Getting a real American healthcare experience
June 5, 2022 6:54 AM Subscribe
What happens when tourists to the US have healthcare emergencies, given how unfriendly America's healthcare billing is to the uninsured? Is it just generally known that "if you visit the USA, you need to have some sort of health insurance?", or do tourists get soaked at hospitals' horrific rack rates, or what?
Whenever the discussion of nationalized health care comes up in USA discourse, people share their tourist experiences with socialized medicine, including anticlimactic non-horror stories akin to "I was on vacation in Japan (or wherever) and I broke my ankle. When I got medical care and they learned I wasn't a long-term resident, they explained that I had to pay out of pocket. Then they billed me $30 (or whatever)."
With that context in mind, I'm wondering about the flip side of that: what the hell happens to people who live in countries where most health care is free or has minimal copay, even for non-citizens, where "do you have health insurance?" is not a question at the front of their minds, and where a hospital visit is an unpleasant necessity but not a ruinous financial experience, when they visit the US and they break their ankle here? Is it the same story but with an ending in the ten-thousands instead of the tens of dollars? Are there protocols out there which keep those not immersed in our crazy from having to experience it firsthand?
Whenever the discussion of nationalized health care comes up in USA discourse, people share their tourist experiences with socialized medicine, including anticlimactic non-horror stories akin to "I was on vacation in Japan (or wherever) and I broke my ankle. When I got medical care and they learned I wasn't a long-term resident, they explained that I had to pay out of pocket. Then they billed me $30 (or whatever)."
With that context in mind, I'm wondering about the flip side of that: what the hell happens to people who live in countries where most health care is free or has minimal copay, even for non-citizens, where "do you have health insurance?" is not a question at the front of their minds, and where a hospital visit is an unpleasant necessity but not a ruinous financial experience, when they visit the US and they break their ankle here? Is it the same story but with an ending in the ten-thousands instead of the tens of dollars? Are there protocols out there which keep those not immersed in our crazy from having to experience it firsthand?
Yeah, most people who travel outwith their country of residence (not only to the US) take out travel insurance which I think would cover this. Just because you live in a country with socialised medicine, doesn’t mean you expect to be eligible for free-at-the-point-of-treatment health care in any other country*. Taking out insurance is a routine part of the overseas travel experience, even if it’s not a routine part of your domestic healthcare experience.
*There are exceptions - within the EU there are plenty of reciprocal agreements, for example, but you’d still usually take out at least some travel insurance for things like medical repatriation.
posted by penguin pie at 7:22 AM on June 5, 2022 [3 favorites]
*There are exceptions - within the EU there are plenty of reciprocal agreements, for example, but you’d still usually take out at least some travel insurance for things like medical repatriation.
posted by penguin pie at 7:22 AM on June 5, 2022 [3 favorites]
In Australia, it's generally accepted that you want to get travel insurance before you go overseas; even countries with familiar medical systems won't cover you, so you want something that will. It also covers all sorts of non-medical mishaps that can happen overseas.
posted by Merus at 7:26 AM on June 5, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by Merus at 7:26 AM on June 5, 2022 [2 favorites]
Two anecdata:
1) A German friend of mine who works in the UK was scheduled to go to a professional conference in the US in March. Shortly before she got a blister from a new pair of shoes that got infected and didn't go to the conference because she was worried that if there were some modest complication that required a doctor's visit she'd be on the hook for exorbitant US medical bills.
2) My parents are friends with a couple who immigrated to the US from Nepal. At some point, maybe a decade or fifteen years ago, the mother of the woman was visiting from Nepal and had a health problem that required hospitalization. She was discharged, and returned to Nepal. The hospital sent a classic exorbitant American bill. But the bill was owed by the mother. Good luck collecting in Nepal! Evidently hospitals, or at least this one, have a fund/budget item for care they give that they're never going to get to collect from insurance/take away somebody's home for, and they write it off.
posted by sy at 7:34 AM on June 5, 2022 [1 favorite]
1) A German friend of mine who works in the UK was scheduled to go to a professional conference in the US in March. Shortly before she got a blister from a new pair of shoes that got infected and didn't go to the conference because she was worried that if there were some modest complication that required a doctor's visit she'd be on the hook for exorbitant US medical bills.
