To do this, open up a Mexican bank account with BBVA Bancomer, Banamex, HSBC, or Santander.    BBVA Bancomer will pay your CFE electric bill, Telmex, Cablamas and other utility bills when due without any need for your participation in the process, free of charge.   All you need to do is make sure you have money in the bank!

If you are ever overbilled by your utility company, and your bank pays the bill, not to worry.   Once your utility company has agreed to reimburse you, they will reimburse your account directly.

If you have not set up a Mexican bank account yet, it’s a good excuse to visit your Mexican home and do so.  If you don’t speak Spanish very well, consider bringing a translator or ask for an English speaking attendant.

In order to keep your foreign plates, you must follow all the steps of the Temporary Vehicle Import process.  Make sure you keep your Resident Temporal immigrant status current so that your Import Permit is valid (up to 4 years) and make sure you notify Aduana of your Visa status.  Both of these need to be current in order for your Mexican insurance policy to pay a claim.  No Mexican insurance policy will pay a claim on an illegal car in Mexico.

You may Mexicanize your vehicle before your Resident Temporal Visa expires or you may wait the entire four years.

New Rules Mean Forced Mexican Plates

As your Resident Temporal Visa expires and it is time to get your Resident Permanente Visa, you are no longer allowed to have a foreign plated car.  At this point, you have two options:

1)  You must take your car out of Mexico permanently to sell or store it or

2)  You must “Mexicanize” it with foreign plates

Applying For Mexican License Plates

Aduana has specific requirements for importing used vehicles.  Only NAFTA vehicles of specific ages, which vary, are even considered and the cost can be as much, or more, than the value of the car.   Only 6 year old and older NAFTA vehicles qualify for permanent importation at the 10% duty rates.

You must be the owner, with a valid clear title, with no liens nor encumbrances on the car.

You will also need to get an emissions certificate that is less than 6 months old.  Arizona, California and Texas emission certificates qualify.  Texas counties that do emissions tests are:  Brazoria, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Montgomery, Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant, Travis, Williamson and El Paso counties.

You must hire a customs broker who will collect the required information, which includes the documents for temporary importation plus proof of Resident Permanente Visa. The customs broker will file the necessary forms with the government.  Customs brokers typically charge between $600 – $900 USD to get your pedimento.

You will pay an import duty based on the type and age of the vehicle, as well as other taxes.   Import duties are based on the “Reference Values” published by the Secretary of the Treasury.  You can also the Banjercito website for  import duties.

After the vehicle is officially imported, you are required to take the proof, called a “Pedimento“  to the Departamento de Registro de Control Vehicular to obtain Mexican license plates for the state in which you reside.  A pedimento is the legal document to import or export from Mexico.

About 30 days after filing with the Departamento de Registro de Control Vehicular, you should check to see if your vehicle has truly been registered with Aduana.  You will need your VIN number to look up your vehicle.

 Thus many at this time feel that it is better to sell your domestic car, or store it, and purchase a car in Mexico.

Resident Permanente’s With Vehicles Already In Mexico

If your car becomes illegal due to visa changes, visa’s expiring, or whatever reason, you can apply for a free temporary permit that gives you 3-5 days to remove the vehicle from Mexico.   This is called a “Safe Returns” permit and can get this at the Aduana website.   

Regarding the “Safe Returns” permit, per Aduana’s site:

“If a vehicle imported temporarily for some reason can not return the vehicle performed in time, it is suggested not to drive, since it will be illegally in the country and may be subject to penalties and seizure of the vehicle, so we must make the process of safe return . This program of the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit facilitates the return of the vehicles to the U.S. border or whose stay is illegal in the country and is aimed especially owners of foreign vehicles who can not prove their legal status in the country. Through the program Safe return , illegal vehicle owners may voluntarily return them to the places of origin without charge fines or criminal action are run against them.”

You may also donate your vehicle to your local Aduana to cancel out your TIP.  Bring the original TIP paper permit, the vehicle, a cover letter with description of the make, model, year and VIN.   Bring your passport, your Resident Permanente Visa and your donation request.    There is a formal Aduana program described on their website for donations.

