Many foreign-born professionals living and working in the United States enjoy having relatives and loved ones from their home country visit them in the USA from time to time. It gives families and friends the chance to reconnect and catch up, and celebrate momentous events together.
Due to the extremely high price of healthcare in the United States, it is critical that your visiting relatives have visitors insurance to protect them in case of an illness or injury that occurs during their trip.
However, relatives of foreign-born professionals are often older and may have existing medical conditions that must be taken into account. If your mother has high blood pressure, or your uncle is diabetic, would their visitors insurance provide coverage if they require treatment related to their pre-existing condition while visiting the United States?
While there are several visitors insurance plans that can provide coverage for acute onset of pre-existing conditions, coverage has not typically been available for pre-existing condition treatment outside of the acute onset benefit. Luckily, coverage is now available in USA visitor insurance for pre-existing conditions in certain circumstances with Visitors Protect insurance.
Pre-Existing Condition Coverage with Visitors Protect
Visitors Protect can cover a maximum limit of $25,000 for pre-existing condition care up to age 69. For individuals age 70 and older, the policy can pay a maximum limit of $20,000 for care related to pre-existing conditions. This maximum limit is separate from the policy maximum limit for all other types of covered care, which can range from $50,000 to $250,000, depending upon age and the policy maximum chosen.
For care related to a pre-existing condition, you would have to pay a deductible of $1,500 per injury or illness. As with the policy maximum, the pre-existing condition deductible differs from the standard plan deductible, which can range from $250 to $5,000.
For full details regarding pre-existing condition coverage and all other medical coverage with Visitors Protect insurance, please read the policy certificate wording.
Exclusions and Limitations
Visitors Protect insurance will not cover all pre-existing conditions in all situations. For instance, it will not cover pre-existing conditions if the insured is deemed not to have been medically fit for travel, or if they’re traveling to the United States solely for the purpose of medical treatment. Remember, visitors medical insurance is not for medical tourism. It would be advisable for your visiting relatives to get a doctor’s certificate stating that they are medically fit for travel prior to traveling to the United States if they have a pre-existing condition.
In addition, Visitors Protect will not cover pre-existing conditions related to urinary tract infections occurring within 90 days of the effective date of the policy that require inpatient treatment at a hospital.
Is Visitors Protect Insurance Right for My Visiting Loved Ones?
The answer to this largely depends upon the medical needs of your visiting family. If you simply want to make sure that they can be covered due to a sudden, unforeseen issue related to a pre-existing condition, it can likely be covered by the acute onset benefit available in some visitor insurance plans.
However, if they have a pre-existing condition that would not be covered under the acute onset benefit, are medically fit for travel, and will not be coming to the US solely for medical treatment, the pre-existing condition coverage of Visitors Protect insurance could prove to be extremely valuable.
As always, if you have any questions about this coverage, please feel free to contact our office to get the answers you need.