2) My parents are friends with a couple who immigrated to the US from Nepal. At some point, maybe a decade or fifteen years ago, the mother of the woman was visiting from Nepal and had a health problem that required hospitalization. She was discharged, and returned to Nepal. The hospital sent a classic exorbitant American bill. But the bill was owed by the mother. Good luck collecting in Nepal! Evidently hospitals, or at least this one, have a fund/budget item for care they give that they're never going to get to collect from insurance/take away somebody's home for, and they write it off.
posted by sy at 7:34 AM on June 5, 2022 [1 favorite]
I can buy annual world wide multi trip travel insurance including the US for £91 that gives the following cover.
Individual Trip Limit - 31 days
Excess - £125.00
Medical & Repatriation Expenses - £5,000,000
Cancellation - £1,000
Cutting Short your trip - £1,000
Personal Baggage - £1,500
Personal Money - £250
Hospital Benefit - £150
Personal Liability - £2,000,000
Personal Accident - £10,000
Legal Expenses - £25,000
Kennel / Cattery Fees - £250
If I paid £135 the excess would only be £50 and the medical cover would be £10 million.
posted by knapah at 7:44 AM on June 5, 2022 [1 favorite]
Individual Trip Limit - 31 days
Excess - £125.00
Medical & Repatriation Expenses - £5,000,000
Cancellation - £1,000
Cutting Short your trip - £1,000
Personal Baggage - £1,500
Personal Money - £250
Hospital Benefit - £150
Personal Liability - £2,000,000
Personal Accident - £10,000
Legal Expenses - £25,000
Kennel / Cattery Fees - £250
If I paid £135 the excess would only be £50 and the medical cover would be £10 million.
posted by knapah at 7:44 AM on June 5, 2022 [1 favorite]
I work for a large hospital system in a field largely composed of emergencies.
Sy is correct above that some systems - non profit ones, at least - have a fund for uninsured persons.
This is a major issue: the existence of large, for profit hospital chains. They are less likely to do things like reach out on the patient's behalf and more likely to just send a bill and then collectors.
Where I am, there's a department that will meet with (or have long calls with) family members to evaluate if the person is eligible for any state aid, or if there's traveler's insurance, etc. Then they do the application for the hospital special fund. I did have a patient traveling from a smallish Western European country a few years ago, no travel insurance, and I believe the billing department did ultimately get some reimbursement from the country.
posted by cobaltnine at 7:49 AM on June 5, 2022
Sy is correct above that some systems - non profit ones, at least - have a fund for uninsured persons.
This is a major issue: the existence of large, for profit hospital chains. They are less likely to do things like reach out on the patient's behalf and more likely to just send a bill and then collectors.
Where I am, there's a department that will meet with (or have long calls with) family members to evaluate if the person is eligible for any state aid, or if there's traveler's insurance, etc. Then they do the application for the hospital special fund. I did have a patient traveling from a smallish Western European country a few years ago, no travel insurance, and I believe the billing department did ultimately get some reimbursement from the country.
posted by cobaltnine at 7:49 AM on June 5, 2022
Many tourists in general have travel insurance. (As an American I do not go overseas without it, especially after some friends have had major medical care overseas and used it. In some places you don’t get the care you need and pay later; you have to pay upfront before they will perform surgery or careflight you to a real hospital — no money, no medical care. This is one good thing about America at least with regard to emergency care.)