Aduana Hotline
01-55-5802-2069 ciitev_AduanaMexico@sat.gob.mx

Free Zones

Quintana Roo is considered a “Free Zone”, like Sonora or Baja California.  This means you can drive your vehicles out of Mexico, at Chetumal, get your deposits back, and return back into Quintana Roo without any Temporary Import permit. The vehicle then has to  stay in Quintana Roo.   So long as you do not drive it out of Q. Roo, it remains legal.

If you decide you want to drive it out of Q. Roo into other parts of Mexico,  you need to go to the Chetumal border again and get a Temporary Import permit under that future visa.

As a licensed insurance agent, the first thing I get asked is, “How much is it?”.   Typically, as soon as they hear the dollar amount, their reaction is either, “Well, I have gone this long without international insurance” or “Is there anything cheaper?”

There are two things wrong with this reasoning:  1)  Without your health, you will not be able to live the dream you have worked so hard to create and 2)  With this in mind, isn’t your health worth more than any THING you can buy?

I want to share this real life story that happened in Quintana Roo, Mexico not too long ago:

On a typical day in the tropics, warm and sunny, my friend set out on Hwy 307 towards Tulum with her boyfriend and her two children.  The trip to Tulum was going to be a mixture of business and pleasure that included stopping into shops to pick up money and then going to the beach to play.   It was her boyfriend’s birthday, so they were setting off to have a fun day.  The last thing my friend remembers on this trip is looking back at her children while en route to Tulum.

No one knows for sure what caused the auto accident, but her car ended up on the wrong side of the Hwy and rested against a utility pole.  The front end of the car was smashed.

Thankfully, the children, who were in the back seat, were unharmed.

It was a different story for the two adults in the front seats.  The driver had suffered a broken leg and my friend was unconscious.   As the driver got the children out of the car and out of harms way, he waited for help to arrive.  Passers by stopped to help and called 066, the Mexican 911.

My friend was not as lucky.  She was smashed up against the windshield with lacerations to her face and body from the broken glass and her femur and collarbone were broken.  She recalls opening her eyes and seeing her leg over her head and as thick blood dripped into her eyes, she fell back into unconsciousness.

The jaws of life arrived to remove my friend from the car.  An ambulance rushed them to the hospital and the hospital did indeed admit and stabilize them.   But as my friends lay in a state of shock, the doctors informed them of their injuries and what was going to be necessary to treat them.   The hospital also informed my friends of the cost of the surgeries and that they needed payment up front before they would be preformed.   This policy is typical in Mexico.

The cost for the surgeries was going to be somewhere in the neighborhood of $15,000.00.  Although that cost is significantly less than it would have been in the U.S. or Canada, with the little savings they had and the balances left on their credit cards, there was not enough to cover the surgeries.

As word got out into the community of the accident, support arrived at the hospital to take care of the children.  It did not take long to discover the seriousness of the accident and the predicament my friends were in.  The only thing that could be done was done:  The community jumped to action and raised donations.  The donations came in, however,  it took one week before enough money was raised and the surgeries could be preformed.

That accident was almost a year ago and she is still healing.  The community still supports her to keep her children fed, clothed and in school.  It has been a very long year for her family but they are all thankful to be alive and together.  As my friend continues to heal, she is becoming more and more independent and life is slowly returning to normal.

Protect Your Dreams

Isn’t your health and safety worth more than anything else you can think of?  You have worked so hard to build the life you have always wanted, do not cheat yourself by trying to save money on your health.  Protect yourself and your family and get what you deserve.  Health insurance is not free, but it is less expensive than an unexpected accident or a critical illness you never saw coming.

Be careful of health plans that seem a little too cheap.   Credible insurance agencies have to be able to pay claims and stay in business, so if a quote comes in at half the price of another plan, there is probably a good reason.  Watch out for “Dread Disease” or “Accident Only” policies.  Although these seem like a good deal, you never know what your future holds, and a good policy will encompass both.

Our major medical policy may not be the cheapest policy available today, but it is the best coverage you can get for your money….and that gives expats peace of mind.

