Does Travel Insurance Cover Medical Expenses?

Imagine being in another country and the airline loses your luggage or your trip is interrupted due to a death in your family back home. You could have an accident that results in a broken arm or a natural disaster could occur, rendering your accommodations uninhabitable. Your trip could be canceled before it begins, or your trip could end early due to an emergency where you need to get home NOW. Your travel insurance may have provisions for each of those scenarios.

Trip cancellation insurance includes a Trip Cancellation benefit that reimburses you for prepaid, nonrefundable expenses (tours, hotel accommodations, airfare, etc.) if you must cancel your trip due to a covered reason.

Depending on your insurance plan, a covered reason could be something like:

• You becoming injured or ill prior to travel and your doctor advising you not to travel
• An immediate family member passing away that requires you to cancel your trip
• Your airline canceling your flight due to inclement weather

While a Trip Cancellation benefit can cover the cost of a trip canceled before it has begun, a Trip Interruption benefit may be used once the trip has already started. If you end your trip early for a covered reason, the Trip Interruption benefit can cover your unused and nonrefundable trip expenses.

Some covered reasons for interruption could be:

• You end your trip early when you become ill or injured and your doctor advises you to go home.
• Your host has a medical emergency during your trip, so you end your vacation early.
• There is a mandatory evacuation of your destination because of a natural disaster while you are on vacation, and you must cancel the rest of your trip.

You can learn more about the difference between trip cancellation and trip interruption here.

In addition to cancellations, travel mishaps, and travel-related emergencies, accidents happen. It would be unfortunate to have an accident resulting in injury or illness during your vacation, but emergency medical insurance for international travel can reimburse you for expenses resulting from sickness or injury.

The Atlas Journey plans from WorldTrips include an *Emergency Accident and Sickness Medical Expense benefit to provide coverage for medical expenses resulting from an unexpected illness or injury during your trip, including expenses resulting from COVID-19. Here’s how the three Atlas Journey plans stack up in terms of the **Emergency Accident and Sickness Medical Expense benefit:

• Atlas Journey Elevate – Up to $250,000 (primary coverage)
• Atlas Journey Explore – Up to $150,000 (primary coverage)
• Atlas Journey Escape – Up to $50,000 (excess coverage)

This benefit provides coverage for eligible unexpected medical expenses, which could include costs for physician treatment, emergency surgery, sutures, hospitalization, and more. Expenses resulting from COVID-19 are covered the same as any other illness up to the Emergency Accident & Sickness Medical Expense maximum benefit listed above.

NOTE: “Primary coverage” means your Atlas Journey plan will pay the claim first. “Excess coverage” means insurance provided by your Atlas Journey policy will be in excess of all other insurance. If other insurance is in place when the claim is incurred, your Atlas Journey policy will only cover the excess of any amount paid or payable under other insurance.

*The Emergency Accident and Sickness Medical Expense benefit is replaced with Emergency Injury and Sickness Medical Expense in New York. This coverage is primary for all NY plans. 

**The Emergency Accident and Sickness Medical Expense benefit maximum limit (per person) is $50,000 for all New Hampshire plans. 

Atlas Journey plans also include a Medical Evacuation benefit with the following benefit limits:

• Atlas Journey Elevate – Up to $1,000,000
• Atlas Journey Explore – Up to $750,000
• Atlas Journey Escape – Up to $250,000

This benefit covers expenses incurred for emergency medical evacuation to the nearest suitable hospital when you are critically ill or injured and no suitable local care is available. Note that you must have approval prior to the evacuation for coverage.

In this day and age, you may be looking for travel insurance that covers COVID-related expenses. Review the policy documents for any plan you’re considering to determine whether it includes any COVID coverage.

For example, you could fall ill or be hospitalized due to COVID-19 before departing on your trip, and your doctor would likely advise you not to travel. Illness that prevents you from traveling is a valid covered reason for cancellation under many travel insurance policies, including Atlas Journey, so your plan may cover your prepaid and nonrefundable trip expenses if you cancel.