My friends who have visited from Europe usually have purchased travel insurance before coming here.
posted by amaire at 7:53 AM on June 5, 2022
My friends who have visited from Europe usually have purchased travel insurance before coming here.
posted by amaire at 7:53 AM on June 5, 2022
In Canada it's strongly encouraged to make sure you have travel insurance while in the states. A lot of us have some version of it with our employer's plans, or even with our credit cards. I distinctly remember buying some online from my bank using my phone while waiting in line to cross the border at Peace Arch at the beginning of an impromptu road trip.
posted by cgg at 8:15 AM on June 5, 2022 [4 favorites]
posted by cgg at 8:15 AM on June 5, 2022 [4 favorites]
Welcome to my area of professional expertise!
International visitors to the US frequently get travel insurance. Travel insurance will handle urgent medical needs but not stuff that can wait until you get home. It's a bit like the old catastrophic health insurance plans we had in the US before Obamacare.
More frequent travelers might get international private medical insurance. This works a lot more like a US health insurance plan. Depending on the plan you may get a list of preferred providers, and insurance will pay a higher percentage for health care from providers on that list. This also means that if someone is in the USA for three months and want to get their Pap smear or other routine care, they can use their insurance to do so.
While Americans think that healthcare is cheap or free if they go overseas, often it is not. In Mexico and Costa Rica, for example, you generally have to prove you can pay before you get treatment. Here's an American that was held hostage in a hospital because his family couldn't pay his bill. Here's an American who had a stroke in Costa Rica and the hospital wouldn't admit him because he couldn't pay up front. He had travel insurance but it was a woefully low limit for a country like Costa Rica.
Even if a country has socialized medicine for its own people, that usually does not carry over to tourists from other countries, unless there is a reciprocity agreement in place. If you have a stroke, a heart attack, get hit by a bus or some other catastrophic event you could be in for thousands or tens of thousands in medical bills. Travel insurance is always a good idea, no matter what your nationality is and what country you are going to.
posted by rednikki at 8:38 AM on June 5, 2022 [9 favorites]
International visitors to the US frequently get travel insurance. Travel insurance will handle urgent medical needs but not stuff that can wait until you get home. It's a bit like the old catastrophic health insurance plans we had in the US before Obamacare.
More frequent travelers might get international private medical insurance. This works a lot more like a US health insurance plan. Depending on the plan you may get a list of preferred providers, and insurance will pay a higher percentage for health care from providers on that list. This also means that if someone is in the USA for three months and want to get their Pap smear or other routine care, they can use their insurance to do so.
While Americans think that healthcare is cheap or free if they go overseas, often it is not. In Mexico and Costa Rica, for example, you generally have to prove you can pay before you get treatment. Here's an American that was held hostage in a hospital because his family couldn't pay his bill. Here's an American who had a stroke in Costa Rica and the hospital wouldn't admit him because he couldn't pay up front. He had travel insurance but it was a woefully low limit for a country like Costa Rica.
Even if a country has socialized medicine for its own people, that usually does not carry over to tourists from other countries, unless there is a reciprocity agreement in place. If you have a stroke, a heart attack, get hit by a bus or some other catastrophic event you could be in for thousands or tens of thousands in medical bills. Travel insurance is always a good idea, no matter what your nationality is and what country you are going to.
posted by rednikki at 8:38 AM on June 5, 2022 [9 favorites]
Back in the 60's my mother, an art historian, was traveling in Italy and early in her trip stepped into a pothole (she was walking backward on a cobblestone plaza outside a church as she surveyed its facade). She broke her ankle. She went to a hospital by ambulance, had it xrayed and set, and was given a walking cast. They refused payment. She continued her trip with the walking cast and was delighted to be offered expedited admission to every museum and historic site she visited, as invalids are shown directly to the front of every line she encountered.
Those were the days, I guess. I'm planning a trip to Europe and have already purchased travel insurance.
posted by citygirl at 9:24 AM on June 5, 2022 [2 favorites]
Those were the days, I guess. I'm planning a trip to Europe and have already purchased travel insurance.
posted by citygirl at 9:24 AM on June 5, 2022 [2 favorites]
You should get travel insurance. And then, if you end up at a hospital, expect the worst healthcare of your life.