There are a few important factors to consider before you purchase your next international health care policy:

Price Isn’t Everything

The cheapest policy may not provide you the best coverage.  It is not possible for one insurance company to offer the exact same coverage for less than half the cost of another insurance company.  Often times, you are not comparing apples to apples.  If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

The benefits offered, and more importantly, the benefits that may be excluded, can make a big difference in your costs and the quality of care you get if you become injured or  ill.  Some of the products out there look and sound like health insurance, but actually do not provide comprehensive health insurance coverage.  Here are a few to watch out for:

“Dread Disease” Policies

“Dread Disease” policies pay only for costs related to stated, specific diseases, such as cancer.   This is very dangerous coverage as none of us know what kind of disease we may be hit with in the future.  Unless you have a crystal ball telling you what you what illnesses you are going to contract in the future, it’s best to have comprehensive coverage.  In fact, some states have banned the sale of “Dread Disease” policies and in 2014, under Obamacare, all policies must include a range of health care coverages.

“Accident Only” Policies

“Accident Only” policies pay only for care you need as a result of an accident that isn’t due to illness.  The reason the premiums are so low on these policies is that it will only cover accidents and not illness.  A good comprehensive policy will cover costs associated with accidents as well as illness, so accident only policies are not a good value.

“Discount” Plans

“Discount” plans are not health insurance and therefore are unregulated by  insurance regulatory agencies.  Today, some state insurance regulators and attorney generals have issued alerts warning people not to purchase discount medical plans.   The reasons for this are that they do not protect you from high medical expenses and reports have been made to their claim payment history, not offering the discounts represented.

“Stacked” Policies

“Stacked” policies are where insurers combine products, or stack them together, to patch together a comprehensive health care policy.  However, an accident only policy combined with a dread disease policy may sound similar to comprehensive health care coverage, but it isn’t.

To be sure that you will be covered no matter what health care emergencies come your way, it’s best to pay for comprehensive, international health care coverage.

Mexico on My Mind (http://www.mexicoonmymind.com) (MoMM) has announced a new “Peace of Mind in Mexico” program and will now offer Mexico insurance products directly through the website. The new “Peace of Mind in Mexico” program has evolved from the resource website which fields hundreds of questions about relocating to Mexico on a monthly basis. The new insurance products are backed by major international carriers and licensed insurance agents on the Mexico on My Mind staff. Some of the insurance products available include Mexican auto, home, travel and major medical coverage.

The team at Mexico on My Mind recently completed staff training in Colorado for the property and casualty licensing which includes licensing certification for auto and home insurance products in Mexico. Mexico on My Mind is working with several of the largest insurers in Mexico including Ace Seguros, GNP Seguros, and ABA Seguros for auto and property and International Medical Group (IMG) for travel and major medical coverage.

Speaking with MoMM co-founder Ron Burdine, “It was very important for us to have licensed agents on staff with the proper training and education on insurance in Mexico before we got started…believe it or not you can actually sell insurance in Mexico without a license-I don’t think a lot of people are aware of that. We felt it was important to be licensed and knowledgeable for our own credibility and assurance to our clients” Burdine continued, “We are thrilled about the opportunity to help people feel more secure in all aspects of moving to Mexico. Outside of safety, insurance is a close second in terms of questions we get on a regular basis…people want to know about safe places to live and how they can get insurance when they relocate or drive through Mexico.”

Mexico on My Mind has seen a steady growth in traffic and downloads of their free expat guide to Mexico since the site started in the Spring of 2012. Currently Mexico on My Mind features over 20 different locations within Mexico on their “Best Places to Live in Mexico” map which are also designated as safe by the US State Department. Getting to these places often requires driving through unfamiliar territories with international airports often not in immediate proximity. There are also issues with bringing belongings and a myriad of logistics to deal with. Getting insurance for an adventure of that size is something most people want to have based on the feedback MoMM is getting.

