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Medical evacuation insurance

Joined
Feb 11, 2021
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Location
Clayton NY
I've never seen a need for medical evacuation insurance - rescue insurance - if staying in USA. Mention of it in another thread made me curious. SAR in US seems to be paid for by taxpayers, with a few jurisdictions allowing billing the rescuee where frivolous or due to negligence beyond the pale. I accept that if in BWCA for example, i might end up in a hospital in Ely or Duluth, not transported to a provider near me or of my choice, but I can deal with that. I'm not sure what happens if I'm in Canada. And were I paddling in Vietnam, you bet I'd have it, but that won't happen.

Thoughts?
 
I believe rescue in Canada is free; the initial extraction. After being taken to the nearest medical facility you are on your own financially. See what your insurance covers and if you want fill in the gaps. Its a long way from the Yukon to NY. Not so far from Algonquin to you.. But still could be expensive.
 
Mostly, throughout the US, SAR response is without cost, and managed by land managers or sheriff's offices with their predominantly volunteer SAR (at least in the West). And, from what I here, Canada is likewise. I picked up the SAR insurance (it was really cheap) for an extended, remote trip in Canada, and wanted to hedge my bets. However, any costs associated with transferring you from the nearest hospital to the SAR to a hospital near your home is covered by you and/or your health insurance. Even the deductible on a good policy would be well over the $100/trip I mentioned on the referenced thread should you want/require treatment that a remote village can offer. A friend of mine's wife had a stroke on a Yukon River trip. He chartered a plane to bring her home--I don't know the costs/coverage. For trips close to home, it's probably not necessary. For me, we were 200 miles from the nearest Native village (and then we were in Botswana the next year!).
 
Mostly, However, any costs associated with transferring you from the nearest hospital to the SAR to a hospital near your home is covered by you and/or your health insurance.
Not entirely true- if the transfer is ordered by the doctor at the hospital, it's covered in most provinces by the provincial health plans because it's a medical decision, but if you request it it's not.
been there, done that, no charge for the move.
 
Not entirely true- if the transfer is ordered by the doctor at the hospital, it's covered in most provinces by the provincial health plans because it's a medical decision, but if you request it it's not.
been there, done that, no charge for the move.

Is that true for foreigners? The OP is not a resident of Canada
 
So within Canada and US to get "rescued" and transported to the closest or nearby appropriate medical facility probably is covered by either the emergency services (SAR) or by your regular health insurance - mine is a Medicare advantage plan and would cover it with a modest deductible. Getting transported for my convenience or preferences not likely. Having read some articles as well as what is posted here, it seemed that not all medical evacuation policies would necessarily cover that convenience/preference transportation, depending on the fine print. I read the Geos terms https://www.geosresponse.com/assets/pdf/GEOS-SAR-BENEFIT-TERMS-AND-CONDITIONS.pdf and am not filled with confidence it would do any more than what I already get. I looked at Travel Guard and it only guarantees “medical transportation to the nearest adequate medical facility and then home if warranted.” It seems that transportation from Yellowknife medical facility to home town is if the insurer determines it is medically necessary or warranted, not you or your family. Medjet seems more likely to transport you to a near home medical facility if you are more than 150 miles away, but also starts around $300/yr and has other exclusions. I think I’m skeptical. Like extended warranties on appliances, tools, electronics, or whatever: not a good buy. If you buy all the policies you’ll spend a lot more than if you just saved that money for repairing or replacing an item.

I appreciate everyone's thoughts. Just a periodic evaluation and as long as I stay in US and CA, I think I'll not consider it.
 
My sister bought me insurance for this. It appears the primary purpose is not for SAR and the like, but medical transport in general which out of pocket (apparently) is quite variable in many jusisdictions and health insurance plans. I prob would not have bought it for myself.

Looking closer at the membership my sister bought, it also provides for transporting my remains if I die.
 
For the Yukon River races, our credit card was charged $500 fee in case we needed extraction. We also had to show hat we had basic medical insurance coverage. The $500 was refunded if not needed, but I do know of cases where it was applied to paddlers who simply wanted to leave the race from a remote location, though they did not for any true medical emergency. Presumably they lost the fee. We are also required to have our own SPOT tracker during the race, and that comes with an optional insurance rider for emergency extraction.
 
When I was in Guam for the Air Force, we had to take a clsss upon arrival to get a "reef pass" for training before being allowed to recreate on the beach or go into the water. It was common for people to get caught in the rip current and get swept out over and beyond the shallow razor sharp reef with waves crashing over it. Even with the training, a rescue was reported to cost $500 at the time (if you were lucky enough to get noticed). A real bargain compared to reported prices now.
 
I just happened to notice that for $24.99 I can add evacuation insurance on my SPOT Tracker, up to $100,000.
 
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