In case you fall ill with COVID-19 during your trip, look for a plan that includes coverage for unexpected medical expenses resulting from COVID-19. Eligible medical expenses related to COVID-19 are covered the same as any other illness under our Atlas Journey plans (up to the Emergency Accident & Sickness Medical Expense maximum benefit for the plan you choose).

What about quarantine? Some plans, like Atlas Journey, provide some coverage if you are quarantined during your trip dates. For example, Atlas Journey includes a Travel Delay benefit that will reimburse you up to $150 per day (up to a $2,000 maximum) for a 5+-hour delay under Atlas Journey Explore, up to $200 per day (up to a $2,000 maximum) for a 5+-hour delay under Atlas Journey Elevate, or up to $100 per day (up to a $500 maximum) for a 6+-hour delay under Atlas Journey Escape. The delay must be due to a covered reason while en route to your trip, during your trip, or while returning from your trip. Covered reasons include quarantine.

Finally, let’s say you want to be able to cancel if you become concerned about COVID conditions in your destination. General COVID concerns are NOT a valid reason for canceling your trip under most travel insurance plans. You’ll need to look for a plan that includes a Trip Cancellation for Any Reason (CFAR) benefit upgrade that would reimburse you if you if you were to cancel your trip due to a reason not already covered under your policy’s Trip Cancellation benefit. (This CFAR benefit is discussed in additional detail above.)

For now, here are a few types of expenses that Atlas Journey—and many other travel insurance plans—do not cover:

• Routine or preventive medical expenses – The Emergency Accident & Sickness Medical Expense benefit does not provide coverage for any non-emergent treatment or surgery, routine physical examinations, routine COVID-19 testing, elective procedures, etc.
  
  
• Pre-existing conditions*, but only under certain circumstances – Pre-existing conditions are excluded from medical coverage if you purchase your Atlas Journey Elevate or Atlas Journey Explore plan more than 21 days after you made your first payment toward your trip or your Atlas Journey Escape plan more than 14 days after you made your first payment toward your trip. In this case, a 90-day lookback period will apply to pre-existing conditions. (Note that the pre-existing condition exclusion does not apply to the Emergency Medical Evacuation benefit or the Repatriation of Remains benefit.)

If you purchase your Atlas Journey Elevate or Atlas Journey Explore plan within 21 days of the date you made your first payment toward your trip or your Atlas Journey Escape plan within 14 days of the date you made your first payment toward your trip and you are medically able to travel on your policy purchase date, pre-existing conditions are eligible for coverage but are still subject to the other conditions and exclusions of your policy.

• Expenses incurred if you travel against the advice of a physician
• Treatment for mental, nervous, or psychological disorders – This exclusion applies unless you are hospitalized for 72 hours or more for the condition while your policy is in effect
• Participating in bodily contact sports, extreme sports, and certain adventure sports excluded under your policy – This exclusion applies unless the sport is covered under the optional Adventure Sports upgrade and you've added this coverage to your plan

*Pre-existing condition means an illness, disease, or other condition during the 90-day period immediately prior to your effective date of coverage for which you:

1. received a test, examination, or medical treatment;
2. received a recommendation for a test, examination, or medical treatment; or
3. took or received a prescription for drugs or medicine.

Item (3) above does not apply to a condition which is treated or controlled solely through the taking of prescription medication and remains treated or controlled without any adjustment or **change in the required prescription throughout the 90-day period before your coverage effective date.

**Change in required prescription means the dosage or frequency of a medication has been increased, reduced, stopped, and/or new medications have been prescribed due to the worsening of an underlying condition that's being treated with the medication, unless the change is:

1. between a brand name and a generic medication with comparable dosage; or
2. an adjustment to insulin or anti-coagulant dosage.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Coverage varies by plan and state of residency. Please review the policy documents specific to your plan and state of residency for a full list of covered reasons, conditions, exclusions, and upgrades. This coverage is offered as Atlas Journey Economy, Preferred, or Premier in certain states. 