Mexico on My mind was created as a resource for people considering a move to Mexico or for expats already living in Mexico looking to network. The website has a wealth of information about what it takes to move to Mexico, including information on immigration laws, customs, shopping in Mexico, cost of living tools and Real Estate resources. The addition of the insurance products seems to make sense for a website that already provides a lot of information and resources for making a move south of the border to Mexico. Mexico on My Mind also has a partnership with American Insurance for Expats which will still handle the travel and major medical policies linked through the main website.

Link to original press release: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/4/prweb10641000.htm

The IMSS, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (the Mexican Social Security System), is a system funded equally by the employee, its private employer, and the federal government. Employers must register all employees with IMSS and deduct a small monthly fee from their pay. Government and state workers are serviced by the Instituto de Seguridad y Servicios Sociales de los Trabajadores del Estado (ISSSTE) (the Institute for Social Security and Services for State Workers).

Each state government in Mexico also provides health services independently of those services provided by the federal government programs. In most states, the state government has established free or subsidized healthcare to all their citizens. All Mexican citizens, regardless of their employment status, via a system of health care facilities operating under the federal Secretariat of Health.

Health care in Mexico is widely accepted as very good to excellent as many Mexican doctors have received at least part of their training in the United States. Medium to large cities in Mexico have at least one first rate hospital that is equipped to first world standards, using modern equipment for diagnosis and treatment. Hygiene is also up to U.S. standards.   Some of Mexico’s top rate hospitals are internationally accredited.

IMSS coverage is also available to any resident of Mexico who is willing to pay on a yearly basis. The fee ranges from about $1,00o.00 – $3,000.00 pesos. Expatriates with FM2 or FM3 status are eligible to join this program, however, pre-existing conditions can disqualify you. To sign up for national coverage, you need to locate an IMSS “intake clinic” and apply. Once your documents have been submitted and approved, you will be assigned to one of the IMSS clinics in your area. Upon your first visit to your specific IMSS clinic, you will be given a personalized booklet, called a carnet, and assigned to a general practitioner at that clinic.

This doctor will be your assigned physician for any medical needs you may have. If any further treatment is needed, your assigned physician will refer you to a specialist within the IMSS system of hospitals.

The downside of depending on IMSS for all your healthcare is that you have no control over the doctors or specialists that you see for your problems. Sometimes the wait to see a doctor or to receive medication can be uncomfortably long. Certain things, such as eyeglasses and hearing aids, are not covered under the IMSS plan. However, any treatment that you receive at the clinics or hospitals, from general practitioners or specialists, will be covered completely by your IMSS insurance.

A strategy some expatriates recommend is to purchase private international major medical insurance with a high deductible for catastrophic coverage and let IMSS take care of the rest. This is a good strategy as catastrophic coverage does not typically cover routine doctor or dentist visits.

1. A cancelled connecting flight:  Who will help you find another connecting flight?  What if the only connecting flight does not leave until the following day?  Trip cancellation insurance will help you find another connecting flight and accommodations if they are needed.
2. Missing medication:  What if you or your family member has packed their medications in a suitcase that has been lost? Travel insurance will help you locate your bag and have emergency medications filled at the nearest available pharmacy to get you through until your bag is located.
3. Lost of stolen passport:  If you are traveling internationally and your wallet and passport are stolen, travel insurance will help you get your passport replaced and emergency money.
4. Medical emergency:  Trip cancellation insurance also has emergency medical coverage in case of an unforeseen accident.   If you need to be evacuated back to your home country, travel insurance will make sure you are able to fly home for treatment.
5. Medical emergency back home:  If a family member becomes seriously ill and you have to fly back, travel insurance will help pay for any  non-refundable deposits or pre-payments.
6. Lost of stolen luggage:  If your luggage is lost, delayed or stolen, travel insurance will help you locate it, pay for necessities until it is found or will pay to replace it if it is stolen.
7. Bankruptcy:  What if your cruise line, airline or tour operator goes bankrupt?  Who will pay for your non-refundable expenses? Who will help get you to your destination?
8. Locate a Doctor:  The medical coverage included in travel insurance will also help you locate a local physician should you need one while on vacation.
9. Unsafe Area:  In cases of terrorism, travel insurance will pay for any cancellation fees associated with a location under threat.
10. Hurricane:  In case of a hurricane, travel insurance will help you evacuate and reimburse your lost vacation investment.

