International travelers health insurance has been one of the most difficult thing for us to figure out while on our over seas bicycle tour.  When we quit our jobs in 2002 we both had employer sponsored health insurance, as is typical in the USA, when you don’t have a job you don’t have health insurance. We could have continued our health insurance coverage for 18 months under COBRA for a whopping US$ 600 dollars (and that was back in 2002) a month but that would have destroyed our budget. So we elected to travel without health insurance and a year later I was still trying to figure out what to do. Through research on the internet, I came across overseas health insurance that covered us when we were traveling abroad (outside the USA). It was basic catastrophic health insurance with a high deductible. However, that insurance increased from $800 a year in 2003 to $3000 a year in 2008. The only claim we made was an annual exam we had done in Bangkok, Thailand and they covered a portion of that.

 In 2008 we planned to stay in the USA for an extended period of time and wanted to have health coverage while we were here. Again, the hunt was on for health insurance coverage for our small business we had started over the last few years. Now I was looking for health insurance that would cover us in the USA and abroad.  I didn’t want to switch health insurances again because of this pre existing condition (“pre-existing condition” varies by state, in general it is a condition that has been diagnosed or treated, or for which you experienced signs or symptoms, during the 5 years immediately prior) clause every health insurance has.

 A few requirements of our health insurance are:

When researching on the internet, I found eHealthInsurance where we could compare cost and coverage on different plans.  At ehealthinsurance.com  you can apply with no obligation or cost, free instant quote and I didn’t feel any pressure to purchase a plan.  The nice thing was all the plans had the coverage and exclusions right there so I could do all my research in one place.  In the end I found what I was looking for.

A few tips and considerations when looking for travelers health insurance:

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