Home
Blogs
Visitors
Best time to buy travel health Insurance

Best time to buy travel health Insurance

Covid-19 travel insurance for international travelers

While travelling in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic, one must ensure that they have the right travel health insurance with proper Covid-19 coverage. At America visitor insurance travelers can get visitors insurance for Covid -19 illness. We offer a range of options for visitors where they can compare using our Visitors insurance for Covid19 comparison tool based on the factors like the travelers age, duration of travel, the maximum coverage required, deductible and the need for pre-existing conditions or for covid coverage. Travelers can narrow down their search further by applying the “filter” option for Covid19 available in the tool. Please know we are here to help you make the best, informed decision to get coverage even for COVID-19! Let us know how we can assist you. Feel free to contact us by email or phone at any time.

Dear Cautious Traveler,
Today I am going to talk about the timing of getting your travel health insurance. We get many calls from people who are already on their trip (here in the US or abroad) and wonder if they can "now" purchase visitors medical insurance or international travel insurance. Of course, we recommend that you purchase your visitors insurance after you have your tickets and travel dates in order so that you are covered from the moment you leave until the time you return (for tricky time zone issues note that all policies begin and end using Eastern Standard Time). However, you can still purchase insurance once you are on your trip.

BUT, we also get a number of calls from people whose loved ones are “already” in the Emergency Room or already not feeling well. In that case, I'm afraid, that your insurance plan (even if you purchase it right away) will NOT cover what is already going on. Remember: you need to buy the visitor medical insurance “before” you need it. To buy a plan and then lie about when symptoms started is not only potentially dangerous to the patient, but would also be constituted as fraud which is a serious crime. Of course, we cannot recommend any such course of action. Better to make your purchase to include all your travel.
However, there are sometime reasonable circumstances for not making your purchase until after you or your loved ones have arrived at your destination. Some people have other coverage that covers them until a certain point, or they change their

travel plans and cannot extend a policy they already purchased. People have insurance through school or an employer and now they are changing paths and find themselves without coverage. Or you just forgot. We forgive you, not to worry! In most cases, you can still purchase a policy. The soonest a policy can start coverage is the following day after the purchase, so if you do have a policy that is expiring or you change dates, just be aware of that.

So, while many top rated Visitor insurance companies we work with do not mind that you are already mid-trip when you start your policies, most of their forms are set up with terms like: trip start date, trip end date, date of arrival in US, etc. You must always answer the questions honestly and straightforwardly. Generally, you can put the date you want the policy to start (even if it was not your actual start date) and end (even if you may have other plans afterwards). However, if they specifically ask for a date you entered the US, you will have to give it as best as you can remember (if it was 5 years ago in Aug, just give a good guess... Aug, 15, 2014, since you cannot do less than give a particular date). If the form asks if you are already in your destination country, you will have to answer "Yes". That answer may restrict what you can purchase, but there are other options for you.

Here are some plans that do not care how long you have been at your destination country: Patriot America or Patriot International, Atlas America or Atlas International, Liaison Travel Series, Diplomat America or Diplomat International, and Safe Travels plans (although they prefer to cover your whole trip).
Here are some plans that “do” care how long you have been in the US (these are specifically for travel to the US), if you are over 65 years, you must purchase Visitor's Care or Patriot Go Travel plans within 30 days of arrival (these plans are offered by International Medical Group-IMG). However, if you had patriot travel Insurance coverage, you can waive this requirement.

The Inbound USA insurance from Seven Corners must be bought within 12 months of arrival in the USA.

Happy trip planning! Most of these limitations are not an issue at all if you are within 30 days of arrival to your destination. If you are beyond that see what plans are available by using our US Immigrant insurance comparison tool.

Review best visitors insurance for USA:

Age

Spouse Age

Start Date

End Date

GET QUOTE

Comprehensive plans pays for all expenses after the deductible and co-insurance component and are recommended given the high costs of health care in the US.

Liaison Travel Choice by Seven Corners

Maximum coverage^#1

Deductible^#2

Key Features Acute onset of pre-existing conditions coverage of $30,000 for visitors up to 69 years in USA. Details...

$33.79
PER MONTH

BUY NOW

Patriot America Plus by International Medical Group

Maximum coverage^#1

Deductible^#2

Pre-Existing Cover

YES NO

Key Features Great coverage for a great price. Offers coverage for pre-existing conditions. Details...

$37.00
PER MONTH

BUY NOW

Atlas America by Tokio Marine HCC

Maximum coverage^#1

Deductible^#2

Key Features Always eligible for purchase no matter what age and how long a person has been in the US Details...

$42.16
PER MONTH

BUY NOW

Fixed benefits plans have specific benefit limits for different covered medical expenses. These benefit limits are not the same as the plan medical maximum.

Visitor's Care by International Medical Group

Maximum coverage^#1

Deductible^#2

Key Features Covers Pre-existing condition upto Policy maximum. Most economical option with a $25k maximum and lowest deductible option. Details...

$38.00
PER MONTH

BUY NOW

Visitor Secure by Tokio Marine HCC

Maximum coverage^#1

Deductible^#2

Key Features High maximum available. Details...

$49.91
PER MONTH

BUY NOW

Inbound USA Basic by Seven corners

Maximum coverage^#1

Deductible^#2

Key Features Pre-existing conditions covered as any other for persons under 80 Details...

$63.55
PER MONTH

BUY NOW

#1 Maximum Coverage is the maximum eligible medical expenses that the plan will cover.

#2 Deductible is the amount of expenses that must be paid out of pocket before an insurer will pay any expenses.

Can you buy travel insurance the day you leave?

Yes. You can purchase the insurance the day you leave. A better day would be the day BEFORE the day you leave since a policy cannot start until the following day, so you will begin your trip without insurance (which we do not recommend). However, it may make your wait in the airport a bit more productive!

Can I buy travel insurance at the airport?

Yes. Nowadays with airports having internet access, you can certainly purchase your travel insurance from the airport. It is not the most ideal situation (be careful of putting your credit card or personal information while on those open networks). Ideally, you should make your purchase from a more secure location BEFORE you start your travel to get the most out of your policy.

Can I buy travel insurance after final payment?

Yes. You can purchase trip cancellation insurance at any point before the start of the trip. Of course, you get the most out of the policy the sooner you make your purchase. AND, some companies will give you coverage for pre-existing conditions as long as you buy it within 10 or 15 days of your INITIAL trip deposit. So, again, this may not be the most ideal time to make your purchase, but better now than never and safer than sorry!