International Travel On Your Cards? Choose The Right Visitor Insurance
How to Choose Best visitor Insurance plan- complete guide
When you finally decided to go on an international trip and informed your friends and family about it, what was the first thing that you received as a helpful piece of advice? Get Visitor Insurance before flying. Right? Well, you have already heard about it. And probably were wondering, is investing in Medical Insurance for Visitors to USA worth it when you already have health insurance in place?
Yes, a suitable travel medical insurance plan is more vital than what all you have in your luggage. However, the real challenge is choosing an appropriate policy from an ocean full of options.
Relax and read on. Going through this content will help you learn about the different types of travel medical insurance policies available in the market.
Once you get an idea about the options and their features, it will become easy to choose the right one. However, it would be wise to understand your insurance needs in the first place and then decide on a plan.
How do you choose the most suitable travel insurance plan for your upcoming overseas trip?
Well, it largely depends on your trip category - destination-dependent single-trip, multiple-trip, activity-related, long-term, and student trip. So, let's take a look at the trip-based insurance policies at a glance.
1. Multi-trip:
Are you a frequent international traveler? Do you travel outside your home country multiple times in a year? If so, then you should consider buying a good multi-trip annual cover. Such plans are exclusively designed for travelers like you, for example, sales personnel or business executives who need to go on international trips more than once a year.
2. Destination-dependent, single-trip travel:
Are you planning a single trip to an international country? A fitting insurance cover for you is destination-based.
- USA: If the USA is your travel destination, it is advisable to buy a visitors' insurance plan. There are two types of this plan - fixed and comprehensive coverage plan. As the name suggests, the former plan covers only a fixed amount for a given medical procedure. Paying for the remaining amount would be your responsibility. If your budget is low, you may opt for this plan.
- The comprehensive coverage plan pays for your bills on a percentage basis. Moreover, as most of these plans are a part of the PPO networks, direct billing becomes hassle-free and quick.
- Schengen Countries: If you are planning to visit any of the 26 European Schengen countries, a Schengen visa insurance is good to go. This insurance plan fulfills all your insurance requirements as per the Schengen agreement. The best thing, it allows you to download your visa right after you buy the policy.
- International travel excluding the USA: If international travel is on your cards, but the tour itinerary does not have the U.S. in its list, single-trip visitor insurance is all you need. This type of plan covers you till your strip lasts.
- Traveling in Group: Do you like the company of your gang of girls or boy squad wherever you go? How many people does your group comprise? If the numbers are five or more and you are all set for your single trip overseas, going for a group travel health insurance is a good idea.
3. Activity-dependent travel
Are you off to a foreign country for any special cause or to partake in a specific activity? If yes, then you should choose a plan customized according to your unique requirements.
Mission-based short trips: Are you flying overseas to participate in volunteering opportunities? These trips are known as mission trips, and the perfect insurance to match the trip requirements is missionary travel insurance. This policy covers short trips ranging from 5-days to less than 1-year. Some of the top benefits of buying this type of insurance include the following:
- Emergency medical bill
- Emergency evacuation on medical grounds
- Trip interruption
- Ancillary benefits, including emergency money transfer, natural disaster relief, prescription refill
Trips including perilous sports and other hazardous activities: Does your trip planning have adventure sports on the list, such as jet skiing, bungee jumping, skydiving, snow skiing, kayaking, mountaineering, hiking, or scuba diving? If yes, then you should not even imagine your trip with a hazardous sports travel insurance plan. Always remember, your regular travel insurance plan is less likely to cover adventure and perilous sports. Also, do not forget to check the terms and conditions and wordings of your policy. It will ensure that the activities you intend to participate in are on the list.
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How to Select the Perfect Visitors Insurance / Travel Health Insurance Plan
4. Student insurance
The name itself is self-explanatory, this insurance plan is geared for students traveling overseas for educational purposes. There are various types of student insurance policies. These include the following:
International students with F1 Visa: Insurance for F1 Visa holder international students includes nonimmigrant candidates who are registered for a full-time academic program in the USA. Many universities provide group health insurance (school-sponsored) to the students. However, they do not allow the students to buy their own coverage. Most of these plans come with reasonable premium options and standard insurance coverage benefits. These include the following:
- Low deductible
- Pre-existing illness cover
- Mental health cover
- High coinsurance
Exchange visitors with J1 visas: Are you a university student, a camp counselor, a research scholar, or a physician? Do you participate in exchange programs? Insurance for exchange visitors with J1 visas includes the following coverage options:
- Accidental death and dismemberment
- Medical evacuation
- Return of mortal remains
Study Abroad: Are you a resident of the USA? Are you planning to study outside your home country? The study abroad insurance plan is the right choice for you. This plan offers the following standard coverage options:
- Emergency medical evacuation
- Medical coverage
- Repatriation of mortal remains
For additional coverage, you may explore other insurance plans. Study abroad coverage plans do not comply with the ACA (Affordable Care Act). Moreover, your parents can also buy these plans on your behalf.
5. Long-term stay insurance plan:
Are you planning to live outside your native country for a long time, say one year or so? In such cases, you should go for a long-term coverage plan instead of short-term visitor insurance.
Expatriate health insurance: This plan covers individuals who live outside their home country or the U.S. for more than 6-months at a stretch. This policy offers the following benefits:
- A high health insurance policy maximum
- Wellness checkups
- Emergency evacuation on medical grounds
- Repatriation of mortal remains
- Maternity benefits (Optional)
- Dental treatment cover(Optional)
- Life insurance(Optional)
Marine crew health cover: Are you a marine or yacht crew member? The Marine crew health insurance plan will cover you when you are on the sea or land. The range of coverage it offers include the following:
- Visits to doctor's clinic
- Accidents
- Hospitalization
- Surgery, to name a few.
If you intend to buy ACA-compliant health insurance, the long-term health insurance plans might not be worth going for.
Note: If your travel plan consists of visiting a remote location when healthcare facilities might not be up-to-date, it is highly advisable to buy a travel health insurance plan that offers high coverage for emergency evacuation on medical grounds.
Conclusion:
Now that you have a clear idea about the types of the best visitor insurance plans you can buy, understand your travel destination and your insurance needs to buy the most appropriate plan and enjoy your trip sans troubles.
About the Creator
Manav Rana
Manav Rana is a passionate Research Analyst. He loves to explore the travel & eCommerce industry, different online business models, tech trends and provide useful insights to readers.
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