mandatory CV-19 insurance for tourists to be introduced

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Not happy. We will have to pay $700. Sure will cut down on our island spending. We already purchased travel insurance so they will be some duplicate coverage. Arrrrgh

In Aruba the price decreases after two weeks....and sounds like it would take the place of travel medical insurance....as long as your medical issue is COVID related

They really are trying to kill sxm tourism. Can’t imagine all the poor car rental company’s, Hotels and other suffering businesses will tolerate that stupidity. It’s becoming expensive Shopping market to get to sxm if your s family. This will take food right off the table if those in desperate need of tourists. Makes me wonder who’s pocket all this money is going into?? Really smells rotten. Hopefully enough will speak up and get this shut down. Just a stupid and ridiculous move.

Can anyone explain exactly what “Covid Insurance” is? I have medical insurance and something called “Passport 360” from CHUBB. Which I interpreted is doing the same as “SkyMed”. Have an email into my agent but trying to understand what exactly they are looking for.

Since the island reopened to the US on August 1st, I have not heard of one visitor getting Covid, sounds like a government money grab to me.

Aruba travel insurance cost looks to be around $10/day for first 7 days
Ages 15 - 75
The premium depends on the length of your stay and starts at $10 p/day for the first 7 days, then decreases to $7 p/day for the next 7 days. It continues to decrease to $3 p/day for the next 36 days and finally to $0 p/day for the next 40 days, thereby maximizing the premium to $224 for stays lasting between 50 to 90 days. However, If you're allowed to stay for longer than 90 days, there's a daily additional rate of $1.40 for up to 180 days (max. insurance period). Please click on the button below to calculate the actual premium.

They are looking for a way to scam more dollars out of every visitor to the island. No where in that article does it mention what are the numbers of people who are visitors to the island that arrive infected or become infected while staying on the island. It would seem to me that those numbers, if very high would be driving this measure, but also, if those numbers were very high they would be shutting the island back down to visitors. I can guarantee you that the island is in partnership with the insurance companies and getting a cut from each and every policy written. This is just another form of taxation. I'm committed to traveling in November to SXM unless this stupidity from the island government continues. If it does continue, this might be my last visit. I hear there is an island going up for sale in the Bahamas, Epstein Estate Auction, maybe a few of us can form an LLC and purchase this island.

We’d planned to buy an international supplemental policy for $40 that covered everyone, so I’m not sure if that might help with this new rule. I think the policy we were considering does not cover expenses for quarantine, though. If this required plan actually helps with that, it might be useful in some way. It’s also important to ensure any medical evacuation coverage includes COVID. My plan has language excluding biosafety level 3 pathogens. I don’t know if COVID falls into that category. Something to look into.

bullsh*t.. Just close down and don't allow any US visitors.

I can’t help but wonder how many more obstacles can they possibly place in the path of would-be returning visitors and the islanders themselves for a realistic financial recovery of the island and it’s people?

??? I had to prove that I did not have the virus before I could get on the plane and now I would have to pay $10 for the day I get off the plane? Confusing.

Well, you could be flying to NY where you will have to self quarantine for 14 days, test or no test. Or CT where you have to have a test in 72 hours. Imagine that?

I believe this will have long term effects. This makes it much more likely to cancel our December trip as well as future trips. The airlines are making it much easier to change our current flights than ever before. We like to go to SXM because we know the island and feel comfortable there. In the past we've stayed on St John, Anguilla, and the Dominican Republic. We have enjoyed all of them. We don't have any ties that "force" us to go to SXM such as a timeshare ownership. The amount of money is not the issue. It is the uncertainty, the evolving rules and the headaches of the trying to comply with them, the feeling of not being wanted, and the feeling of people using the pandemic as an excuse to make money. We have stayed on SXM ~10 times (many times less than many of the posters on this board). These restrictions and requirements will have the effects of limiting travelers to SXM to the diehards (which I don't mean as a negative). What I call occasional SXM visitors (like us) will go elsewhere and potential future SXM diehards will find a different location to love.

Well said, Dan. All of this crap will affect SXM as a destination for much longer than Covid will.

We booked our tickets last night and woke up to this new policy (or proposed policy). There's part of me that wants to cancel the tickets since that's still an option. As was mentioned above, there's no way of knowing what policies or restrictions will be in place by the time we're supposed to travel in December. We booked a trip to St. Martin because we've enjoyed our time there in the past and know the island. There's not a lot of planning involved since we know where to stay, eat, rent, etc. We wanted an easy trip that took minimal preparation since it legitimately might not happen for several COVID-related reasons. However, at this point, I'm probably going to have a back up plan for another island just in case.