Note: Like trip cancellation plans, travel medical insurance plans, like Atlas Travel, usually don’t cover treatment for **pre-existing conditions. However, those with a pre-existing condition can still purchase a travel medical insurance plan to get coverage for other eligible expenses for injuries, illnesses, medical evacuation, and travel mishaps not related to a pre-existing condition or otherwise listed in the policy exclusions.

**Under Atlas Travel, a pre-existing condition is any injury, illness, sickness, disease, or other physical, medical, mental, or nervous disorder, condition, or ailment that, with reasonable medical certainty, existed at the time of application or at any time during the 2 years prior to the effective date of this insurance, whether or not previously manifested, symptomatic or known, diagnosed, treated, or disclosed to us prior to the effective date, and including any and all subsequent, chronic or recurring complications or consequences related thereto or resulting or arising therefrom.

Acute Onset of Pre-existing Condition means a sudden and unexpected outbreak or recurrence that is of short duration, is rapidly progressive, and requires urgent care. A pre-existing condition that is a chronic or congenital, or that gradually becomes worse over time is not acute onset of a pre-existing condition.

The Acute Onset of Pre-existing Condition benefit will only apply if all of the following conditions are met:  

1. The Acute onset of a Pre-Existing Condition does not directly or indirectly relate to a chronic condition or congenital condition;
2. Treatment must be obtained within twenty-four (24) hours of the sudden and unexpected outbreak or reoccurrence;
3. You must be under eighty (80) years of age;
4. You must not be traveling against or in disregard of the recommendations, established treatment programs, or medical advice of a physician or other healthcare provider;
5. You must not be traveling with the intent or purpose to seek or obtain treatment for the pre-existing condition;
6. You must be traveling outside your home country 

People are traveling internationally again, but for some the threat of contracting COVID before or during your trip still lingers. Some travel medical insurance plans provide coverage for emergency medical expenses related to COVID-19.

For example, our Atlas Travel plan offers up to $2,000,000 of overall maximum coverage, which includes eligible expenses related to COVID-19. This applies to medical benefits such as Hospital Room and Board, Local Ambulance, Intensive Care Unit, Emergency Medical Evacuation, and more.

If you’re seeking travel insurance coverage that would allow you to cancel your trip due to growing fears about COVID in your destination, consider a trip cancellation insurance plan like Atlas Journey that allows you to add an optional Trip Cancellation for Any Reason benefit. You can learn more about this optional benefit upgrade above.

Deciding on the best travel insurance or the best travel medical insurance for COVID depends on your specific needs and concerns. You may want the ability to cancel for any reason, so a travel insurance plan with a CFAR upgrade would provide this option. You may just want a basic trip cancellation plan which includes cancellation coverage if you become ill before traveling. You may also be satisfied having coverage for medical expenses resulting from COVID-19 with a travel medical insurance plan.

IMPORTANT NOTE! Some countries require travel medical insurance that meets specific requirements before you are allowed entry. Use this interactive travel restrictions map from Kayak to learn about insurance, vaccine, quarantine, and testing requirements. Also review your destination’s government website (i.e., government site, local health department site, or embassy/consulate site) frequently leading up to your trip. Then take your time in selecting the right insurance policy that meets your needs and budget.

Travel health insurance is often budget friendly. Policy costs can vary based on age, length of trip, coverage amount, the deductible you choose, and whether you’re traveling inside or outside the U.S.

*$0.50 per day based on a traveler in the youngest age group (14 days – 17 years) traveling outside the U.S. with a $5,000 deductible and a $50,000 maximum limit in August 2024.

**$16.12 per day based on a traveler in the oldest age group (80+ years) traveling outside the U.S. with a $0 deductible and a $10,000 maximum limit in August 2024.

***Prices valid as of August 2024.

*$0.96 per day based on a traveler in the youngest age group (14 days – 17 years) traveling inside the U.S. with a $5,000 deductible and a $50,000 maximum limit in August 2024.

**$24.57 per day based on a traveler in the oldest age group (80+ years) traveling inside the U.S. with a $0 deductible and a $10,000 maximum limit in August 2024.

***Prices valid as of August 2024.