No one expects anything to go wrong while on vacation and in most cases, nothing does go wrong.  But to protect yourself in case it does, travel insurance is a smart purchase.

What different plans do you offer and what are the differences?

Our primary underwriter is International Medical Group, and we focus on three different types of health insurance:

International, long term, major medical:  This insurance is meant for ex-patriots who are relocating and want a policy that will last until age 75 as long as continuous premium payments have been met.  At age 75, applicants that applied before age 65 qualify for extended coverage.   Long term, major medical coverage requires a one time health questionnaire and underwriting.  You can custom build a plan that is tailored specifically for you by choosing your areas of coverage, the deductible of your choice and the amount of coverage you need.

Mid-length policies:   Mid length policies are intended for Missionaries, professional consultants or exchange students who will be living abroad for a few years, but intend to go back to their home country to receive domestic coverage. This type of insurance also requires a one time health questionnaire and is renewable for up to three years.

Travel medical insurance:  Date specific medical coverage for the international traveler. There is no underwriting for medical travel insurance and the application only takes about 10 minutes to complete.   Travelers may choose policy limit and deductible options.  Coverage can begin as soon as the next day so if your travel plans change, you can always purchase more insurance.   There is no age limit for travel insurance.

Each of the major medical policies above offer emergency medical evacuation to the nearest available treatment center.  However, we also offer emergency evacuation insurance through MASA as a stand alone policy.   MASA is not a health insurance agency, so no physical or underwriting is required.  MASA delivers emergency air transportation and will fly spouses, friends or family members with the patient from the disaster point to the hospital and back home, or from home to visit the patient during the hospital stay. They will also return vehicles, minor children, grandchildren and in the worst case scenario, mortal remains.   MASA offers two membership options, Annual or Platinum Annual.

What are the Deductible options?

Deductible options range from $250.00 US Dollars, to $10,000.00 US Dollars.  The higher your deductible, the lower your premium.

What is the age limit for coverage?

Applicants who have signed up for a health care policy before the age of 65, and maintain continuous coverage to age 75, qualify for the Global Senior Plan. There is no health application for this policy as it is exclusively offered by IMG on the 75th birthday.  If you have not signed up for coverage before your 65th birthday, than coverage terms at age 75. You can obtain short term travel insurance up to any age without a physical or health application.

Does this insurance work with Medicare?

Our international insurance works with Medicare in that Medicare will cover you in the United States, but does not cover you when you leave the country.  Supplemental plans only cover you for up to 60 days with a limit of $50,000.00.

If a member is already on Medicare, than the appropriate coverage area would be “Worldwide excluding the U.S., Canada, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, Singapore, and Taiwan”, for a significant savings.  With national and international health care coverage, no matter where you are in the world (except for the countries excluded above) you will be covered.  Treatment can begin in one country and continue on at home.

Is there coinsurance?  If so, how does it work and what affect does it have on premiums?

After the deductible has been met, IMG will pay 80% of the next $5,000 of eligible expenses. Coinsurance is waived for PPO Network expenses with coverage in the U.S.  Coinsurance is waived for expenses incurred outside US and Canada where there is no P.P.O. network but only recommended doctors through the Medical Concierge service. There is no affect on the premium.

Are there specific areas of coverage?

Two areas of coverage exist: “Worldwide” or “Worldwide excluding the U.S., Canada, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, Singapore, and Taiwan”.  There are no substitutions to the area coverages.

Is coverage just major medical or does it include minor medical with doctors for day to day issues and check ups, lab work, etc.?

There is an annual $250.00 allowance for “Adult Wellness” after one year of coverage. Adult routine physical examinations are excluded under the Silver plan option, and for the first 12 months for the Gold, Gold Plus and Platinum plan options.   Out-patient mental and nervous is excluded for the first 12 months on all plan options.   In-patient mental and nervous is excluded under the Silver plan option and for the first 12 months for the Gold, Gold Plus and Platinum plan options.

