Medical emergencies while travelling are the impetus behind purchasing travel medical insurance. But what does an insurance company know about medical emergencies? When one buys travel medical insurance, are they not merely reducing their potential financial risk? Why should you consider the a travel insurance policy anything more than a financial product?
Well...YES! Travel medical insurance can greatly reduce the risk of the financial perils that are associated with a medical emergency that may occur while travelling - especially to the United States where health care costs are out of control!
BUT...a medical emergency often is not just a stubbed toe or a broken arm, where you go to the hospital or doctor, you get fixed and pay $100, then submit a claim to the insurance company for reimbursement. Sometimes a medical emergency can be a complicated condition, such as a heart attack, or vehicle accident. In such emergencies, a traveller needs assistance to navigate the complicated medical systems they will find abroad when travelling. If your medical emergency finds you incapacitated or bed ridden, you will require a great deal of assistance. This is where the services of the travel medical insurance company come into great use.
Travel insurance companies almost always use a emergency assistance services company to manage any medical emergencies of insured travellers when travelling. These companies are ofter knowledgeable about the health systems abroad, and the protocols required in order to receive appropriate care. However, you must be cognisant that these companies also, are responsible to applying the travel insurance policy to an insured's medical emergency, and to determine if the traveller is actually coverage by the insurance they purchased.
So what happens in the event of a medical emergency when travelling? Well, the first thing that you should do is manage the emergency first. Call 911 or the local authorities for help. Then, and when able, contact your travel insurance company. This is where minutes can save lives! Often these emergency assistance companies will answer your calls for assistance using call-center staff that are not medical professionals! They then screen the call to determine if medical attention is required. If such is the case, the call will be transferred to a medical professional, either a doctor or nurse.
Imagine talking with a $10 per hour call center clerk, during a heart attack, then waiting on hold to receive proper instruction from a real doctor or nurse.
There are some emergency assistance companies that take their roll in providing emergency medical assistance services very seriously. Such companies strictly use medical professionals to answer their emergency assistance lines. That means during a medical emergency, where minutes can save lives, an insured's call for assistance is answered immediately by a real doctor or nurse. There is no screening process and no waiting on hold for an available nurse.
When selecting a travel medical insurance policy, do your research! Read travel insurance surveys and reviews. Ask about the emergency assistance services that support your insurance policy. If the emergency assistance lines are not staffed exclusively with medical professionals, then the travel insurance policy should not be considered. Minutes can save lives, and when its your life, make the right choice.
Check out the emergency assistance services and travel medical insurance product recommended by the Royal Canadian Legion - www.RCLInsurance.ca. It appears they only use nurses to respond to medical emergencies.
Well...YES! Travel medical insurance can greatly reduce the risk of the financial perils that are associated with a medical emergency that may occur while travelling - especially to the United States where health care costs are out of control!
BUT...a medical emergency often is not just a stubbed toe or a broken arm, where you go to the hospital or doctor, you get fixed and pay $100, then submit a claim to the insurance company for reimbursement. Sometimes a medical emergency can be a complicated condition, such as a heart attack, or vehicle accident. In such emergencies, a traveller needs assistance to navigate the complicated medical systems they will find abroad when travelling. If your medical emergency finds you incapacitated or bed ridden, you will require a great deal of assistance. This is where the services of the travel medical insurance company come into great use.
Travel insurance companies almost always use a emergency assistance services company to manage any medical emergencies of insured travellers when travelling. These companies are ofter knowledgeable about the health systems abroad, and the protocols required in order to receive appropriate care. However, you must be cognisant that these companies also, are responsible to applying the travel insurance policy to an insured's medical emergency, and to determine if the traveller is actually coverage by the insurance they purchased.
So what happens in the event of a medical emergency when travelling? Well, the first thing that you should do is manage the emergency first. Call 911 or the local authorities for help. Then, and when able, contact your travel insurance company. This is where minutes can save lives! Often these emergency assistance companies will answer your calls for assistance using call-center staff that are not medical professionals! They then screen the call to determine if medical attention is required. If such is the case, the call will be transferred to a medical professional, either a doctor or nurse.
Imagine talking with a $10 per hour call center clerk, during a heart attack, then waiting on hold to receive proper instruction from a real doctor or nurse.
There are some emergency assistance companies that take their roll in providing emergency medical assistance services very seriously. Such companies strictly use medical professionals to answer their emergency assistance lines. That means during a medical emergency, where minutes can save lives, an insured's call for assistance is answered immediately by a real doctor or nurse. There is no screening process and no waiting on hold for an available nurse.
When selecting a travel medical insurance policy, do your research! Read travel insurance surveys and reviews. Ask about the emergency assistance services that support your insurance policy. If the emergency assistance lines are not staffed exclusively with medical professionals, then the travel insurance policy should not be considered. Minutes can save lives, and when its your life, make the right choice.
Check out the emergency assistance services and travel medical insurance product recommended by the Royal Canadian Legion - www.RCLInsurance.ca. It appears they only use nurses to respond to medical emergencies.
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