When you move to another country, your health should be a top priority. Alongside maintaining a regular exercise routine and eating healthily, you must organize health insurance to ensure you keep yourself happy and healthy.
Having international medical insurance covers you across multiple borders, enabling you to travel freely. It offers essential financial protection and ensures that you can access the medical services you need to stay healthy when abroad.
In fact, health insurance is a legal requirement in many countries, and it’s clear to see why. Below, we have covered in more detail the reasons why health insurance is a must-have when you’re relocating abroad. First, let’s quickly cover what health insurance is and the key things it covers.
What is Health Insurance?
Just like life insurance, health insurance is a type of legal coverage. It enables you to access medical services when you’re abroad. It also subsidizes the costs of your medical bills if you need to access a hospital or primary healthcare facility in your local area.
There is a wide variety of health insurance policies, each offering slightly different things. A basic health insurance policy will cover standard healthcare services and medical treatments, and specialist policies provide more specific types of coverage for those that need it.
A basic health insurance policy enables you to access the following services when you’re abroad:
- Hospitalizations
- Prescription medications
- Basic and specialist treatments
- Routine health check-ups
Many health insurance providers also offer add-ons, such as coverage for maternity or dental care services. However, specialist health insurance tends to come at a higher cost.
Why Do You Need Health Insurance When You Move Abroad?
Having health insurance is absolutely essential when you relocate to another country, and this is the case for a number of reasons. Let’s take a closer look at why you need health insurance when you become an ex-pat.
Access to healthcare services in your ex-pat destination
In many countries, you might be unable to access any healthcare services or treatments when you relocate abroad if you don’t have a valid health insurance plan. Therefore, if you sustain an injury or get ill, you won’t be able to get the medical care you need.
However, with a great health insurance plan, you can get immediate medical attention when you need it, whether this requires hospitalization or outpatient treatment. Health insurance allows you to access high-quality healthcare services through private healthcare providers that offer advanced technologies and treatments, great patient service, and modern facilities.
You will likely need health insurance even if your chosen country offers free public healthcare. Most of these countries require ex-pats to have health insurance to access medical care until they become citizens.
Reduced healthcare costs
Health insurance providers subsidize costs for their policyholders. They can contribute towards the costs of medical treatments and hospitalizations to reduce your financial burden. Regardless of the types of treatments you require, if it’s included in your health insurance policy, your provider will be able to compensate you following a claim on your policy.
Health insurance providers offer a financial safety net that provides essential protection. You won’t need to worry about spending thousands on hefty medical bills by yourself, as your insurance provider will support you as much as they can.
With lower health insurance costs, you can manage your finances more easily, save money, and build an impressive emergency fund. If you prefer, you can spend the money you save on your medical bills on explorations and excursions to make the most out of your time as an ex-pat.
Coverage for pre-existing medical conditions
If you have a pre-existing medical condition when you move abroad, having a great health insurance policy in place ensures that you can continue getting medical treatments or medications to manage your condition. Having health insurance ensures that you can receive necessary medical attention without delays or financial strain.
Note that if you have a rare condition that requires unique treatments or therapies, you will need to disclose this to your health insurance provider to ensure your policy suits your medical needs.
Emergency medical care
Health insurance enables you to access emergency medical care if you run into trouble when you live abroad. If you get seriously injured, you will be able to get immediate treatment without extensive costs.
Therefore, having a solid health insurance policy in place gives you peace of mind, knowing that you will be able to get the medical attention you need as soon as you need it. Having access to emergency healthcare services is particularly helpful if you’re relocating to an area of the world that has limited medical facilities and treatments available.
