Impressed with MedjetAssist

In September 2015, my husband, Dan, fell and broke his hip in a hotel in Paris. He was taken by ambulance to the public-assistance hospital. It was a very scary time, as I know little French.

After about six hours of lying on a gurney in hallways, having tests and x-rays done and waiting for results, he was admitted and given morphine, at which point he wasn’t scared at all.

About 10 years ago, to cover just this kind of scenario, I first purchased an annual travel insurance policy through MedjetAssist (medjet.com). We’re travelers who “never get sick,” but I thought this was a good move. The family plan, which includes coverage for emergency medical evacuation, currently costs the two of us $395 a year.

Once Dan was diagnosed and admitted into the hospital, I went back to our hotel and emailed MedjetAssist using my laptop. It was the middle of the night at their offices in the US, yet I received a phone call from them within 20 minutes. 

One of Medjet’s principals gave me a great deal of information and set things in motion immediately. They had an answer for everything, even offering to assign a translator so I could communicate with staff at the hospital.

After that discussion, I felt much less apprehensive and could concentrate on making plans. Everyone at MedjetAssist gave me the impression that there wasn’t anything I could want or need that they couldn’t take care of. It was beyond comforting.

All went well with my husband’s surgery, and a trauma nurse was dispatched from her home in Florida to Paris to accompany us back to San Francisco. A warm, competent professional, she took care of everything. All I had to do was trot along behind her and follow instructions.

MedjetAssist bought two first-class Air France tickets for Dan and the nurse and negotiated a very good price for a coach-class ticket for me. 

What might have been a horrific disaster was turned into a positive story. You can’t imagine the relief I felt when dealing with the experts at MedjetAssist. I don’t think I would have been able to cope in Paris without them.

People over 65 are not covered by Medicare outside the US, so Dan and I carry regular Blue Shield supplemental insurance for medical costs, and Medjet Assist provides emergency-medical-evacuation coverage.

It’s important that people realize that their primary health care insurance may not cover them for some major medical expenses outside of the USA. People should check with their insurance carrier.

In addition, on nonmedical purchases that were made on our Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, the card company (upon my request) reimbursed us for some trip costs, including Virgin Atlantic miles-redeposit fees, a cancellation fee from Hertz and I can’t remember what else. They did not reimburse for my fares on taxis between the hospital and hotel. 

They sent us a check in 10 days. This was my first experience with the coverage from Chase, and I was floored.

All the hotels in France allowed us to cancel without penalty, all answering my emails with concern, for which I was grateful. 

JUDY SERIE NAGY

San Jose, CA

ITN sent a copy of the above letter to Contributing Editor Dr. Philip Wagenaar, who wrote, “On MedjetAssist’s website, I found that the company has ‘reasonably priced’ plans only for people under 75. I wrote the company and was sent the following information in an email: ‘Individuals ages 75 to 84 are each required to complete our Diamond Application prior to becoming a member with us. The individual will need to complete this general health questionnaire along with a physician who has seen them within the past eight months of the application.’ As I am a nonagenarian, I did not pursue it any further.”