Best Travel Medical Insurance in 2025

What is Travel Medical Insurance?

Travel medical insurance is a type of trip insurance designed to cover emergency medical expenses and other healthcare-related costs incurred while traveling outside of one’s home country. It provides coverage for unforeseen medical emergencies such as illness or injury that may occur during your trip.

Travel medical policies are often cheaper than comprehensive plans since they do not cover your prepaid, non-refundable trip costs in the event of a cancellation.

If you have existing cancellation coverage through a credit card, or don’t require Trip Cancellation or Trip Interruption insurance, a travel medical policy may be the perfect option for your next adventure.

What Benefits Does the Best Travel Medical Insurance Include?

When planning any type of getaway, there’s always the risk that you may need medical attention while traveling. This is the second most common traveler concern, only trailing Trip Cancellation.

Given that most health insurance providers don’t offer international coverage, a travel medical plan is often needed to help pay for overseas hospital bills, ambulance rides, and other treatment-related expenses.

When looking for a well-rounded travel medical insurance policy, it’s important to consider the following benefits:

• Emergency Medical: With medical coverage, travelers may be reimbursed for costs related to treatment overseas, such as hospital bills, x-rays, ambulance services, and lab costs.
• Medical Evacuation & Repatriation: In the event of a true medical emergency, a doctor may order a traveler to be transported to another medical facility or return home to receive treatment. Emergency Medical Evacuation insurance can cover these transportation costs, which can easily rise to tens of thousands of dollars.
• Pre-Existing Condition Coverage: Pre-Existing Condition coverage can cover illnesses or other medical conditions that were diagnosed or treated before a trip, as long as they are stable at the time of purchase. While this coverage is not needed for most travelers, it is a helpful benefit to have for those that want coverage from an existing issue.
• Medical Coverage for Covid-19: While Covid-19 restrictions have been lifted in recent times, there is still the possibility that you may contract the coronavirus during your trip. Most travel insurance policies now include Covid-19 coverage at no additional cost.

Is Travel Medical Health Insurance Ever Required?

Yes, in certain situations, travel medical health insurance may be required by your host nation or tour operator in order to travel. Even in situations when it’s not required, purchasing medical insurance before your trip is always strongly recommended.

It’s important to find a travel medical insurance policy that addresses your primary concerns and provides adequate coverage for the duration of your trip.

How Much Travel Medical Insurance Do I Need?

The amount of travel health insurance you need depends heavily on the type of trip you are taking. It’s important to consider your travel itinerary when comparing plans, and that you take into account the various activities you might be doing while traveling.

For most international travelers, we recommend a travel medical insurance policy with at least $50,000 in Emergency Medical coverage and $100,000 in Medical Evacuation coverage. Plans that meet this criteria should offer enough coverage for most medical bills you could potentially face during a trip.

However, for cruisers, travelers with more adventurous itineraries, or individuals visiting remote destinations, higher coverage limits may be necessary. For such trips, we recommend a plan that features at least $100,000 in Emergency Medical and $250,000 in Medical Evacuation coverage.

How Much Does Travel Medical Insurance Cost?

The average international travel medical insurance policy costs $89. However, this cost can vary based on several factors, including your trip length, age, destination, and the level of coverage you choose.

Travelers who want fully comprehensive coverage, including cancellation benefits in addition to medical coverage and other travel benefits, can expect their policies to be considerably more expensive. The average comprehensive policy costs travelers roughly $330.

What is the Difference Between Primary and Secondary Travel Health Insurance?

When comparing travel health insurance policies, you will notice that providers label their Emergency Medical benefit as either “Primary” or “Secondary.” This refers to the order in which a medical claim is paid.

For Primary travel health insurance plans, the travel insurance provider will be the first in line to reimburse a claim. On the other hand, Secondary coverage will pay a claim after a traveler has filed with their primary health insurance provider.

It’s important to note that primary travel medical insurance doesn’t necessarily mean better coverage. While primary claims typically settle faster, travelers who opt for secondary Emergency Medical coverage are usually just as satisfied with the level of service and protection. To learn more, read our detailed explanation of the differences between primary and secondary travel insurance.

What Is Excluded From Travel Health Insurance?

Travel medical policies are designed to provide financial coverage to travelers impacted by an unforeseen medical emergency. However, this does not mean that all injuries and illnesses sustained while traveling will be covered by your insurance provider.

Common exclusions found in travel medical insurance policies include:

• Pre-Existing Conditions: Unless stated otherwise, the majority of travel insurance policies will not cover medical bills relating to illnesses or injuries sustained before the trip’s departure date.
• Pregnancies: While pregnancy complications may be covered under some travel health insurance plans, most policies will exclude coverage for normal pregnancy activity. This includes childbirth and routine checkups.
• Elective Surgeries: Travelers that plan on undergoing an elective surgery at any point during their trip will likely not be covered by their travel medical insurance plan.
• Sport Related Injuries: Most standard travel health insurance policies won’t cover travelers if they get hurt participating in organized sports or hazardous activities. With that said, some providers have policies specifically designed for travelers with more adventurous or active itineraries.