I always get the best health insurance I can as a traveller.
I once tripped on a sidewalk in Los Angeles and fell headfirst into a metal fence, breaking my nose, fracturing my wrist and knee, and getting a large cut on my arm. I'd done most of those things before (separately) so knew what was going on so I called the insurance company to check on the procedure. They asked my location and then provided me with the closest urgent care facility that accepted their insurance. It wasn't super close.
Arriving there, I was made to wait 30 minutes even though there were no other patients and my face was covered in blood. Then, after presenting the insurance information, I had to wait another 30 minutes so they could "check on it".
Then, they asked for $99 to see the doctor. "Don't you accept the insurance?" "Yes, they will reimburse you." I called the insurance company who said that they would reimburse me but I needed a receipt with the doctor's name, date, and a breakdown of expenses. "But they should just bill us directly. I don't know why they're making you pay up front."
I paid the $99 wanting to get it over with.
They brought me in to see the doctor, who, after the most minimal of inspection, told me I'd broken my nose and fractured my wrist and knee. (Cue the old joke: I told you that, you should give me $99.)
He wiped the blood off my face to better reveal the five or six scrapes and abrasions and then asked if I wanted him to clean them up. "Is there a reason I wouldn't?"
"It's $60 per application and it's probably not covered by insurance."
"Define 'clean them up' and 'application'."
He held up a bottle of Polysporin.
"So, you're going to charge me $300 to apply a dollar's worth of Polysporin?"
"$360," he said, pointing at a tiny gap in one large abrasion. "That gap means that's two applications."
I left telling him to go fuck himself.
On the street was a CVS where I spent $10 on Polysporin which I applied using the drug store's window as a mirror.
As I said, I've broken all those bones before, and many, many others, mostly in Canada. I've never had to wait as long or been treated as poorly. Having a kidney stone and a stroke in Toronto cost me less.
Personally, I recommend you get insurance despite this story. That said, I also suggest you instead travel to any other country in the world. Spain, Cuba, Australia, and Vanuatu are wonderful.
posted by dobbs at 9:45 AM on June 5, 2022 [16 favorites]
I always get the best health insurance I can as a traveller.
I once tripped on a sidewalk in Los Angeles and fell headfirst into a metal fence, breaking my nose, fracturing my wrist and knee, and getting a large cut on my arm. I'd done most of those things before (separately) so knew what was going on so I called the insurance company to check on the procedure. They asked my location and then provided me with the closest urgent care facility that accepted their insurance. It wasn't super close.
Arriving there, I was made to wait 30 minutes even though there were no other patients and my face was covered in blood. Then, after presenting the insurance information, I had to wait another 30 minutes so they could "check on it".
Then, they asked for $99 to see the doctor. "Don't you accept the insurance?" "Yes, they will reimburse you." I called the insurance company who said that they would reimburse me but I needed a receipt with the doctor's name, date, and a breakdown of expenses. "But they should just bill us directly. I don't know why they're making you pay up front."
I paid the $99 wanting to get it over with.
They brought me in to see the doctor, who, after the most minimal of inspection, told me I'd broken my nose and fractured my wrist and knee. (Cue the old joke: I told you that, you should give me $99.)
He wiped the blood off my face to better reveal the five or six scrapes and abrasions and then asked if I wanted him to clean them up. "Is there a reason I wouldn't?"
"It's $60 per application and it's probably not covered by insurance."
"Define 'clean them up' and 'application'."
He held up a bottle of Polysporin.
"So, you're going to charge me $300 to apply a dollar's worth of Polysporin?"
"$360," he said, pointing at a tiny gap in one large abrasion. "That gap means that's two applications."
I left telling him to go fuck himself.