Does insurance pay direct to hospitals and doctors or does patient pay and get reimbursed?

In many cases,  IMG works directly with the hospital or clinic, including those outside our independent Preferred Provider Organization (in U.S.), for payment of eligible medical expenses.  To file a claim, complete a Claim Form and submit it with original itemized bills. In this case, you will be responsible for your deductible, coinsurance amounts and non-eligible expenses.  You can also use IMG Interactive Claim Form.   Microsoft Word is required to use the interactive form.

If you have received treatment and need to be reimbursed for out-of-pocket medical expenses, just complete the Claim Form and submit the original itemized bills and paid receipts within 90 days.  IMG will reimburse the eligible medical expenses after applying the deductible and coinsurance immediately.

Please remember to submit bills and receipts as soon as they are received. Do not hold them until the end of the year. IMG will apply eligible medical expenses to your deductible and coinsurance throughout the year.

Please use the following address to send any information to the Claims Department:

International Medical Group
Claims Department
PO Box 88500
Indianapolis, IN 46208-0500

Are there a list of doctors and hospitals that are approved inside a Network, or can a person choose their own, at no additional cost?

Among the variety of services provided by IMG is the ability to quickly search for a hospital or doctor of a members choice. When seeking treatment in the U.S., members have access to the independent Preferred Provider Organization (PPO), a separately organized network of hundreds of thousands of established, highly qualified health care physicians and many well-recognized hospitals in the U.S. contracted by IMG. Additionally, to help locate health care providers outside the U.S., there is access to our International Provider AccessSM (IPA), a database of over 17,000 providers. However, when members are outside of the U.S., they may go to any doctor or hospital available to them at no additional cost.

What is turn-around time for approval?

Every attempt will be made to process applications timely.  The specific time frame depends largely on the type of coverage for which is being applied.  If a member is applying for short-term medical travel insurance, IMG will process the application and forward fulfillment materials within one business day.   If you are applying for coverage under the Permanent or Mid-Term policies, IMG will process the application within three to four business days following the receipt of all required information.  Fulfillment materials will be forwarded the same day coverage is approved.

Is a medical exam required?

There is no physical exam required for travel insurance.   For a permanent major medical policy, a physical examination is required to have been completed within the previous 2 years of application.  If a physical has not been preformed within 2 years of the application date, then a current physical exam will need to be completed and submitted to the underwriter.

Is coverage permanent, in that as long the premium is paid (after having been accepted), they get automatic renewal?

If a member purchases the permanent health insurance, it is renewable up to age 75 so long as payments have been continuously paid.  If a member signed up for insurance before the age of 65, than they qualify for the Global Senior Plan.   If a member signed up after age 65, than the insurance terms at age 75.

Are pre-existing conditions accepted?

IMG provides flexible underwriting methods to extend coverage.   An application may be underwritten by Standard Underwriting or the Flexible Underwriting Rider.

Standard Issuance – There are two levels of underwriting when all medical conditions have been disclosed and they have not been specifically excluded or restricted by a rider (subject to the foregoing limits and the other terms of the plan*).

The Silver, Gold and Gold Plus plan options provide a $50,000 lifetime benefit for eligible pre-existing conditions that existed at or prior to the effective date, subject to a maximum of $5,000 per period of coverage after coverage has been in effect for 24 continuous months. This benefit is payable whether or not the applicant has received consultation or treatment for the condition(s) during the 24-month period of continuous coverage.

The following illnesses which exist, manifest themselves, are treated or have treatment recommended prior to or during the first 180 days of coverage from the initial effective date are considered pre-existing conditions and are subject to the waiting period and other limitations of coverage described above: acne, asthma, allergies, tonsillectomy, back conditions, adenoidectomy, hemorrhoids or hemorrhoidectomy, disorders of the reproductive system, hysterectomy, hernia, gall bladder or gall stones and kidney stones, any condition of the breast, and any condition of the prostate.

On the Platinum plan option, conditions that are fully disclosed on the application and have not been excluded or restricted by a rider will be covered the same as any illness. Conditions, including any complications therefrom, that are not fully disclosed on the application will not be covered.

