Naomi's Overseas Health Crisis

Yesterday, British supermodel Naomi Campbell, 37, underwent emergency abdominal surgery at Sirio Libanes Hospital in San Paolo, Brazil. Luckily, the hospital is considered one of the best in the city. “Everything went smoothly and that she is completely cured and walking in her room,” her Brazilian doctor, Jose Aristodemo Pinotto, announced following the surgery. 

The temper tantrum prone model who famously said, “I never diet, I smoke, I drink, I never work out, I work very hard, and I'm worth every cent,” probably could’ve paid for her emergency surgery with the cash tucked in the front pocket of her Yves Saint Laurent bag. And she might have had to, because most U.S. insurance policies don’t provide international coverage. 

According to the U.S. State Department, “U.S. medical insurance is generally not accepted outside the United States, nor do the Social Security Medicare and Medicaid programs provide coverage for hospital or medical costs outside the United States.” Most travelers don’t want to think about adding another expense to their trip, but based on the U.S. Center for Disease Control’s statistic that half of U.S. travelers going abroad will suffer a health issue, more people should consider purchasing a short-term travel policy. 

“You can’t predict what’s going to happen abroad,” says Nicole Longo Sims, a travel consultant for Carlson Travel in New York. “Whether you’re 25 or 85, the astronomical medical costs abroad mean serious cash, whether you’re in Grand Cayman or Africa.”

Buying trip insurance  with one of the major companies like Travel Guard (AIG), Travel Safe and Access America insures you against more than just unexpected illness and medical evacuation. “It also covers trip cancellation because of medical reasons,” said Sims. “If your immediate family becomes ill while you’re abroad, it covers you to get back to them.”