I’m an Expat Holding Health Insurance. Do I Need a Travel Policy?
Most expatriate private health cover does not provide full travel coverage when going abroad. Healthcare International is different.
International Health Insurance
If you are an expat who holds an expatriate health plan for the country in which you are currently residing, it is most likely that this insurance will only cover you in that particular country and is not an international insurance for expats. You will also not be covered for other benefits provided by travel insurance such as theft, loss or delayed luggage or belongings and trip delay or cancellation, and much more. We at Healthcare International are one of the top international insurance companies which provides international insurance designed to cover expats living abroad who travel outside of that country. Our travel insurance provides medical insurance abroad (excluding your home country) as well as all the other travel insurance benefits which you would expect which health insurance alone would not cover.
Am I Covered in My Own Country?
Our travel insurance policies for expats are valid in the areas selected within the policy, excluding the policy holder’s home country. These are often countries with public healthcare (but not in all cases). For instance, a UK citizen living abroad who takes out our travel insurance policy will not be covered within the UK itself. Health coverage in the UK is covered by the local NHS insurance.
Am I Covered in the US?
You will only be covered in the US if you selected this policy specifically. This is due to health insurance coverage in the United States being much more expensive than the rest of the world, therefore the premium will be more expensive. If you rarely visit the US, take out a non US covering travel policy. It will cover the rest of the world (except your home country) and the premium will be lower. If you travel to the US often then it is important to research health insurance for visitors to the USA and take out the best travel insurance for the USA.
Travel Insurance Additional Benefits
As mentioned at the start of the article, there are many benefits of having travel insurance. International health insurance may cover medical expenses when you are abroad, but it does not cover other unforeseeable circumstances that are covered in a travel insurance policy, such as:
- Lost or stolen property
- Travel interruption and delays
- Lost documents
- Medical repatriation back to country of origin
Full travel coverage comes in two options. If you travel multiple times per year it is recommended that you purchase a multi-trip cover policy. If you do not travel often then single trip cover would be enough for you. You can read more about our international travel insurance online here.
We do not recommend travelling on just international health insurance with no additional benefits, but Healthcare International travel insurance will cover medical expenses and much more. Get in touch now to see which is the right one for you.