So, you would like to become an expat and experience living in another country. How exciting! But, don’t forget about protecting your family with health insurance.
Whether you’re moving from Seattle to Toronto, New York to London, or Warsaw to Berlin, you won’t regret choosing to move abroad. Millions of people do so every year and never look back.
Experiencing life in another country opens the door to a range of new opportunities. You can meet new people, immerse yourself in a completely different culture from the one in your home country, and try delicious new foods.
However, it’s important to take a step back from all of the excitement when you’re in the process of moving abroad. When you head to a foreign country with the aim of staying there permanently, there are several things you need to organize in order to make the transition into expat life as smooth as possible.
There are also lots of legal considerations to take, as moving abroad often means applying for a visa, getting health insurance like the GeoBlue health insurance plan, and organizing your finances and taxes.
In this article, we’re going to focus specifically on health insurance, covering what it is and why you need it when you move to a foreign country.
What is Health Insurance?
Health insurance is a type of insurance that covers you for healthcare access and medical treatments.
Most policies offer coverage for access to hospitals and primary healthcare facilities for basic treatments and prescription medications. However, there are many specialized policies that provide unique coverage for the treatment of rare medical conditions or specific types of healthcare, such as maternity or dental care.
Health insurance providers will cover some or all your costs when policyholders access healthcare facilities and medical treatments abroad.
The exact amount they cover depends on the policy terms and conditions, as the voluntary excess varies between plans. In most cases, the policyholder themselves can choose the amount of money they’re willing to contribute towards their bills and the amount they’d like to be covered by their insurance provider.
In general, health insurance will cover access to hospitals, routine health checks, prescription drugs, preventative care, and emergency medical care.
Why is it When You Move Abroad?
Healthcare insurance is mandatory for expats and travelers in most countries. This is true even in countries that have free public healthcare, as most of the time, free services are only accessible to national citizens.
However, aside from being mandatory by law, there are many reasons why health insurance is a must-have when you are moving internationally and becoming an expat, including those that we have discussed below.
Access to routine health checks
Health insurance enables you to get regular health check-ups at your local doctor’s surgery when you’re abroad. Having frequent health checks means you can identify potential health issues as early as possible and get the necessary treatments to prevent them from worsening.
Hospitalizations
Health insurance also enables you to access hospital-based treatments and stay in your local hospital overnight if needed. Generally, you will require hospitalization for serious medical conditions, infections, acute injuries, and following surgery.
Your provider will subsidize the often extortionate costs of hospital stays whilst you are abroad, so you won’t need to worry about paying these hefty bills by yourself.
Emergency health coverage
As great as it would be to know exactly when you are going to get ill or injured, this is not possible. Acute injuries, infections, and flare-ups of existing medical conditions can crop up at any moment.
Having global health insurance means you can get immediate medical attention if you are ill or injured. If you fail to have health insurance as an expat abroad, you may be turned away from your local hospital or primary healthcare facility, even if you are in need of medical treatment.
Once again, your provider will subsidize the costs associated with accessing treatments for acute medical issues or flare-ups of pre-existing conditions.
Access to high-quality or specialist treatments
Having health insurance abroad often means you can access higher quality medical care than those without health insurance coverage. You will be able to get treatments at reputable hospitals and doctors’ surgeries and be treated by experienced medical staff.
At the same time, coverage often enables you to get specialized treatments for specific and unique medical conditions. However, if you have a pre-existing condition that requires ongoing treatments, you must make sure that your chosen health insurance policy covers your unique needs.
If you can’t find an existing health insurance policy covers the types of treatments that you need for a pre-existing medical condition, you may be able to add these specific treatments or therapies onto a basic insurance policy. Speak directly with your chosen insurance provider to see what they can do for you.