The Tourism Minister has been talking about this crap for months and I guess the only reason why it hasn't already gone into effect is because she couldn't get the insurance companies to write it. Just imagine what happens when/if there is actually a claim on this stuff, and they refuse to pay, as SXM insurance companies have a real want to do????

This too shall pass.

If I am reading this correctly , you have to purchase SXMinsurance even though you have private Covid Travel Insurance. Am I correct.

That was the way I read it, too.

And on another note, in speaking with an Allianz representative just the other day, I was under the impression (perhaps mistakenly so?) they were including Covid coverage in their basic policy packages if contracted on the island. I guess I need to contact them again and make certain this is the case.

That's also the way I read it. I guess requiring visitors to have insurance on their own was required before the powers that be discovered that they could make some cash from insurance kickbacks (opinion)...disregarding what it might do to the RESIDENTS who depend on tourism....

I'll be interested to see how medivac is worked into the policy and costs. The Aruba insurance provides a maximum benefit of $75,000, but the "sublimit" for transportation is currently only $350.

Right. Medical evac is not covered at all, basically, on the Aruba policy. Seems like a HUGE waste of money, or a boondoggle for Aruba insurance companies.

My feelings exactly.

I don't see why the requirement just for covid. Most all personal health overage policies will cover medical issues including covid. Maybe a separate evacuation policy would be a good call but not at the prices proposed. Total BS . A money grab that will hurt St Maarten many ways.

Used to go to St Martin at least three times per year and Anguilla a couple of times. Anguilla wants $1500.00 a couple plus tests and quarantines and we know what St. Martin wants. Having spoken to Doctors who are on the frontline(some elderly or low immune systems showing positive results when they clearly are fine) and specialists in the vaccine field(not going to happen this year) we are not unfortunately going anywhere for quite a while. Was booked also to the UK next month and now cancelled as cases and death rates increasing rapidly plus many parts on lockdown and still would need to quarantine for 14 days with heavy fines given if caught. Was hoping this quarantine business would have been gone by November but doesn't appear to be so. Just had a friend though that went through Heathrow and had a 15 minute rapid test that is being accepted.

Just not worth it. If a rapid test(only at the airport one departs from) would be encouraged and approved will look again. Like many here it has wrecked our plans and not getting any younger so time is running out but certain parts of Florida, beaches just as nice, but miss the people on both sides of the Island(SXM), the restaurants and what we have become familiar with. Onwards........

Well, this blows my plan to pop down for my birthday at the end of this month. I had finally begun to see a way to make it happen once they dropped the 72 hour requirement on the testing.

Like many here, I am a "die hard". My husband, not so much. He has become so negative about SXM now that it hurts me deeply. The changing requirements, the money grab. I had to prove negative COVID to get to the damn island. Now you want me to buy something I already have with my own insurance?

No plane is going to let you on for the return if you are positive. Of course you will incur your own expenses to hunker down somewhere whilst sick.

He wants to return to Mazatlan (where we went after Irma in 2017) .... it breaks my heart.

Please don't encourage that, we have plans to arrive 10/31 and have not seen a requirement yet that will stop that. As another poster pointed out several states in the US have worse requirements with the mandatory quarantine for 14 days after arrival.

I just booked and did not know of this. Damn.

For some reason I'm not able to get the quote feature to work, but I wanted to respond to the BeachKitten's post about incurring your own expenses while hunkering down sick. If this policy actually does work like the Aruba one, there is supposed to be some coverage for expenses while quarantining on the island. The Aruba website reads, "Isolation costs: Maximum sublimit of US$125 per day, maximum 14 days, in case of a positive COVID-19 test result."

It's not going to cover everything, but it would definitely be helpful if you ended up stuck on the island for a while. This is the only benefit I can see in a policy like this since most of the other services can be provided cheaper by existing insurance.

All of this makes want to quit my timeshares and SkyMed and just stay home for good. Not a happy camper.

It is a proven fact, the SXM government will do what they want regardless of what us tourists think or want.

Not to stir up the pot, but JD isn't that what governments are to do. Protect their people? We all know that the island is suffering as tourism is what drives it. To be honest I think that each and everyone of us have to make a decision whether we want to jump through the hoops and make the effort or not to go. Sometimes other opportunities arise because of circumstances. I know that not being able to go in the fall of 2017 because of Irma, we discovered another fun vacation spot to fill the void. Life goes on!

Health insurance over and above what I already have?

I'm done.

Last straw.

I've been visiting SXM for decades longer than a lot of the folks here, maybe 40 years. For awhile, my business partner and I even owned a small place in Orleans. I have a special affinity for the French side, and always spent most of my time there. Then I started spending time on St Barth, which was a different world for me, different even than French side. In the past 10-15 years I've been spending more time on St Barth, and less time on either Sint Maarten or St Martin. My usual practice has been to spend 5-6 days on St Maarten/St Martin, and then 10-12 days on St Barth.

