Travel health insurance is often missed when planning a trip overseas. Also, having a pre-packed medical kit to meet your needs is another one that many often overlook. I remember I landing in Basel, Switzerland, on an early spring morning after flying all night across the Atlantic Ocean. I was feeling good and excited to be back in Switzerland. That evening as I was dining with my crew, I could feel something was off inside me. I was sweating a bit and my legs were aching like I had just run a marathon. The next morning when I woke up, I couldn’t hear out of my left ear and was burning up so bad you could cook an egg on my forehead. Being sick on the road can be the worst. I mean it really sucks to be stuck in some hotel away from family, the comforts of home are distant, and to make matters worse, the hotel rooms aren’t really set up to quarantine yourself for a week without going out. You have to stock up on food somehow, which means going shopping or to a restaurant when you don’t want to. Moreover, there’s medicine you have to consider as well. What about a doctor? If you are stuck in a foreign country sick would your insurance cover any hospital visits? These were all questions racing through my head as I woke up that morning with the flu. I was miserable. Fortunately, this wasn’t the first time I had been sick while working abroad and I came prepared. If you leave your house for more than two days, be sure you are prepped for the worst-case scenario. Have a medical kit packed and do your research by getting a quality travel health insurance company.
Medical Kit
Stocking up with essential medications is a must when you travel. There are websites out there selling travel medical kits, but I have found that these kits are generalized, and I don’t need all of the contents usually. Therefore, I highly recommend personalizing a kit yourself. Purchase a small bag or pouch that can be tucked out of the way in your suitcase. Use Ziploc bags to store your containers in and most importantly, be sure to record expiration dates! When you have a migraine headache and in your in the middle of Barcelona on a tour, you don’t want to be searching for pharmacy that may not have what you’re expecting in the way of over the counter drugs. Here the list I use that can get you started. Take this and customize your own.
- Prescription medicines if you have them
- Hand Sanitizer
- Disinfect wipes
- Tylenol
- Motrin
- Cough Drops
- Pepto-Bismol
- Imodium
- Antacid
- Allergy Medication
- Band-Aids
- Sleeping Pills
- Sun Screen
- Cold Medicine
- Advil or Tylenol Sinus Medication – Use if you have to fly sick!
- Insect Repellent for areas with Malaria
Insurance
It’s highly possible your health insurance will not cover you when traveling abroad to include Canada and Mexico. Go ahead and call your insurance company to inquire about travel health insurance specifically. My experience is that you need to do your research and then purchase coverage before departing outside of the U.S. regardless of who you are currently using. Here are my top five recommended travel insurance providers:
