TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums British Virgin Islands Covid Travelers insurance for BVI

I just had a short conversation with my medical insurance company AARP Medicare Advantage Focus (HMO-POS) Indian River County Florida In the policy it states that there is a $0 copay for emergency care worldwide as well as Urgently Needed Services $0 copay worldwide,

So as I see it any covid event in the BVI would be covered by my policy and thus I do not need to buy a covid policy since I already have coverage.

I will ask my insurance company to provide me with a letter stating the above.

Emergency medical care and medical evacuation specifically for sickness from COVID-19? I know some trip insurance policies like Allianz have very specific details on their COVID-19 coverage, whether you are affected prior to or during your trip. I would want definite confirmation my health insurance actually covered sickness SPECIFIC TO COVID-19 while out of my home country, during a global pandemic...If they do that is great!

My health insurance will not cover me in countries under a CDC "no essential travel" advisory. I checked Allianz (Delta offers it with their tickets). They CURRENTLY, policy dependent, will cover you if you get sick while on travel, but no evac - only move you to the nearest hospital, in this case Road Town (or STT if you're "lucky"). Between this and the tracking app, that my colleagues in cyber security told me NOT to download to my phone under any circumstances, I'm out until things change.

Yes, that's the rub, medical evac for Corona. Because of how it's rated as a contagious disease, it is very difficult to get medical evac coverage for Corona.

Medjet is $250 for a family policy for 15 days. Covers COVID evacuation.

Jason--thanks.

Jason is that COVID hospitalation or just havng a positive test?

Medjet is purely evacuation insurance and I'm sure it's only covering hospitalized cases.

Here are the full details.

Yes I have only seen medical coverage (no medivac) from the policies I’ve reviewed. The COVID-19 sickness coverage does start the day you purchase the policy, not just when your trip starts...I’ve looked at Medjet in the past and it was pricey but will look again since it covers evac - thanks Jason!
Brief look, Short-term (15 days) it is $250. Looking at a 6 mo plan for us (cheaper medivac option only) it’s an annual plan and is $575. So a bit pricey on top of our medical insurance, but not if you need it!

Seven Corners advertises that they include evacuation and COVID-19 - From the way it's worded I can't be sure they would evacuate FOR COVID-19 - I would want to make sure of that. Just passing the name along for those who may be looking for possible sources.

A medical evacuation flight is extremely expensive. It’s so expensive that it often creates issues on standard airline flights where people with serious health issues decide to attempt to hide the issue and fly. I can’t see any insurance that will schedule a evac flight just for a positive test unless you are paying well into 4 figures for the insurance.

From my experience, medical evac insurance is inexpensive. Our family has three things when we travel outside the US no matter where we travel. The third item is the only item I believe you would need to meet their requirement. You can contact my-geos.com for more information.

1st - We carry a Garmin Delorme (link below). These things are amazing. You only need one per family. You can text globally any where in the world via satellite communication. It has a slide button (DEFCON 4) that if you slide that switch and hit the button, the Calvery comes for you. There are amazing stories on their website. I carry one with me when ever I travel outside the US. There are 5 countries they won't come and get you - North Korea, Iran, etc.. You can see on their website. They will come and get you on the North Pole. You can turn the subscription on and off per month - I think their lowest service is $14.95 per month or $19.95 per month.
https://discover.garmin.com/en-US/inreach/personal/

2nd - Through their website, we purchase EVAC insurance. $19.95 per year per person (roughly). This covers from the EVAC location to the nearest hospital. To me that is cheap. See https://my-geos.com/

3rd - Through GEOS (my-geos.com), we carry evacuation flight insurance from a hospital / location to a hospital within 50 miles of our personal residence. We pay approximately $149.95 per person per year. If you get in a car accident or other life threatening illness in China, Germany, USVI, BVI, Canada, etc.. They are airlifting your out via a medavac JET.

I think you could use that insurance - that if you get COVID and it is life threatening - they will EVAC you out. I would contact GEOS - they may have a specific COVID insurance. They have been great to work with..

As a scenario - we have multiple Delorme devices when we fish remotely in Canada. Each boat has their own delorme, we can text globally, and if my Father was to have a heart attack, we slide the switch, push the button, Calvery comes. Then they take him to Winnepeg (nearest hospital), then he has the option to be a private jet medical EVAC to Minneapolis. All this for $19.95 + $149.95 (check the prices) per year per person. I travel many parts of the world and most places you want to get back to the US. I almost lost a friend to bad water - a month in the hospital in 3rd world. He had know insurance.. The last time I was in the USVI - I was told they had one cardiologist for all the islands. I am not sure that information was accurate, but getting back to the US is key when things are going south. Just my $0.00002.

great info FrenchLaundry, thanks !

It may be the cavalry that comes . . .

But great information!

