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Health Insurance Abroad

Adequate health insurance is extremely important when traveling abroad. Accidents can happen to healthy people and you could risk facing enormous medical bills without it. The sections below will help you decide on the type of policy that is best for your needs. At the end of this page is a listing of companies that offer health insurance policies and other resources of information.

Types of Health Insurance

The main choice for health insurance is between the following two options:

  1. Health insurance valid in the U.S. and abroad (some U.S. policies give little or no coverage outside the U.S.). Ideally, you will want to keep in effect insurance valid in the U.S. whil you are abroad.
  2. Special health insurance that is only valid overseas. It's best to purchase such insurance to supplement your main health insurance policy (type 1).

Health Insurance Valid in the U.S. and Abroad

It is very important to verify that your health insurance coverage is valid overseas. Options for obtaining coverage include the following:

Examples

  • Insurance through your parent's or spouse's policy
  • Insurance through your employer
  • Insurance purchased as an individual
Advantages: Disadvantages:
  • Coverage valid in the U.S. If you get sick or injured abroad, the policy will pay for treatment in the U.S., where you can get top quality care and be near your family.
  • Pre-existing conditions are usually (though not always) covered. This is important if you have a medical condition which needs ongoing treatment. If you get sick or injured overseas and do not already have insurance, you will probably not be able to buy insurance which pays for treatment of that pre-existing condition (either in the US or abroad).
  • Overseas restrictions. Some U.S. policies have no overseas coverage or have special conditions abroad, such as the requirement to get approval before treatment. Call your insurance company to find out special overseas restrictions, since these may not be mentioned in brochures or policy statements.
  • Cost. Most policies which provide coverage of medical treatment in the U.S. are more expensive than special policies for overseas treatment because the cost of medical treatment in the U.S. is much more expensive.

Special Health Insurance Valid Only Overseas

Advantages: Disadvantages:
  • Cost. Most special overseas policies are less expensive than equivalent policies valid in the U.S. because the cost of treatment abroad is less and because they exclude coverage in the U.S.
  • No (or very limited) coverage in the U.S. If you get sick or injured abroad, special overseas polices will not pay for treatment in the U.S.
  • No coverage for pre-existing conditions. Note: the U-M/HTH policy does cover pre-existing conditions.

Choosing a Policy

There are several other policy options, besides the ones mentioned above, to consider before making a choice.

Coverage The overall coverage amount and percentage. For example, you could exceed a $50,000 policy for medical evacuation only. Or, a $250,000 policy at 80% could leave you with a large bill if you approached the limit of the policy (not to mention exceeding it).
Exclusions There are usually long lists of exclusions (conditions or circumstances not covered by the policy), which you'll want to read. Examples include coverage during brief return visits to the U.S., injuries resulting from intoxication, specific sports, etc.

Health Insurance Policy Resources

The following list consists of U-M campus resources for travel abroad health insurance.

University of Michigan Travel Abroad Health Insurance administered by HTH Worldwide. This special plan for traveling abroad does not provide coverage in the U.S., except for very limited follow-up treatment for illness/injuries suffered while abroad—so you should keep in effect insurance which covers you in the U.S.

Buy and extend the plan at HTH Worldwide (click on University of Michigan, then authenticate with your U-M uniqname and Kerberos password).
Numbers for emergencies if you have this plan:
Telephone toll-free within the US 888-243-2358
Telephone from abroad +1-610-254-8741
studentinfo@hthworldwide.com

MSA Student Accident and Health Insurance Plan (Aetna Student Health)
734.764.5182
mancare-stuins@umich.edu

For U-M students only: This is the only policy listed here available to American students that provides coverage both in the U.S. and abroad.

For U-M international students: You have mandatory health insurance requirements under a different plan, which provides coverage both in the U.S. and abroad. The policy is available through the U-M International Center.

Health Insurance Plans for Travel Abroad

Note: With the exception of the University of Michigan/HTH policy, the listing of the policies below should not be construed as an endorsement of them. U-M/HTH Travel Abroad Health Insurance A comprehensive, flexible, and affordable plan that can be purchased by U-M students, faculty, and staff for coverage during travel, work, study, or volunteering abroad.

The following plans might be considered by those ineligible for the U-M/HTH plan:

Gateway (Marsh Inc.) Short term plan is called “Gateway International,” long-term plan is “Premier.”
Wallach and Company, Inc. Offers several short-term, long-term, and scholastic plans.
STA International ID Card Insurance Coverage questions http://www.myisic.com/MyISIC/. This very basic insurance is automatically included with International Student (ISIC), Teacher (ITIC) and Youth ID cards. While this insurance can serve to supplement comprehensive health insurance that you have through another policy, it is completely inadequate as your only health insurance.

Medical Evacuation Plans

International SOS Offers Scholastic Traveler or Global Traveler plans. Plans are available for evacuation-only or evacuation plus insurance.
Medex International Offers plans for evacuation-only as well as short-term, long-term and scholastic insurance plans.

Additional Resources

For more listings of overseas insurance policies, see the U.S. Department of State, Medical Information for Americans Traveling Abroad page.


Last reviewed: 6/08