On the street was a CVS where I spent $10 on Polysporin which I applied using the drug store's window as a mirror.
As I said, I've broken all those bones before, and many, many others, mostly in Canada. I've never had to wait as long or been treated as poorly. Having a kidney stone and a stroke in Toronto cost me less.
Personally, I recommend you get insurance despite this story. That said, I also suggest you instead travel to any other country in the world. Spain, Cuba, Australia, and Vanuatu are wonderful.
posted by dobbs at 9:45 AM on June 5, 2022 [16 favorites]
As a Canadian, it's pretty normal to get travel medical insurance to go to the US, though obviously lots of people don't bother. If you're travelling a lot, you can get an annual plan that covers you for any trip up to N days over the year. Some people also have travel insurance as a benefit from their work. If you have a travel credit card, these often have coverage included for short trips as well.
If you want to purchase travel insurance for overseas trips as a Canadian, there are basically two rates: anywhere in the world except the USA, which is cheaper, and everywhere in the world including the USA, which costs significantly more.
As an anecdote, I have a family member who once drove home about 20 hours from the USA with a broken arm to get medical treatment in Canada when they didn't have insurance for their trip.
Here in BC, there is usually a small sign in the hospital emergency room saying that tourists from out of the country have to pay about $1000 to be seen by a doctor.
posted by ssg at 12:44 PM on June 5, 2022 [1 favorite]
If you want to purchase travel insurance for overseas trips as a Canadian, there are basically two rates: anywhere in the world except the USA, which is cheaper, and everywhere in the world including the USA, which costs significantly more.
As an anecdote, I have a family member who once drove home about 20 hours from the USA with a broken arm to get medical treatment in Canada when they didn't have insurance for their trip.
Here in BC, there is usually a small sign in the hospital emergency room saying that tourists from out of the country have to pay about $1000 to be seen by a doctor.
posted by ssg at 12:44 PM on June 5, 2022 [1 favorite]
Shortly before she got a blister from a new pair of shoes that got infected and didn't go to the conference because she was worried that if there were some modest complication that required a doctor's visit she'd be on the hook for exorbitant US medical bills.
For the travel insurance we can get in Canada, this would be a prudent decision. You don’t get coverage for a new or unstable condition that you have at the start of a trip. So complications from the infection probably wouldn’t be covered.
It sounds like UK travel insurance might work the same way.
posted by Banknote of the year at 12:54 PM on June 5, 2022
For the travel insurance we can get in Canada, this would be a prudent decision. You don’t get coverage for a new or unstable condition that you have at the start of a trip. So complications from the infection probably wouldn’t be covered.
It sounds like UK travel insurance might work the same way.
posted by Banknote of the year at 12:54 PM on June 5, 2022
I think there are enough "I twisted my ankle at Disney World and got a bill for $20,000" stories for people to know that you don't travel to the US without travel health insurance.
When I was in the US semi-regularly as a visitor I bought an annual policy. I never had to use it, and I also tried to avoid activities that might raise the risk of using it.
posted by holgate at 12:59 PM on June 5, 2022
When I was in the US semi-regularly as a visitor I bought an annual policy. I never had to use it, and I also tried to avoid activities that might raise the risk of using it.
posted by holgate at 12:59 PM on June 5, 2022
It is strongly recommended to get a travel insurance if you go to the US from here (Denmark). When I've been in the US for work, my employer has always paid for platinum insurance.
