Medical care

[xobxdoc]

Am I assuming correctly that our health insurance at home is no good in Aruba? Is there any kind of coverage available while on the island?

[Andrea J.]

well sort of.
if you buy a trip cancellation policy, lots will be covered when u are on island.

go to www.insuremytrip.com

when going to the ER in aruba, one cannot whip out their USA health care insurance card and expect it will be accepted. (master card YES)

make certain that you get your appropriate paperwork from the ER written in ENGLISH and when home submit to your insurance for reimbursement.

either way you figure it, payment is due upon receipt

reimbursement will be from your USA health insurance or from your trip insurance, providing all paper work submissions are done correctly.

[~Amy~®]

Originally Posted by xobxdoc

Am I assuming correctly that our health insurance at home is no good in Aruba? Is there any kind of coverage available while on the island?

It's not that isn't any good, it's that you will have to pay upfront for any medical services received in Aruba. When you return to the U.S. you will need to submit all receipts, Dr's notes, etc. to your health insurance company for reimbursement (but check with your own health insurance to see if they offer reimbursement for services outside the U.S.)

I, unfortunately, had to use the hospital in Aruba a few years ago. I brought my CC to the hospital and charged all services to my CC. When I returned home I submitted everything to my health insurance company and was reimbursed "per my health plan". Of course, everyone's plans are different so you will need to call them and find out what the requirements would be for reimbursement.

[Andrea J.]

i was clear as mud in my previous post.
if you have trip insurance that has a medical inclusion (most do), the ER or the doctor's office will expect to be paid when medical services are rendered.
that is when your credit card is essential.

in the event of a huge medical $$$ situation, the credit card is used as well as information from your trip insurance taken. the real costly stuff (air medical evacuation) is billed to your insurance and not expected to pony up right then and there.

i am one to always moan and groan about being overly insured............BUT i always recommend trip insurance.

i had a visit to the ER a few yrs ago with an ear infection.
medical care was good.
service prompt.
price was under $50 for the ER visit and the prescription.
i charged it to my credit card.
i never did submit it to the insurance co because it was written in DUTCH and it was more hassle than it was worth to get it translated.
yes, lazy on my part.

[gretch]

I was just at the ER in Aruba on Saturday. Both Andrea and Amy are correct. You pay $90 just to walk in the front door. I saw 2 doctors and a nurse and I paid $36.00 for a total of $126.00. The man next to me who thought he was having a stroke (and had to wait almost 3 hours to be seen) paid $19.00 (plus the $90).

[Andrea J.]

wow, the price has gone UP.
when i was there, the price was $40 for the ER
and then the script was about $10

i certainly hope that the man that thought he was stroking was triaged and stable before he had to wait all of that time.

will u submit to your USA health insrance?
was the bill written in english?

Originally Posted by gretch

I was just at the ER in Aruba on Saturday. Both Andrea and Amy are correct. You pay $90 just to walk in the front door. I saw 2 doctors and a nurse and I paid $36.00 for a total of $126.00. The man next to me who thought he was having a stroke (and had to wait almost 3 hours to be seen) paid $19.00 (plus the $90).

[~Amy~®]

Originally Posted by Andrea J.

i never did submit it to the insurance co because it was written in DUTCH and it was more hassle than it was worth to get it translated. yes, lazy on my part.

Andrea, mine was written in Dutch as well and I submitted it to my insurance company "as is". They translated it (at no cost to me) and I had my reimbursement check within 60 days.

My total bill at the hospital was about $140 (I had food poisoning and was there for a few hours - needed IV's because I was dehydrated) and my RX was about $10.

[gretch]

It's gone way up! They triaged him quickly and then sent him to the waiting room. A bunch of us left the waiting room becuase many locals were there vomitting and we didn't want to catch whatever they had. It turned out he did not have a stroke but a complication with going off his plavix meds. Although they did not find that out until they saw him hours later. I was just a little surprised.

Yes, my papers are written in Dutch as well. I haven't decided if I'll submit to my insurance. If I went to the ER here I'd have to pay $75 anyhow. I probably should though.

I got 3 scripts too but I didn't fill any of them because I had never heard of the meds before.

[jenn630]

Originally Posted by ~Amy~®

I, unfortunately, had to use the hospital in Aruba a few years ago. I brought my CC to the hospital and charged all services to my CC. When I returned home I submitted everything to my health insurance company and was reimbursed "per my health plan". Of course, everyone's plans are different so you will need to call them and find out what the requirements would be for reimbursement.

Same for me.

Originally Posted by gretch

I was just at the ER in Aruba on Saturday. Both Andrea and Amy are correct. You pay $90 just to walk in the front door. I saw 2 doctors and a nurse and I paid $36.00 for a total of $126.00. The man next to me who thought he was having a stroke (and had to wait almost 3 hours to be seen) paid $19.00 (plus the $90).

That is very scary! When I had to go to the ER I had horrible chest pains and they said "You need to wait". I swear I thought I was going to die. I'd be so afraid to live there due to the experience I had.

[angelone]

I went to the ER the summer of 2008 well let say I was heading to the ER at 4:00 AM never found it ran into a Doctor in the hallway took me to his office I had an Ear infection charged me $50.00 and its cost $5.00 for the script it was great in 24 hours I was much better and had a better exoerience than in Boston no wait.