International Student Medical Health Insurance - FAQ

Q: Why should I purchase insurance with an American company and not buy insurance overseas A: It is advisable to have insurance from an American company while in the United States, even if the premium for these plans are more expensive. The reason is that while almost all Doctors/hospitals in the United States accept American insurance company cards, they will be reluctant to acknowledge overseas insurance coverage. The medical office can easily contact an American insurance company for clarification, while the same will not be true for an overseas insurance company. Typically medical offices in the US will bill directly to known American insurance companies. For overseas insurance companies you most probably will have to pay the bill, and then try to get the claim reimbursed from the insurance company. Q: There is such a wide array of choices between insurance plans offered by different companies. How do I know what to purchase? A: It is precisely to help you make this decision that we built our insurance comparison facility. Using our comparison engine, you can evaluate different plans based on their cost, the deductible and their rating. This will help you identify the plan that best suits for your needs. Q: When should I purchase the insurance? A: You should purchase the insurance only after being certain of your travel plans (having the passport/visa papers and the airline tickets in order). It is safest to start the insurance coverage from the date of departure from your native country. Q: My parents are not yet here, can I purchase insurance for them in their absence? A: Yes. You can purchase the insurance coverage on behalf of others in their absence. Q: Is the insurance plan refundable should I leave the country during its validity? A: Some insurance plans do refund money if given enough advance notice, however since travelers insurance is typically for a short duration, they are often not refundable. If this situation is a concern for you, you should look out for insurance plans which are renewable. Such plans are available among the plans listed in our comparison engine. Q: What is the proof of my purchasing insurance? A: When you purchase insurance online, you should immediately receive an confirmatory email with details of the insurance. It is prudent to keep a backup of this email. You should also receive an insurance card from the insurance company by mail. This card will have your name, policy number, group number, insurance company's contact information such as the toll-free telephone number and the address where claims should be submitted. Q: How do I purchase the insurance? When does the insurance take effect? A: Purchasing insurance online is very simple. All you have to do is to complete the appropriate online application form. You will receive an email acknowledgement immediately and coverage will start from the start date as indicated on the form. Within a week you will receive a package from the insurance company, which will include the insurance card and a hard copy with details regarding the insurance plan Q: Can I purchase insurance for only part of the stay of my parents in the US? A: Yes you can purchase for only partial duration of the entire stay. However the purpose of purchasing insurance is in the event of unanticipated medical emergencies. One can never be sure when such an emergency can happen. Having purchased insurance for part of their stay will not help in the event of an emergency during the uninsured period. Q: Is the insurance plan purchasd on a calendar monthly basis, or can a plan span 2 calendar months ? A: A month is calculated as 30 continuous days from the start date requested and it can include two partial calendar months. Q: What is the minimum duration for which insurance can be purchased? A: The minimum duration varies for different insurance plans. Please review the various plan details and brochures using the comparison engine Q: Do I need a Social Security number to complete the form? A: No you can complete the form using the visitors passport number. Q: Can I go to any doctor/hospital, or am I limited to specific medical practitioners? A: This will vary for different insurance plans. Some plans allow you to visit any medical practitioners, while others have their provider network. In the latter case, if you visit a doctor/hospital within the provider network, the fee will be a standard rate that has been agreed between the insurance company and the provider. However, if you visit a provider outside of the insurance companies provider network, there may be a difference between the amount charged to you and the amount the insurance company considers reasonable. In this event, you will have to pay the difference between the two. Q: How do I find out which doctors are part of a given insurance network? A: You can also get this information by calling the toll free number of the insurance company or by visiting the insurance company web site. The toll free number should be on the insurance card that you receive on purchasing the insurance plan. Q: Can you give an example of my medical expenses with different insurance plans? A: This really depends on the policy. For example if your medical bill is $24,000. Scenario 1. After deductible, policy covers up to a maximum of $50,000 Here your expense is the only the first $100 deductible. Thus your final expense is only $100 while the insurance company will cover the remaining $23,900. Scenario 2. Deductible is $100 with Maximum coverage of $50,000 Policy covers 80% of first $5000 then 100% to the policy limit So your expense is the first $100 deductible followed by 20% of first $5000, which is $1000. Thus your final expense is $1100 while the insurance company will cover the remaining $22,900. Our insurance comparison engine allows you to evaluate different plans based on deductible cost. Q: Should I pay the medical practitioner/organization initially and then get reimbursed or will the insurance company be billed directly? A: On purchasing insurance from an American insurance firm, you will receive an insurance card with details about your insurance. When you visit the doctor/hospital, the billing office at the hospital will usually make a photo-copy of your insurance card, call the insurance company to verify your policy, and will then bill the insurance company directly. You will have to pay the deductible amount. In some instances if the medical office has not dealt with this particular insurance company, they might insist that you pay the bill on receiving medical treatment. In this scenario, you would get an detailed bill, which should be sent to the insurance company for reimbursement. We advise policy holders to visit hospitals with in the provider network wherever possible. Q: Are any pre-existing conditions covered? A: Pre-existing ailments are usually not covered, however do call our toll free number 877.778.4562 for clarifications. Insurance companies have various time-frames through which pre-existing conditions are not covered. Please review the various plan details and brochures using our comparison engine for specific information. Q: How do insurance company's determine whether some ailment was pre-existing or not? Should one get a medical examination immediately on arrival in the United States? A: There is no need for any medical examination on arrival in the United States. In the event of a medical ailment while visiting the United States, insurance companies will rely on the opinion of the concerned Doctor who treats the visitor. The doctor will determine if that ailment had received treatment prior to the start of the insurance coverage. Q: My mother needs to have a mammogram done. Will the cost for that be covered in visitor medical insurance? A: No. The testing would be considered for a pre-existing condition and hence would not be covered. Q: Why should I purchase insurance if it does not cover pre-existing medical conditions? A: Medical costs in the United States are astronomical. The costs can be financially devastating especially if the patient is hospitalized. Travelers insurance is a means to insure against such unanticipated medical emergencies. Travelers insurance should not be viewed as a means to get medical treatment to existing ailments. Disclaimer: ServeGlobe has tried to answer these frequently asked questions to the best of our knowledge. However we make no guarantee regarding the accuracy of our answers. The exact answers for some of the questions can change periodically as insurance companies change their policies. ServeGlobe is not liable for any problem resulting from the content on this FAQ.

ServeGlobe Inc., has tried to answer these frequently asked questions to the best of our knowledge. However we make no guarantee regarding the accuracy of our answers. The exact answers for some of the questions can change periodically as insurance companies change their policies. ServeGlobe Inc., is not liable for any problem resulting from the content on this FAQ.
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International Student Medical Health Insurance Tools