Medical Insurance and RVing

Above, the St. Luke's Magic Valley Medical Center in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

When I had my medical emergency four years ago at the Wells Fun Run in Wells, Nevada, I had to be flown by helicopter to St. Luke's Magic Valley Medical Center in Twin Falls, Idaho to have two stents put into a coronary artery.

Along with the procedure of putting the stents in and the stay in the hospital, I also had to be flown by air ambulance. The air ambulance alone cost around $55,000+. (I now have air ambulance coverage since I live in a rural area and usually patients are transferred from Gallup to Albuquerque. The coverage is good anywhere,)

Above, the air ambulance helicopter that took me to Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Mitch Geriminsky.

Fortunately for me, I had Medicaid at the time which covered all the aforementioned costs. 

Does your medical insurance coverage also include out-of-network medical treatments while RVing?

RVer Insurance Exchange has an article comparing insurance coverages with different scenarios on what each insurance covers and what they don't.

They begin with:

Improper Insurance Coverage Can Have Devastating Financial Repercussions

Have you secured health insurance coverage for the year yet? If you have, congratulations! You are among the over 297 million Americans who have some type of health insurance coverage. You have taken the first step in mitigating financial risk and giving yourself peace of mind. But, do you understand how your health insurance plan works? Does it have network restrictions that could leave you vulnerable while you’re on the road? What does it (or you!) pay for a specialist’s visit, urgent care visit, or ER visit?

Understanding your plan’s benefits is almost as important as having coverage itself. If you do not use your plan properly, you will be on the hook for outstanding medical bills, causing stress and major financial burden. As a licensed health insurance agent working with the RVer Insurance Exchange, it is my job to not only provide health insurance options, but to help RVers and travelers understand how the plan they are purchasing actually works.

To read more, go here.