in $20-$30 for 2 weeks vs $400 for the comprehensive insurance.

 

We also aren't really concerned about the cost of the cruise, but of the real catastrophic stuff, like medical evacuation.  Is that what your coverage covers, just emergency medical stuff?  Not the smaller potatoes, like lost luggage, etc etc etc

[Babr]

Medical-only policies like GeoBlue do not cover travel risks such as cancellation, trip delay, or trip interruption. That is why they are less expensive than comprehensive policies.

[sanger727]

14 minutes ago, mpk said:

 

We also aren't really concerned about the cost of the cruise, but of the real catastrophic stuff, like medical evacuation.  Is that what your coverage covers, just emergency medical stuff?  Not the smaller potatoes, like lost luggage, etc etc etc

yeah. It covers medical and evacuation. It says that it will cover upfront without you having to pay first but I’ve never filed a claim so can’t confirm it.

[sanger727]

4 minutes ago, Babr said:

Medical-only policies like GeoBlue do not cover travel risks such as cancellation, trip delay, or trip interruption. That is why they are less expensive than comprehensive policies.

right. But if you assume that you can handle the cost of travel risks - cost of vacation which you have already paid for, or a possibility of several hundred for a few thousand for cancellation; you can forgo expensive comprehensive policies. None of this compares to the potential tend to hundreds of thousands of risk for medical/evacuation risk that relatively cheap medical only policies cover. 

[Babr]

Yes, the bigger risk is medical. I was just trying to clarify for the person who asked if it did not cover the “small potatoes” stuff. There are other travel risks that are not exactly small, but medical and related emergency care can be much more expensive.

 

 

[julig22]

My medical is basically covered through my Medicare Advantage plan, so that's not a issue.  It really pays to check to see what you have before spending money on duplicate coverage. 

I do plan to get an annual plan because I have a number of overseas trips planned and it will cover covid and CFAR, as well as evacuation.

[Babr]

What company offers an annual plan with CFAR?

[phillygwm]

58 minutes ago, Babr said:

Medical-only policies like GeoBlue do not cover travel risks such as cancellation, trip delay, or trip interruption. That is why they are less expensive than comprehensive policies.

Correct, but if you're using a premium credit card or even the NCL Booksafe insurance your risk of those things is mitigated to some degree. 

 

I'm not saying I'd be happy to lose money if something happened on my trip, and yes, there's a greater probability of a trip interruption than of needing a medevac.  But for me, the purpose of insurance is to protect from an expense that could bankrupt me, even if there's only a 1:5000 chance.  

[Babr]

11 minutes ago, phillygwm said:

Correct, but if you're using a premium credit card or even the NCL Booksafe insurance your risk of those things is mitigated to some degree. 

 

I'm not saying I'd be happy to lose money if something happened on my trip, and yes, there's a greater probability of a trip interruption than of needing a medevac.  But for me, the purpose of insurance is to protect from an expense that could bankrupt me, even if there's only a 1:5000 chance.  

If you are thinking of using credit card coverage, be sure you understand the pre-existing conditions provision and whether it applies to you. Also know that the trip interruption provision pays for only the unused portion of your trip, not for the related costs to get home. Also, the trip delay benefit is only $500. I am speaking of the Chase Sapphire Reserve. American Express may be different. I haven’t looked. 
 

The point is that coverage is somewhat different than what you’d expect from a comprehensive policy, but you are getting it as a benefit included in the price of your annual fee.

Medical-only policies can provide good coverage. I was just making the distinction between them and comprehensive policies for those who may not be familiar with how they work.

 

[phillygwm]

20 minutes ago, Babr said:

If you are thinking of using credit card coverage, be sure you understand the pre-existing conditions provision and whether it applies to you. Also know that the trip interruption provision pays for only the unused portion of your trip, not for the related costs to get home. Also, the trip delay benefit is only $500. I am speaking of the Chase Sapphire Reserve. American Express may be different. I haven’t looked. 

