BootsnAll Travel Community

i can't stand the thought of working for a living ... but how to travel *and* afford health insurance? any americans with tips for maintaining that thin bit of stability while traveling the world? especially if you're not a student and can't afford to pay for health insurance without a full-time job?

am i worrying too much???

jness

Travel with a Visa Gold card. Mine (cdn) gives me full health and repatriation insurance for up to 3 months at a time, as long as I buy my air tickets with it. I asked and they tell me I am fully covered even if I travel to remote back country locations. However, I have never needed them in ten years. The card costs me cdn$90. per year.

Yes, isn't it wonderful that you can have health insurance while you travel? not that you really need it, as in most countries healthcare is either affordable or covered by the government.

How about health care here at home?

Sorry I can't offer any advice--I just don't have it and don't go to doctors. Keep your fingers crossed that I don't get hit by a bus!ë

If you buy travel insurance for your trips, there's usually health coverage included. The specifics vary from package to package and company to company, but usually your medical costs will be covered. Of course, you may never need it, but then again, if you do...

That said, too, in a lot of countries (especially European ones), if you hurt yourself or for some reason need medical attention, even though you're not a citizen of that country, you usually still can get seen, get fixed up/treated, and often still for free, just as if you lived there!

(Lot to be said for social welfare, eh - at least it's nice to know that a lot of countries consider health care a right, not a privilege, like the American system does.)

Whether or not you're insured, I'd also do a little research on where you're going. A couple of years ago, a guy I knew was taking a 3-week vacation to China, and he was advised to bring his own medical supplies, right down to needles and syringes. He didn't need them, fortunately, but still, that's something to check in to, depending on where you're traveling. I don't know how much the paranoia factor figured in there, but still, for some traveling a pretty extensive first-aid kit may be advisable.

If you want to check out some things yourself, in the Health section of the Traveller's Toolkit there are links to a bunch of medical- and insurance-related sites.

Cheers,
Anthony