The reason Danish hospitals often waives costs for tourists is that processing the bill may cost more than the procedure involved. dobbs' story above is a perfect example. Everything about it is routine, and may cost 100-500 €. Sending it through the whole system and following up can easily cost much more.
posted by mumimor at 1:31 PM on June 5, 2022
The reason Danish hospitals often waives costs for tourists is that processing the bill may cost more than the procedure involved. dobbs' story above is a perfect example. Everything about it is routine, and may cost 100-500 €. Sending it through the whole system and following up can easily cost much more.
posted by mumimor at 1:31 PM on June 5, 2022
Response by poster: FWIW, given the number of people saying I should get travel insurance and/or maybe visit a different country entirely, the question was meant as a hypothetical, not something as part of my trip planning (although now I'm wondering if we'd best get insurance for our upcoming trip to the Nordic countries). I live in the US myself and our system is confusing enough for those of us embedded in it who more or less know how it works—I was trying to get a sense of what it might possibly be like for someone who's just visiting and not prepared for how screwed up it is. Looks like our reputation precedes us to the degree that almost nobody comes here entirely unprepared anymore?
posted by jackbishop at 2:04 PM on June 5, 2022
posted by jackbishop at 2:04 PM on June 5, 2022
Jeepers - yes, definitely get travel insurance for your trip! And for every other overseas trip you ever take.
Looks like our reputation precedes us to the degree that almost nobody comes here entirely unprepared anymore?
Just to restate and emphasise - yes, everybody buys travel insurance, but no, it's not because they're pre-warned about the way US healthcare is. It's because they do it every time they go anywhere abroad. It's an absolutely standard part of preparing to spend time in another country. Virtually nobody is entitled to free healthcare in a country other than their own. People buy health insurance whenever they go abroad, whether to the US or anywhere else. Buy travel insurance!
posted by penguin pie at 2:27 PM on June 5, 2022 [5 favorites]
Looks like our reputation precedes us to the degree that almost nobody comes here entirely unprepared anymore?
Just to restate and emphasise - yes, everybody buys travel insurance, but no, it's not because they're pre-warned about the way US healthcare is. It's because they do it every time they go anywhere abroad. It's an absolutely standard part of preparing to spend time in another country. Virtually nobody is entitled to free healthcare in a country other than their own. People buy health insurance whenever they go abroad, whether to the US or anywhere else. Buy travel insurance!
posted by penguin pie at 2:27 PM on June 5, 2022 [5 favorites]
Looks like our reputation precedes us to the degree that almost nobody comes here entirely unprepared anymore?
Kind of, yeah. There's still a whole lot of people who come to the States with no insurance and a plan of "I'd better not get hurt." But they know they're taking a gamble.
Also, my travel insurance has protected me from nonsense like in-network/out-of-network, and having to pre-approve trips to the ER. But dobbs had to deal with that stuff and we're both Canadian. So clearly this varies.
posted by Banknote of the year at 2:29 PM on June 5, 2022
Kind of, yeah. There's still a whole lot of people who come to the States with no insurance and a plan of "I'd better not get hurt." But they know they're taking a gamble.
Also, my travel insurance has protected me from nonsense like in-network/out-of-network, and having to pre-approve trips to the ER. But dobbs had to deal with that stuff and we're both Canadian. So clearly this varies.
posted by Banknote of the year at 2:29 PM on June 5, 2022
If you're travelling from Australia to or through the US, you are strongly advised to have health insurance and I think most are aware of the possible costs and take it. Any time you sign up for this insurance, there are much higher rates if you take a policy that includes US travel (including transitioning through), so most policies have an exclusion for US travel unless you specifically want that cover.
If you're a tourist to Australia, you are strongly advised to have insurance, because you will be slugged for all costs. When you present for care, you're asked if you have a Medicare card and, if not, whether you have other insurance, so the question of whether you have insurance is probably just as front-of-mind to health providers as anywhere else, except that the vast majority of people have coverage because they're residents, so the question is less obvious to the average person.
posted by dg at 6:24 PM on June 5, 2022
If you're a tourist to Australia, you are strongly advised to have insurance, because you will be slugged for all costs. When you present for care, you're asked if you have a Medicare card and, if not, whether you have other insurance, so the question of whether you have insurance is probably just as front-of-mind to health providers as anywhere else, except that the vast majority of people have coverage because they're residents, so the question is less obvious to the average person.