Flexible Underwriting Rider – Where you may have otherwise been declined for coverage, the Flexible Underwriting Rider allows IMG to extend coverage to the applicant. After 24 months of continuous coverage, a disclosed pre-existing condition which has not been specifically excluded by a rider will be covered as any other pre-existing condition so long as in that 24 month period no treatment has been received for that condition. If treatment has been sought or should have been sought, then the 24 month period starts over from the treatment date.

Other Exclusions & Limitations*

• Adult routine physical examinations are excluded under the Silver plan option, and for the first 12 months for the Gold, Gold Plus and Platinum plan options
• Out-patient mental and nervous is excluded for the first 12 months on all plan options
• In-patient mental and nervous is excluded under the Silver plan option and for the first 12 months for the Gold, Gold Plus and Platinum plan options
• Maternity, newborn and congenital care (unless the maternity rider or Platinum plan option is purchased – see Benefits page by clicking link above) Note: maternity expenses including prenatal, delivery, postnatal, newborn and congenital disorders are excluded when the pregnancy is a result of fertility treatment
• Organ transplants not specifically listed
• Devices to correct sight or hearing are excluded under the Silver, Gold and Gold Plus plan options
• Treatment or supplies not medically necessary
• Treatment not ordered or received by a physician
• Treatment by a relative or family member
• Treatment as a result of war, riot, or terrorism
• Treatment resulting from illegal activities
• Organized amateur or professional sports
• Services and treatment eligible for payment by any government or other insurance
• Investigational, experimental or research procedures
• Routine foot care
• Elective cosmetic or plastic surgery
• Drug and alcohol abuse treatment
• Speech therapy
• Custodial care
• Weight modification
• Treatment of impotency
• Contraceptive medication or treatment
• Persons HIV+ at effective date

Does a person have to be living a certain amount of time outside the U.S. (or Canada) in order to get permanent health care coverage?

The application process should be begin 30 days before leaving the United States or Canada, and the date of coverage will begin the date of departure.  If a member is already living outside the country, than approval begins immediately.  Travel insurance begins on the date requested.

Does the cost differ depending on how much time one spends in the U.S. or Canada?

No.  To qualify for permanent major medical coverage, applicants have to be able to prove 6 months a year or longer were spent internationally.  The six months do not need to be consecutive, and it does not matter how many countries you visit.   Travel insurance costs change based on the amount of days you need coverage for, your policy limit and your deductible choice.

Where can I find a quick quote?

Permanent Major Medical and Mid-Term Major Medical:

http://www.americaninsuranceforexpats.com/quote-for-international-medical.html

Travel Insurance:

http://www.americaninsuranceforexpats.com/quote-for-travel-insurance.html

American Insurance for Expats offers international, major medical health care coverage, if you live outside your home country for 6 months a year or longer.  The lifetime maximum limit for each individual is $5,000,000.00 – $8,000,000.00.  Treatment outside the U.S. and Canada is subject to deductible, no co-insurance.   Treatment inside the U.S. is subject to deductible with while paying 80% of the next $5,000 of eligible expenses, then 100% to the overall maximum per period of coverage.

Deductible’s range from $250 to $10,000 and if your major medical plan qualifies under IRS definitions as a high-deductible health plan, you can open a health savings account (HSA), in which you can put aside money, tax-deferred, to pay for medical expenses.

Do you fit the profile?

Older adults who purchase major medical plans are primarily concerned with potential financial losses from a critical illness or accident.   Doctor visits and prescription drugs are often so much less expensive abroad, that paying for those out of pocket is not the concern.  The concern is a critical illness or accident that could potentially drain a savings account or credit card until travel back to the U.S. for treatment can be considered.

Pre-existing conditions have made it difficult for people to become eligible for a major medical health insurance plan in the past, however, you may still qualify for coverage with an exclusion in regards to the pre-existing condition.

Before you buy a major medical health insurance plan, consider:

• Can you afford to pay for your own doctor visits abroad?
• Do you take a lot of prescriptions or only occasionally?
• Are you living in an area where prescription drugs are less expensive?