Emergency travel medical insurance
Travel medical insurance covers the cost of emergency medical care wherever you are.
- Hospital and doctor bills
- above what your provincial plan pays
- Help, day or night
- an assistance line to call first
- Medical transport home
- when it’s medically necessary
Your provincial plan
What your provincial plan covers when you travel.
Your provincial or territorial health plan was built for care at home. The further you travel, the less it pays in an emergency, and the more is left for you.
- Your provincial plan pays
- You pay, unless you have travel medical insurance
- You pay, unless you have health and dental coverage
The further you go, the bigger the gap
In your home province
Your provincial plan pays: Hospital and doctor bills
You pay, unless you have health and dental coverage: Ambulance, ground or air. Usually not covered. Health and dental coverage can help, and some seniors’ benefits do.
Your provincial plan covers hospital and doctor bills
Gap: ambulance, ground or air. Health and dental coverage can help, and some seniors’ benefits do.
Elsewhere in Canada
Your provincial plan pays: Most hospital and doctor bills
You pay, unless you have travel medical insurance: Ambulance, ground or air. Often not covered, or only in part
Your provincial plan covers most hospital and doctor bills
Gap: ambulance, ground or air
Outside Canada
Your provincial plan pays: A small, fixed amount from your provincial plan
You pay, unless you have travel medical insurance: Hospital and doctor bills above what your provincial plan pays
You pay, unless you have travel medical insurance: Ambulance, ground or air, and medical transport home
Your provincial plan pays a small, fixed amount
Gap: hospital and doctor bills above what your provincial plan pays, ambulance and medical transport home
Emergency travel medical insurance covers the gap, up to your policy’s limits, from ambulance rides elsewhere in Canada to hospital bills abroad and medical transport home.
Illustration only, not to scale. What each provincial plan pays outside your home province varies, and your policy wording governs. Within Canada, provinces and territories (except Quebec) bill each other directly for most hospital and doctor care, but ambulance and transport home usually aren’t covered.
What’s covered
What a plan covers.
Plans cover the cost of an emergency while you’re away, up to the policy’s limits. A few things are usually left out.
Usually covered
- Hospital and doctor bills
- Emergency ambulance, ground or air
- Prescription drugs for an emergency
- Emergency dental after an accident
- Medical transport home
- Bringing a family member to your bedside
Keep your provincial plan.
Travel medical insurance pays after your provincial plan, so you need to stay covered by it while you’re away.
A general guide. Each policy lists what it covers, with its own limits and exclusions.
Single trip or annual
One trip, or a year of trips?
Both plans cover the same emergencies. The difference is how many trips they cover, and for how long.
Single-trip plan: covers only the March trip; the June, September and December trips need their own policies. Annual multi-trip plan: covers all four trips, each up to the plan’s trip length; the December trip needs top-up days beyond that.
Single-trip plan
One trip, up to a year long
Covers the one trip you buy it for. Every other trip needs its own policy.
Annual multi-trip plan
Every trip in a year, each up to a set length
Covers every trip, each up to your plan’s trip length (from 4 to 60 days, depending on the plan). Add top-up days for a trip that runs longer.Covers every trip, each up to your plan’s trip length (from 4 to 60 days, depending on the plan). Top up a trip that runs longer.
- Single-trip plan
Best for one trip, or one long stay. Snowbirds usually choose this, with coverage for up to a year.
- Annual multi-trip plan
Best for two or more trips a year. The more trips you take, the better value it becomes, and for many people that starts at around 2 or 3 trips.
Illustration only. Trip lengths and limits vary by insurer and plan. Both plans require you to keep your provincial health plan, so if you’ll be away for months, check with your provincial plan before you go.
How it works
If something happens.
What happens from the day you buy a plan to the day you’re home.
Buy before you leave
Choose a plan that covers your whole trip and everyone travelling with you. Answer any health questions carefully.
Call the assistance line first
In an emergency, call the number on your policy before you get treatment, or as soon as you can. If you don’t, many plans pay less.
They arrange your care
The assistance team directs you to a suitable facility, and often pays the hospital directly.
They bring you home if needed
If it’s medically necessary, they arrange transport home and keep your family informed.
Cost
What affects the price.
Age
Rates rise with age.
Trip length
Most plans price by the day, so longer trips cost more.
Health
Your answers to any medical questions.
Deductible
A higher deductible lowers the price, and a lower one raises it.
Destination
Some insurers price by destination. Travel within Canada usually costs less.
Single trip or annual
An annual plan can cost less if you take two or more trips a year.
Frequently asked questions
All questionsHow is a pre-existing condition defined in travel insurance?
It’s generally a medical condition you had before your coverage started. Each policy defines it in its own words, often by whether you had symptoms, treatment or medication for it, and the definition decides which conditions the stability period applies to. Check the wording, or ask us.
Are pre-existing conditions covered by travel insurance?
Often, if the condition was stable before you left. Most plans cover a pre-existing condition only if it didn’t change during the stability period, which is often 90 or 180 days. If it changed, a claim related to it may be refused. Some plans offer an optional rider, at extra cost, with a shorter stability period, needed only if your health changed during the standard period.
What doesn’t travel insurance cover?
The most common exclusions on emergency medical coverage are:
- pre-existing conditions that weren’t stable before you left;
- routine or elective care, such as checkups, planned treatment or care you travelled to get;
- travel to a region under an ‘Avoid non-essential travel’ or ‘Avoid all travel’ advisory, if you left after it was issued;
- some sports and activities, unless you add coverage.
Trip cancellation coverage doesn’t pay for a reason you knew about when you bought it, or for changing your mind. Most medical plans also pay less if you don’t call the assistance line before treatment, or as soon as you can. Each policy lists its own exclusions and limits.
Can I extend my emergency travel medical insurance coverage?
Usually, if you ask before your coverage ends. On a single-trip plan, you can often extend for more days. On an annual plan, you add top-up days for a trip that runs longer than your plan’s trip length. The insurer may ask about your health first, so contact us as soon as you know you’ll be away longer.
What is a stability period, and why does it matter?
If you have a medical condition, a stability period is the time before you leave during which that condition must not have changed. Each policy defines this, but it usually means no new treatment or medication, no change in dose, no new or worse symptoms, no hospital stay or referral to a specialist, and no tests or results still pending. Some routine changes, such as switching to a generic version of the same drug, usually don’t count. On an annual plan, the stability period counts back from each departure, not from the day you bought the plan.
The period depends on your age, the length of your trip and your answers to the health questions. It’s often 90 or 180 days. If the condition changes inside that period, it may not be covered on your trip, even if the change seemed minor. Some plans offer an optional rider, at extra cost, with a shorter stability period. It’s only needed if your health changed during the standard period. If your health changes after you buy, tell us before you leave, so we can check your options.
Related to emergency travel medical insurance
- Visitors to Canada insurance Emergency medical coverage for visitors, including Super Visa.
- Trip cancellation and interruption insurance Pays back non-refundable costs if a trip is cancelled or cut short.
- Student travel insurance Emergency medical coverage while you study away from home.
- Global medical care Specialist care sooner, at a facility you choose, worldwide.
A question about your coverage? Ask us.
No obligation. We’ll tell you plainly what we think, including when you already have what you need.