posted by dg at 6:24 PM on June 5, 2022
I'm in the UK so healthcare for residents is free at the point of use. It is also very normal to go abroad on holiday. Travel insurance is widely advertised and generally 'everyone' knows that you really need travel insurance for the US because healthcare there is extortionate. It tends to be the case that when you buy a holiday or flights you can get add on travel insurance. If you are under 75 and with no major health issues it's cheap on either a per trip or annual basis. Even with health issues if you use a specialist provider it's pretty inexpensive.
posted by plonkee at 2:36 AM on June 6, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by plonkee at 2:36 AM on June 6, 2022 [2 favorites]
It's also worth noting that my "normal" travel insurance which covers activities including SCUBA diving to 40m, mountain hiking below 4000m, and sail racing for the entire world - including evacuation cover - does not cover travel to the US. That is a whole additional cost. They literally figure that if I broke my neck in rural Thailand and had to be portered and helicoptered to a hospital then medevaced back to the UK that would cost them less than a toe abrasion gone wrong at Disney world.
posted by atrazine at 10:13 AM on June 6, 2022 [4 favorites]
posted by atrazine at 10:13 AM on June 6, 2022 [4 favorites]
Response by poster: Well, the responses here not only taught me a lot about how The Rest of the World does it, but also induced me to get medical insurance for our own upcoming trip, so this ended up being a lot more directly relevant to me than I'd anticipated. Thanks all!
posted by jackbishop at 11:16 AM on June 6, 2022 [5 favorites]
posted by jackbishop at 11:16 AM on June 6, 2022 [5 favorites]
Dobbs has a cautionary tale that is worth reading. However, there is travel insurance you can buy for the USA that gives access to good insurance networks. For example, Seven Corners and WorldTrips give subscribers access to United Healthcare's network.
The charges Dobbs experienced, however, are entirely normal for the USA. My mom was doing data entry at a hospital in the early 60s when they started breaking out charges like that. The goal was always to find more things they could charge for. Now hospitals in the USA charge for a needle push. That's not the needle, not the medication, not the nurse's time - it is the charge for the act of pressing the plunger on the needle. It takes about a second and often runs $336 per push.
posted by rednikki at 5:40 PM on June 6, 2022
The charges Dobbs experienced, however, are entirely normal for the USA. My mom was doing data entry at a hospital in the early 60s when they started breaking out charges like that. The goal was always to find more things they could charge for. Now hospitals in the USA charge for a needle push. That's not the needle, not the medication, not the nurse's time - it is the charge for the act of pressing the plunger on the needle. It takes about a second and often runs $336 per push.
posted by rednikki at 5:40 PM on June 6, 2022
Just seconding/nthing, I would get travel insurance including health insurance wherever I travelled. Even from New Zealand to Australia, where I'd be happy with the local healthcare. One important reason is medical evacuation - if you've got a long-term injury or illness, you don't want to be dealing with it in a foreign country, you want to do so at home, but getting back can be expensive.
Specifically re the US: I once paid about 30% extra on travel insurance in order to also cover the US. I was going to be in the US for about four hours while I transited in San Francisco. I didn't want to take the risk of getting injured walking through the terminal. (As others have mentioned you can get travel insurance like 'Europe', 'World - excluding USA', and 'World - including USA', at increasing levels of expense).
posted by Pink Frost at 7:10 PM on June 11, 2022
Specifically re the US: I once paid about 30% extra on travel insurance in order to also cover the US. I was going to be in the US for about four hours while I transited in San Francisco. I didn't want to take the risk of getting injured walking through the terminal. (As others have mentioned you can get travel insurance like 'Europe', 'World - excluding USA', and 'World - including USA', at increasing levels of expense).
posted by Pink Frost at 7:10 PM on June 11, 2022
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by koahiatamadl at 7:14 AM on June 5, 2022 [4 favorites]