TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Medical issues in so many trip reports

I have to wonder why so many here are having medical issues?
What do we all have in common?
Most who post here are over 60 years old.
What insurance should I add for my next trip to SXM that would cover all medical bills?

First, verify what your personal insurance covers outside the US. Depends on if you are over 60 or over 65. Over 65, those on Medicare have zero coverage outside the US from Medicare. We personally have a Medicare Supplement that covers 80% outside the US.

Once you verify what your personal insurance covers, you can shop for insurance on TTOL sponsor Insure My Trip. If you click on the link here, your cost will be the same, but TTOL gets a small commission.

If you shop for comprehensive plans, they will cover medical bills, including specifically medical evac. You can fill out your details, including age, etc., and what regular travel insurance you need for trip interruption, etc. Look at the prices, and compare coverages, for what is important to YOU. For medical coverages in particular, be aware of whether the coverage is secondary or primary. If secondary, it means that you MIGHT have to pay upfront for those bills and wait to be reimbursed, which might be really difficult, if you have to pay upfront for those bills. As far as medical evac in general, any medical evac from the Caribbean is a MINIMUM of $50,000, so if medical evac coverage is less than $50,000, don't buy that policy. Many of the good ones are $100K or over.

Please post any additional questions.

Also check to see what your credit card covers. Some have travel insurance "built in" if you have paid for a trip with the card. Some years back, my husband suffered a detached retina while in SXM. As soon as he was diagnosed by a doctor in Marigot, who advised us to go home immediately, we called the credit card company. They told us exactly how to proceed, covered the cost of an emergency plane trip home, reimbursed us for unused hotel nights, etc.

Southshore--I haven't heard of that before. Perhaps that is a benefit with some Canadian credit cards?

It doesn't sound like a medical evac, just ending the trip early. My MasterCards through Barclays have this benefit which sounds like what Southshore described.

Enhanced Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption
The cardholder, their family members and traveling companions are eligible for reimbursement for the nonrefundable payments to a Travel Supplier, or the costs to return home early, or to rejoin a trip if a covered trip is cancelled or interrupted due to a sudden illness, injury or death to the cardholder, their spouse, a travel companion or an eligible dependent, inclement weather, change in military orders, terrorist action, jury duty, an uninhabitable home or quarantine imposed by a physician.

Yes, I have medical coverage with my RBC credit card. It's up to 15 consecutive days as long your under 65 and booked with your credit card.

eightzerobits--OK, just sounds like trip expenses, not coverage for medical payments or medical evac. Medical evac is different than just buying a walk up ticket, which I know can be very pricy.

CC--never heard of that

We have Medjet annual policies. I highly recommend it for those who travel frequently. We also carry GeoBlue.

MIDiver--I'm not familiar with Medjet. Based on the name, is it only medical evac?

The card I am referring to is a Desjardins Odyssey Gold card. It is pretty much as eightzerobits described. Not medivac but assistance in getting someone home due to accident or illness. On this card, there is coverage up to 75 years of age for a 15 day trip, longer trips for those who are younger. I can attest to the fact that it was very helpful for us and is free.

That eliminates us.😉

Medjet is similar to TTOL Sponsor Skymed for evacuations only, subject to certain Ts & Cs. I travel extensively in the US, Canada, and the Caribbean. For me personally, Medjet has been my preferred choice for years. For others, Skymed might work better.

Bahston--Do you not buy other travel insurance also? Or just buy it when you go out of the country? We don't travel that much, other than outside the country, where our medical insurance only covers 80%, so we always buy comprehensive, which covers trip cancellation, interrruption, medical and medical evac.