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Re: Medical Insurance coverage while in SXM
[Re: Tom]
#319528
05/14/2024 05:48 PM
05/14/2024 05:48 PM
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Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 82,976 Central Florida!
Carol_Hill
Traveler
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Traveler
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 82,976
Central Florida!
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Tom--You have your terms totally crossway there. Medicare ADVANTAGE versus Medicare SUPPLEMENT plans are two totally different products. Also, it depends on what your definition of "MOST" medical problems is and how much they actually cover. Our supplement policy only pays 80%. 20% of $50,000 is still $10,000. The cost for a REAL travel insurance policy including medical evac is not that much, to me, versus the risk. We paid about $150 I think for our upcoming trip. When we were young, we NEVER bought travel insurance. Now? Sh*t happens when you're old.
Carol Hill
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Re: Medical Insurance coverage while in SXM
[Re: Tom]
#319559
05/15/2024 09:18 AM
05/15/2024 09:18 AM
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Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 82,976 Central Florida!
Carol_Hill
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Traveler
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 82,976
Central Florida!
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Tom--again, there is a HUGE difference between ADVANTAGE and SUPPLEMENT. You need to know the difference. If you choose an advantage plan, h*ll, you often aren't covered inside the US for things, if you go to the wrong provider. And even if you are technically covered outside the US, that doesn't mean that you don't have a HUGE co pay. COVERAGE is one thing. Coverage with no co pay is a whole different thing. People should look into their personal coverage, yes. But even in your own case, I don't think you went far enough.
Plus "reimbursement after expenses are paid"?? Again, you have to shell out $50K for a medical evac on your credit card and wait 6 months or a year for them to pay you back?
And you don't need to spend $600 for two weeks. That's crazy. We normally can get what we need for about $150 for 10 days. If you're looking primarily at the medical end of it, compare the policies, like on Insure My Trip, and you can get a good deal.
Carol Hill
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Re: Medical Insurance coverage while in SXM
[Re: Carol_Hill]
#319588
05/15/2024 01:48 PM
05/15/2024 01:48 PM
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Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 1,384 Hershey, Pennsylvania
Tom
OP
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Posts: 1,384
Hershey, Pennsylvania
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Carol, Some clarification is appropriate here. I summarized our personal medical coverage. We asked our insurance company for specific medical coverage in Sint Maarten. Their response was clear. If we required medical treatment of a basic nature while on vacation in SXM, it would be covered as if we were in the US, (we pay no copay for doctors or specialists) as there are no in network providers in SXM.. As stated earlier, any serious medical emergency that exceeded the capability of SXM medical personnel, our insurance representative stated that when contacted by the SXM doctor/hospital, preauthorization would be made and we would be evacuated to the nearest in network facility in the US that offered the required services. No $50,000 evacuation fee which has so many people concerned. I am aware that medical plans vary from state to state in the US. Yes, even we were surprised at our emergency coverage and that is why I suggested that others contact their insurance provider to learn more about their personal coverage and potential to save money. TG
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Re: Medical Insurance coverage while in SXM
[Re: Tom]
#319653
05/16/2024 11:02 AM
05/16/2024 11:02 AM
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Joined: Jan 2017
Posts: 3
Brad_Va
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Posts: 3
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An underlying theme here is managing gaps and redundant coverage. We use SquareMouth ( www.squaremouth.com) to find policies with the specific features we need. Zipling in Costa Rica versus pub crawling in London include very different risk profiles. I have no interest in buying cancellation or interruption insurance because it’s already bundled with one of our credit cards. SquareMouth lets us toggle on & off the features we want without paying for something we don’t need. Brad
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Re: Medical Insurance coverage while in SXM
[Re: Brad_Va]
#319654
05/16/2024 11:26 AM
05/16/2024 11:26 AM
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Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 82,976 Central Florida!
Carol_Hill
Traveler
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Traveler
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 82,976
Central Florida!
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Brad--sounds very much like Insure my Trip. You can customize exactly what you want to purchase.