Yeah, Calvary kinda had the opposite effect for a guy about 2000 years ago! <jk>

He didn't need a Delorme:). Matthew 26:53

No a positive test result, you are in a medical emergency situation and have a real need for the evac. Many medical and comprehensive travel insurance policies include medivac coverage. For example we buy travel insurance for 6 - 8 month stays out of the US each year, and the medical/medivac coverages are all we are really interested in. We carry coverages of $50,000 medical and $1,000,000 medivac (US) + the typical trip cancellation/delay/interruption coverages for ~$140/couple. Emergency medical coverage for sickness from COVID-19 is included, emergency medivac for COVID-19 sickness depends on the level of care where we are...
Heck even Medicare provides emergency medical coverage outside the US, but it is secondary coverage and that can be a huge out of pocket expense! I don’t know if Medicare will step in to cover costs for major medical, etc. We’ve had friends visiting us have medical emergencies (while traveling) and with one insurance provider it was an excellent experience.

crmoores--Standard Medicare provides NO coverage outside the US, according to the agent I am talking to. And the printed Medicare brochure says the same thing. Medicare SUPPLEMENT policies like I am considering provide coverage outside the country. And medical evac for Covid is a whole different situation than a regular medical evac situation, because of the nature of the illness. If your coverage SPECIFICALLY includes medical evac for Covid, that is great. I would make sure you get it in WRITING..

Carol I understand what you are saying about Medicare covering medical emergencies outside the US, it is not clear at all - thanks for stressing that.
Because we spend so much time outside the US I’ve talked to reps several times (out of curiosity because of the lack of documentation) and am told each time, verbally, that we are covered (for medical emergencies) where we travel by our Advantage plan. I don’t know if that plan type is the difference or not? Perhaps someone can respond to that. But if it does indeed cover you for medical emergencies (non-COVID-19), it is secondary coverage and the limit of coverage is unclear. So I am just sharing what I have been told, and it’s clear that I do not rely on it since we buy third-party trip insurance...

Regarding coverage SPECIFICALLY FOR sickness from COVID-19, if you read my earlier reply you can see I stress the need to have that in writing. Normally pandemics are NOT covered emergencies. So if COVID-19 coverage is included you will see a specific section devoted to coverage from COVID-19 sickness. These coverages are in effect from the day you start the policy so if you are infected prior to the trip start date you are covered...

crmoores--I understood you to be talking about standard Medicare without anything else, which is why I questioned it. Many people have JUST Medicare and nothing else. There is a huge difference between Medicare Advantage plans and Medicare supplement plans. However, the difference is not clear enough to me for me to explain it to someone else! Speaking JUST to the question of coverage outside the US and NOT Covid in particular, the supplement I am going to get, it states in WRITING that I am covered outside the US. I am curious as to why you cannot get that coverage confirmed in WRITING to you in your circumstance, but I assume you are fine. My agent told me ORALLY that my Medicare Supplement plan would cover Covid evacuation. I have not signed the paperwork yet, and I have not had that confirmed in writing yet.

Medicare Advantage plans or Medicare C as they are also known are a different animal than Medicare A/B. They are insurance that gets reimbursed from Medicare almost a hybrid of MC and a supplemental plan. They can and do offer greater coverage than traditional MC but of course at a price. You just need to know the scope of coverage for your particular plan as they are all different depending on premium.

Yes the relatively newer Advantage plans are worth a look if you still have the original or traditional plan that requires a supplemental plan, no added costs that I am aware of but it’s been a couple years since I compared the two (showing my age!) I did choose one provider (Aetna) over the other 4 options based on the coverages/copays and prescription costs. I just have not looked into the actual coverage Medicare provides outside the US and territories but I do need to! I’m sure I am just not up to speed on that..Lazy, procrastinator, these fit!
Medical and medivac Coverage outsid the US for COVID-19 from Medicare sounds great! I will update myself so I can speak from a more informed perspective on that!

Thanks for the feedback Carol!

I have many moons until Medicare. Most plans I have looked at are expensive, have lots of stipulations, or carry a "not valid in areas with CDC travel warnings". Which the BVI still has, I believe.....

MIDiver--There may be somewhere in the world that does NOT have a CDC travel warning, but it's probably not anywhere you want to go!

I agree Carol!!

I believe North Korea has not admitted to having any COVID cases and has placed more landmines on its border with China to prevent entry. (I guess they don't understand that the traffic only goes in the opposite direction.) They're also imposing the death penalty on any officials who don't imposes their protocols. So I guess it's pretty safe there COVID-wise.

And to be thorough in the “medivac” discussion, medical “evacuation” simply means IF you are seriously ill or injured, AND the insurer’s medical team, along with the local doctor determines that the local medical facilities are unable to provide adequate care, the insurer will pay to transport you to the nearest appropriate medical facility (that they identify). Not to your home or local hospital.

