Millions of people travel to the USA annually to see the many tourist attractions. As the USA is a large country, there are a wide variety of things to see and do nationwide, offering something appealing to everyone.
Many working citizens and residents of the U.S. invite their elderly relatives to visit them. The following tips can help make their trip enjoyable and worry-free for the whole family!
Travel Insurance for Visitors to USA
As the healthcare costs are very high in the U.S,. each visitor coming to the USA should purchase visitors insurance for the entire duration of their stay. Even though U.S. law does not mandate insurance coverage for visitors, it is a smart decision to get coverage.
There are two primary types of visitors insurance:
- Fixed Coverage Plans: Cheaper, limited benefits
- Comprehensive Coverage Plans: Slightly more expensive, but provides better benefits
Before buying fixed coverage visitors insurance, please make sure to read the following articles:
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Risks of purchasing fixed coverage plans
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Fixed coverage plans: No PPO network
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Fixed coverage plans: No contracted fees
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We always recommend to our customers to buy comprehensive coverage plans, because fixed coverage plans provide such limited coverage.
Even though fixed coverage plans provide some coverage for new medical conditions, pre-existing conditions, acute onset of a pre-existing conditions, dental, or anything else, fixed coverage plans provide such minimal coverage that you should really review the plan information and coverages provided before you decide to purchase any fixed coverage option.
Cruise Coverage
Some visitors to the USA may travel to Canada, (especially to visit the Canadian side of Niagara Falls); others might take a cruise to Mexico or the Caribbean. Most visitors insurance plans provide coverage outside your home country. Almost all other visitors insurance plans provide side visits to countries that share borders; therefore, you don't need any special medical insurance for a cruise. Of course, if you are looking for trip cancellation coverage, you would need to buy a separate cruise travel insurance plan.
Refused Entry into the U.S.
People are normally denied entry into the U.S. only for major things. For example, they have been found guilty of murder or rape, have overstayed on a previous visit to the U.S., or a visitor is suspected of having an infectious disease.
Make sure that your passport and visa stamp are valid and that the passport is not damaged in any way.
In any case, even after all the precautions if you are denied entry into the U.S., the airline is responsible for transporting you back home. For that reason, you don't have to worry about incurring extra expenses and you don't need any separate travel insurance to cover you.
Laptop
There is no visitors insurance to cover the cost of a laptop in case it gets lost or stolen.
Even if some visitors insurance covered a partial cost of replacing a laptop, there will not be any coverage for the theft of data or business losses due to such an event.
However, most elderly visitors to the USA will not have to worry about this.
Dental/Vision
Most visitors insurance plans provide limited or no dental coverage.
Additionally, many national chains provide a pair of glasses, lenses and an eye exam for a cost that is less than a visit to optometrist. Therefore, vision coverage is really not that important.
Hazardous Activities
Many elderly parents are simply not interested or capable of engaging in hazardous activities while visiting USA.
In any case, they should be careful while visiting a foreign country. They should not get excited and start learning how to roller-skate just because their grandson wants them to.
If you think something is too risky for your age, don't attempt it.
Their son/daughter whom they are visiting should also be careful about the activities they choose for their elderly relatives. Don't exhaust them by taking them to too many tourist places at once, or having them walk for miles when they don't do that much at home. Let them move at their own pace.
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