Foreign Travel And Health Insurance.

When you travel outside your health insurer’s regular provider network, your insurer may not pay your medical bills, except for emergency care. Before you travel abroad, check with your health insurer to make sure you understand the rules in your policy. In some cases, especially if you plan to travel for an extended period to study or work, you may want to buy additional coverage.

What you should know about foreign travel and health insurance
Medicare doesn’t cover medical charges you incur outside the U.S. Other health insurers also may exclude or severely limit coverage for medical treatment you receive outside the U.S. You may want to buy additional health insurance to cover yourself while you are traveling.

If you are traveling abroad for a short time, such as for a vacation, insurers offer reasonably priced policies. Insurers may sometimes link this coverage to your purchase of other types of coverage at the same time — such as trip-cancellation insurance that includes medical coverage. Vacation insurance policies also typically cover only short-term travel — such as two weeks. If you think you might stay outside the country for any length of time, be sure to specify any long-term coverage needs.

Under Washington state law, these specialized policies are not classified as full-fledged health insurance. Insurers may legally refuse to cover some pre-existing medical problems. Lastly, unlike most insurance you buy in Washington state, some of these policies may include a deductible that applies to each claim.

Companies that offer health insurance to foreign travelers
The following companies offer health insurance to Americans traveling abroad and to families of Americans who live abroad and want to visit the U.S.

• Access America: 1-800-284-8300
• Champion Insurance: 1-800-643-4675
• Peterson’s of L.A.: 1-800-345-8816
• Travelex: 1-800-228-9792
• Travel Assistance International: 1-800-821-2828
• Travel Guard International: 1-800-782-5151
• Wallach & Company: 1-800-237-6615