If You are Traveling out of the Country, Make Certain You are Covered
Many insurance plans, including Medicare, will not cover medical expenses
incurred outside the U.S.
Some, such as Blue Cross/Blue Shield, do—and they may even have participating
providers in the country you are visiting. If your plan won’t cover you during
your travels, you may want to consider signing up for travel insurance. You can
purchase medical travel insurance for as little as $49 per person—a pittance
compared to the cost of emergency care and/or medical evacuation, should you
need it.
If You Suspect Your Insurance Company is Fraudulent, Get Help
If you cannot get your insurance company to respond to any of your concerns
or cannot get them to pay your claims, you can contact your state insurance
commissioner’s office. If your benefits booklet does not have the address for
the insurance commissioner in your state, you can locate it by going to
www.naic.org. This website also has other information that can help you resolve
your problem with your insurance company.
I guarantee you that at some point either your healthcare provider will make
a billing error, or your insurance company will make a mistake in processing
your claim—but there is no reason you should be the one to pay for it. Now that
you know how to start, you will be able to pay less for staying healthy.