Medical “repatriation” is, per our insurer’s description:
“If you are seriously ill or injured AND under the care of a local doctor and unable to continue Your Trip, medical repatriation takes place once Our medical team determines that You are medically stable to return home via commercial transportation carrier, such as a scheduled passenger airline.”
So if diagnosed with COVID-19 repatriation would not take place via a commercial flight until no longer considered a risk to others...

Other policies are probably worded similarly, I see that Medjet has isolation pods in aircraft for COVID-19 and other infectious diseases. Hiwever, for international destinations Medjet will not transport you to your home hospital until you are deemed clear...

The way I read the COVID-19 Alert from MedJets is they will still transport to your home hospital as normal if you are traveling from 48 Contiguous United States, Canada, Caribbean, Costa Rica, or Mexico. Other international locations do not include home hospital transfers.

The GEOS service that I shared is now $199.95 per year per person. This insurance brings you within 99 miles of your home OR your choosing. This would allow us to have the person flown to MAYO Rochester.

GEOS will provide medical evacuation and repatriation to a hospital nearest your home or
hospital of your choosing that is capable of providing the treatment you require, as determined
both by the physicians providing your current treatment and by GEOS. Medical evacuation and
repatriation will take place in a medically equipped and staffed aircraft, ambulance, or other
mode of transportation. The amount covered is specified in the scale of benefits as detailed in
the Benefits Sections "A" through "D" below.

crmoores--If you are ill enough with Covid to require medical evac, the chances that you would NOT be evacuated to the US is pretty small, as there are very few hospitals in the Caribbean, if any, that most insurers would consider a 'medically appropriate' hospital for Covid.

I saw the aircraft with isolation pods that Medjet offers but they will not repatriate you from an international location if you are diagnosed with COVID-19. And I have not read the Geos policy, does that also have these international restrictions? And how about local medical and government restrictions on release for repatriation for someone with COVID-19? And that of the receiving medical facility and government?
Not being critical and don’t mean to drag this topic out here, just want to understand the options available from folks who can share the details. I know I need to read the policy and I will, but thanks for any clarity you can add on these questions...

Carol, I’m sure you are right in this case/forum. In my case with travel insurance, we are in an area with excellent medical care so we would not be evacuated and that is different than on an island with limited care, for sure...
I do find the discussion on alternate evac/repatriation options interesting though...

"We have been able to source a suitable amount of aircraft with isolation pods, and crews with proper training, and can now provide our members with hospital-to-hospital medical transport at the level of service they have come to expect"
"The receiving hospital selected by the hospitalized Medjet Member must agree to accept the patient."

These are quotes from the MedJets website. To me this means they will repatriate members. They do specifically call out that international locations outside 48 Contiguous United States, Canada, Caribbean, Costa Rica, or Mexico are NOT covered. Am I missing something that excludes the BVI? If so, I need to consider changing carriers.

I did miss the included areas, thanks for pointing that out!

I don’t see the terms “evacuation” and “repatriation” used in the description, but it sounds like this coverage includes medical evac as long as the hospital/gov’t you are at and the receiving hospital/gov’t have no restrictions preventing the transfer...Is that what you get out of this?

I will point out again that I don’t believe any insurance company is going to fly you home or to another location because of a positive Covid test. There is simply no way with the costs involved it can be done at any reasonable rate. I am reasonably certain it would need to be a life threatening medical event. The vast majority of covid cases would not qualify. In addition if you are in a high risk covid category it’s probably not smart to travel.

Yep. Sounds like it to me. Pretty sure the BVI would be happy to send any hospitalized COVID patient out of the country.

MedJet's qualification appears to be hospitalized COVID patient.

Yes not just a positive test...

When I looked at the Seven Corners policies, they describe all evacuations as being hospital-to-hospital. From the hospital where you are traveling (e.g., Peebles in the BVI) to another hospital. Depending on the policy this could be a hospital deemed appropriate to treat you, it could be a hospital in your home country (e.g., U.S.), or it could be a pre-defined hospital (e.g., U.S. home-town hospital). Policies priced accordingly. I don't have any experience with them, they were just one of the first ones I found that was offering "COVID coverage" when I was investigating.

Months ago, we purchased travel insurance through Travel Insured, and bought the "Cancel for any Reason" rider.
Travel Insured said Covid would be a claimable event under the "travel interruption" provision of the policy.

I understand the discussion about evacuation in the case of Covid, but I'm wondering IF we even have a policy
that would qualify to go to the BVIs, assuming we are willing to travel under that current protocols?

Whether we would, or not, is a totally separate matter, but I'm wondering if this travel policy would qualify under
the current requirements? IF we would have to re-do our insurance, that would probably make the decision NOT
to go pretty easy!