Carol Hill
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Re: Medical Insurance coverage while in SXM
[Re: Carol_Hill]
#319692
05/16/2024 06:14 PM
05/16/2024 06:14 PM
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Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 412 Greer SC
bostonbob
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Traveler
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Posts: 412
Greer SC
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Carol could you share where you got insurance for that price. We purchased insurance for our last two trips and paid more than you. Luckily we were insured last month when we had to cancel the morning of our flight. We had a check in hand within two weeks which totally amazed us.
Lived most of my life in Massachusetts
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Re: Medical Insurance coverage while in SXM
[Re: Tom]
#319711
05/17/2024 06:25 AM
05/17/2024 06:25 AM
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Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 5,924 New England (home), St. Maarte...
jmbcomms
Traveler
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Traveler
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 5,924
New England (home), St. Maarte...
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Your comment "but may cover all standard medical and emergency evacuation when you cannot get the required medical attention you need in SXM" may be subject to misinterpretation. I can tell you that (as a long time rep for a company providing medical evacuations) you MUST get to a hospital first for evaluation and emergency treatment. Before you can be evacuated by a proper, qualified company (mine is from Arizona), you must be declared "fit to fly" which says putting you on a plane will not endanger your health. And evacuations to the US now cost roughly $55,000 or more payable in cash in advance. That service is NOT normally provided in any health insurance policy. But if it is...check their fine print. For medical evacuations, it probably says they will "take you home OR TO THE NEAREST APPROPRIATE FACILITY" and their decision on the nearest appropriate facility may be the St. Maarten Medical Center, which is NOT home. Or they could drop you in St. Thomas or San Juan, both US territories. That's not home either. Home is where you live....big difference.
Jeff
Jeff Berger Visiting SXM Since 1978
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Re: Medical Insurance coverage while in SXM
[Re: bostonbob]
#319722
05/17/2024 08:50 AM
05/17/2024 08:50 AM
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Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 82,976 Central Florida!
Carol_Hill
Traveler
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Traveler
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 82,976
Central Florida!
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bob--I always book our insurance on Insure my Trip. Just go there and put in your information and what your needs are. It will bring up a huge list of policies. Then you can have them ranked cheapest to most expensive, if you like. For me, the nonrefundable part of the cost of the trip is usually very low, so, even though I get a comprehensive policy, I'm mostly getting it for the medical part of the policy. I would suspect most here are the same--if you literally couldn't go, probably you could get a full refund or transfer of your rooming cost (but maybe not, so check that out). Also, if you cancel a few days out, often you can get a refund of airfare to travel credit. Just look at your particular situation. But, Eric is the oldest and he is 70, so I wouldn't be surprised if the cost goes up pretty steeply, based on age. I haven't put in a fake age to check that out though. BUT! the older you are, the more you need it.
As far as medical evac, for us, a hospital in Miami is OK. If we had to be evacuated from anywhere, the closest suitable hospital to our house would probably be either Tampa or Orlando and either one of those is an hour and a half from home, so 3.5 hours to Miami isn't that different.
Carol Hill
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Re: Medical Insurance coverage while in SXM
[Re: jmbcomms]
#319742
05/17/2024 11:03 AM
05/17/2024 11:03 AM
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Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 1,384 Hershey, Pennsylvania
Tom
OP
Traveler
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Posts: 1,384
Hershey, Pennsylvania
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Jeff, We thoroughly researched this subject. Our insurance folks were specific that if required and the emergency medical treatment was unavailable in SXM, (which would be a hospital and appropriate Doctor) the medical people in SXM would need to contact our insurance people and a preauthorization for medical evacuation would be issued by the insurance company. We confirmed that cost would be the responsibility of the insurance firm. I did not claim that evacuation would be to my home hospital but would be to a qualified medical facility. We are aware of your relationship with SkyMed but since we are 78/75, we are also aware of that cost. We simply just asked our personal insurance representitive and as stated, you must get the very best care during an emergency medical event. We know some folks want to go home, we would like to get to the nearest, in network, facility in the USA. Will we get additional coverage? We might. There are many websites that offer choices, length of coverage, and associated costs for folks like us.
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