As a teacher who is sponsoring a field trip to a country outside the US, I am sure you have thought about what happens if  a student or attendee had an accident or sudden illness in the foreign country.

• Can they get proper care in the country?

How would the cost of care be handled?

• Would existing insurance cover the costs?
• Would the foreign hospital recognize the US insurance and accept it for payment?
• Could the injured or sick person be able to get into a hospital?
• What would your responsibility be in this situation?

Let me add a couple of other questions:

• What if the person had to be evacuated to another location to receive the proper care?
• Could the parents of a child come to the country to be with a very sick or injured child?
• And what happens if one of the attendee died? How would the body be handled and what would that cost?

These are all very serious questions. As the sponsoring teacher, you could be in a very delicate situation to say the least. So could the school. What would you do, call their parents?  Would they have the assets to take care of the situation? Could the money get to you soon enough?

Let's look at the options:

• Most students or travelers have medical coverage here in the US

Even though this is common, this is not the answer alone. Most US companies will provide "coverage" for out of the US medical situations. But they do so on a reimbursement basis. You pay the bill and turn it in to them for reimbursement. What if the bill is $5,000 or $10,000 or $50,000? Would your credit card or the parents cover such a cost? What if the hospital wants the cash or promise of payment immediately?

• Traditional US medical insurance companies do not cover costs of:
  • Evacuation to another medical facility for proper care
  • Repatriation of a body back to the US
  • Emergency Reunion of a family member with the traveler
  • What about protection from terrorists events?

The best solution is to have a special travel medical plan like IMG's Patriot Travel Medical Insurance regardless if other insurance is available.

What is the best way to purchase IMG coverage for my students?

There are two options:

1. Each traveler purchases their coverage individually
2. The group signs up for a "Group Travel Plan"

What is the difference?

The coverage is the same. The difference is a 10% discount on the premiums. But there is a catch. If you choose to do a group, everyone gets the exact same coverage. There is no individual choice on deductibles or coverage amounts. Any riders chosen everyone gets.

How do you set up a group?

One person, probably the teacher takes the lead, determines the particular coverage and deductible, communicates it to the travelers (or parents), gets the decision and payment, then purchases the group plan, preferably at the IMG web page. You do not need individual applications on each traveler, but you do have to list the travelers/purchasers on the form. And the information needed is found on the individual applications. So you may want to collect them just make sure the travelers realize everyone gets the same coverage.

How do you make application for IMG coverage?

There are three methods:

1. Use the IMG website and purchase it on line. This is the recommended method. The questions are the same but there is no mailing time. You can ask that the "kit" be emailed to the purchaser. The kit is the same whether you have it mailed or emailed. Purchasing on line does require a credit card, though.
2. Mail the application(s) directly to IMG at the address on the brochure. This will save time rather than mailing it to Dennis Begley. You can mail it to me but I will turn around and mail it to IMG taking more time.
3. You can fax the application form(s) to me as well but you must use a credit card to purchase it. My office and direct fax is 952-915-9734. This is a direct fax to a computer and is secure. No one else will see the form and your information.

Thank you for your business. Feel free to call IMG directly or me with questions. If you do have questions, it is preferred to have you email them to me.

Dennis Begley