 

Understood.  I have the same card.    

 

I just today bought a GeoBlue policy for an upcoming Europe (land) trip.  Cost me about $42 for $1 Million of coverage which I thought was reasonable.  Does anyone know if that covers cruises as well, or whether a special cruise policy would be needed?

 

If something more mundane happens, like a trip delay or a missing bag, I'll rely on my card coverage.  

[Babr]

2 minutes ago, phillygwm said:

Understood.  I have the same card.    

 

I just today bought a GeoBlue policy for an upcoming Europe (land) trip.  Cost me about $42 for $1 Million of coverage which I thought was reasonable.  Does anyone know if that covers cruises as well, or whether a special cruise policy would be needed?

 

If something more mundane happens, like a trip delay or a missing bag, I'll rely on my card coverage.  

 Did you buy an annual policy or single trip? Either way, GeoBlue will cover you on cruises as well.

[pspercy]

I would add that for a medevac policy you want one that will cover medevac all the way back home not just to the nearest "qualified" hospital.

[phillygwm]

3 hours ago, Babr said:

 Did you buy an annual policy or single trip? Either way, GeoBlue will cover you on cruises as well.

Individual.  Sadly, I'm not traveling enough internationally to warrant the annual policy.  Glad to hear it covers cruises, though!

[fox02554]

14 hours ago, phillygwm said:

Thanks for sharing your experience.  I've never gotten insurance aside from the basics offered by NCL and my credit card but this has given me pause. 

I have to admit , the first thing I did after reading this tread was go check out my trip insurance , medical and evac is included , but is it enough ??? we will have grandchildren ( not really children at 16 & 18) but we are responsible for them and their safty if something happens to us

[Babr]

1 hour ago, fox02554 said:

I have to admit , the first thing I did after reading this tread was go check out my trip insurance , medical and evac is included , but is it enough ??? we will have grandchildren ( not really children at 16 & 18) but we are responsible for them and their safty if something happens to us

Check to see if the policy limits are per person.

[libtrek]

Good news from OP. Relative has been released from hospital and transportation arranged to fly back from DR to Ft . Lauderdale. Will be able to take cruise prearranged flight back home. So far have paid out over $10,000. NCL has been very helpful arranging flights and hotels. Will be so glad to see them!

[BigRedFan]

8 hours ago, pspercy said:

I would add that for a medevac policy you want one that will cover medevac all the way back home not just to the nearest "qualified" hospital.

I am on Medicare which does not cover for travel but I do have a supplemental plan that does cover 80%.  I always buy travel AND evacuation insurance.  I purchase the annual plans.  My Evac insurance with MedJet does cover back to the US to whatever hospital you request.

[billslowsky]

3 hours ago, BigRedFan said:

I am on Medicare which does not cover for travel but I do have a supplemental plan that does cover 80%.  I always buy travel AND evacuation insurance.  I purchase the annual plans.  My Evac insurance with MedJet does cover back to the US to whatever hospital you request.

I was going to add the comment on supp policies, that's required in Medigap plans currently sold (and for many years going back).

 

Bottom line, find out what your current medical covers in these situations, and consider secondary coverage to fill in gaps.  Especially if you have HMO coverage which may provide little out-of-area (never mind country) coverage.  Whether on Medicare or not.

[RunBikeCruiseDC]

Not cruise related but I had a friend that had heart attack in Switzerland, had to pay $7000 out of pocket to be treated for 10 days.  I found that to be very inexpensive compared to 10 days in a cardiac unit in the US.  But how many people have the extra cash to pay for that kind of emergency situation?  Is this unique to the US or do other countries cover that kind of cost with their health plans?

[libtrek]

Update: We are back in Florida. Patient is doing well. He and his wife were flown from Porta Plata to Miami on Saturday, put up in a hotel, then met us on Sunday for their original NCL arranged flight home with us. All of the care and expenses came to $30,000 up front. Waiting to see what kind of reimbursement they get.