I'm done with SXM's changing requirements (c'mon, I already have better insurance), and I'm cutting SXM out of my life. I'll be going to St Barth in November. I'll be going there via SJU or STT, but I won't be going there via SXM. The money which I would have normally spent on a rental car, lodging, and meals on SXM will be spent on St Barth.

No disagreement with the exception that SOME in the SXM government have proven to look out for their own best interests versus truly protection of the local population.

Thank you.

I'm willing to wait this out being a locked in timeshare owner but this is almost enough for me to throw in the towel and find another vacation destination. Come May if this is still being messed with I'm out. Enough is enough.

kind leaning to believe sxmbeachlover

Where in the world can you travel and are permitted to enter the country or island? Scratch off Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Asia ... You will have to wait it out with the rest of us.

Some of those countries won't have such restrictive requirements to come in.

Here is a copy of Aruba mandatory covid insurance fees for people older than 76 years old.
Ages 76+
The premium depends on the length of your stay and starts at $15 p/day for the first 7 days, then decreases to $10 p/day for the next 7 days. It continues to decrease to $5 p/day for the next 36 days and finally to $1.50 p/day for the last 40 days, thereby maximizing the premium to $487 for stays of 90 days. However, if you're allowed to stay for longer than 90 days, there's an additional daily rate of $2 for up to 180 days (max. insurance period). Please click on the button below to calculate the actual premium.

Here is a copy of the Aruba Mandatory covid insurance for people 15-75 years old :
Premiums for persons aged 15-75

The premium starts at US$10 per day for the first 7 days, then decreases to US$7 per day for the next 7 days. It decreases to US$3 per day for the next 36 days and finally to $0 per day for the last 40 days, so for stays lasting between 50 to 90 days the maximum premium is US$224. Stays beyond 90 days to a maximum of 180 days are charged an additional $1.40 per day.

After rereading the article a few times, what is says to me is they can "remove" you from the island, should you have Covid-19, on their terms and your money. Somewhat understandable in these uncertain times. OK, I'm ready for your replies.

Does anyone know (God forbid) where they would "move" you to??

sxmbeachlover--not really sure where you're reading it to say that. My reading was that the requirement to have insurance is basically useless unless the insurance INCLUDES medical evac.

As many others have said in this thread, there are several places now that one can obtain Covid insurance, and a requirement to ALSO have insurance issued by a SXM insurance company is insult to injury.

So this would be for the Dutch side only, yes? What if you plan to stay on the French side? Will you be allowed to fly in on the Dutch side and go to the French without the insurance?

I would read it as a requirement for arriving at PJIA but good question

It would be a requirement to fly into PJIA. I'm not sure what the requirements are for the French side, although they were supposed to be meeting with the idea of making their requirements match each other.

Paragraph three: One of the requirements on which De Weever insisted was for the insurance to include medical evacuations, which have now been included.

You misunderstand my point. I was responding to your "what is says to me is they can "remove" you from the island, should you have Covid-19, on their terms and your money". IF they require insurance, then you wouldn't be paying for the evac, right???

Does the $700 ins. apply to cruise passengers?

Not sure where you're getting $700 from, but the topic is about people who come in by air.

Air or Cruise why would the ins.. be different?

Air you usually stay for an extended time. Cruise you are there for one day and it's the ships problem if you come down with it.

You misunderstood my point. If they charge everyone "upfront" for insurance coverage, then if they want you to leave the island, the island and the government won't incur any charges for your Covid-19 infection because, I imagine the insurance will cover your evac and hospital needs while on the island. It would "streamline" your departure? Just my take.

OK, I still don't get your point, but it's ok.

If they are including daily expenses for quarantine in the insurance policy like they did in Aruba, I would expect most people who test positive would end up isolating wherever they are on the island rather than being sent home. I say that because of the challenging logistics of getting sick people off the island safely (and affordably), but also because I don't see any other reason to include expenses for quarantining. I assume evacuation would only be for those that have to leave due to health complications. That's the way it's usually explained in other insurance policies -- they pay to evacuate only if you can't get the necessary care wherever you already are. With that said, a lot of these questions can't really be answered until the plan is finalized.

There is no doubt in my mind that St. Maarten has planned all of this since before the EHAS site went active. If anyone has taken a look at the online EHAS form from when the site opened, they have always had a place on the form as "step 3" for "payment". It never said what payment would be for but now we do know. Aruba requires payment for the insurance as you complete their online form. (they call it EDC form)