Posted 1/13/10 by BT            

As many of you are now aware there was a very serious earthquake in Haiti.  There are several of you who have clients currently in Haiti. Below is a list of resources you may offer to your clients and their family members if you are contacted.  These resources should be able to provide them needed assistance:

For a Client in an Earthquake Area: 

Refer them to FEMA’s web page about “What to do After an Earthquake”  The most important things are to listen to the radio and to only place phone calls in the event of an emergency, since call volumes are very high during these times.

For Family Members: 

The U.S. State Department Operations Center is advising Americans seeking information about family members in Haiti to call 1-888-407-4747. Due to heavy volume, some callers may receive a recording. “Our embassy is still in the early stages of contacting American citizens through our Warden Network,” the U.S. State Department said in a statement. “Communications are very difficult within Haiti at this time.”  

You can also follow the U.S. State Department’s latest Tweets for up-to-date information: http://twitter.com/dipnote

For Anyone Needing to Contact the HCCMIS World Service Center for Support: 

Call: 800-605-2282 in the US, or collect outside the US at 317-262-2132.  HCCMIS coordinates evacuations via these phone numbers and arranges for medically necessary evacuations through various service providers in several regions around the world.

Chat: If our phone lines are busy, Customer Service is also available online via Live Chat.

Email: If you need assistance but it is not an emergency, please connect with us via email at service@hccmis.com to ensure our phone lines are available for those with emergencies.

Twitter: We will be closely monitoring our Customer Service Twitter account, @HCCMIS_Support, and sending out updates and news as the situation develops.  Please contact us via Twitter with any questions as well.

By: JM, 11/19/09

Many of you have been there: you’re ready to finally learn about this product or that and take the next step in actually purchasing it. With the hustle and bustle of everyday life, who has time to go and meet with someone to go over ALL the options? You figure, “I’m a smart person; I can read and make my own decision….right?” Well, when the websites you depend on to give you that decision-making information are mere mazes to try navigating through, you may often times just give up. Or, you turn to an “easier” source, which may be not be the best option for your needs. We feel your pain!

With the recent launch of our new website, HCC Medical Insurance Services (www.hccmis.com) clearly understands the endeavors of online consumers. We specialize in international travel medical insurance and US domestic short-term health insurance.

While most individuals may not find any topic containing the word “insurance” very exciting, it’s nice to know when you need information on these products, there is a place to go to get answers to the questions most asked by other consumers who have been in your shoes. We’ve also added a great tool to use to find agents in a specific area who can assist with applying for the policy you’ve chosen or to even suggest the most appropriate policy.

Whether you’re in the market for insurance or not, check out our new site to see what we think every company should boast: user-friendly features.

Posted June 12, 2009 by H. Lawrence

A few months back, a friend of mine (Holli) was in a nearly fatal motorcycle accident in India and suffered major brain trauma. The hospitals there, like in most developing countries, weren’t sufficient to care for her injuries. So she needed to be med-evac’d. Do you have any idea how much that costs?? Evidently, it can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars!

So it got me to thinking. What would my family do if I were in an accident like that? The hospitals here in Honduras probably aren’t much better than the ones in India. And I don’t have US health insurance to cover something like that. And who just has $150,000 lying around?

So a couple of weekends ago we were visiting with friends here in Tegus. (The husband commutes from the US every couple of months, and his wife and family live here permanently.) They have health insurance that works in Honduras AND in the US. And it covers emergency evacuation for situations just like the one Holli was in.

So since then I’ve been researching international travel insurance. One of the sites I found was www.hccmis.com. And according to the prices on their site, it’s very affordable depending on the deductible, even on a Honduran salary.

So if you are traveling abroad (studying abroad, backpacking, whatever!) or living abroad like me, then I suggest you consider what you and your family would do if you were in an accident like Holli’s. If you want, you can click HERE to obtain a free quote for international health insurance. It’s quick and painless, and this kind of insurance could turn out to be priceless if something ever happened to you abroad!

Posted 3/6/09 by M. Muntalip

Easter holiday is around the corner. Many people will be traveling this Easter as it is a great time to get away with friends and family, and not to mention, escape from a huge pile of office workloads. But it doesn’t matter if you are away for a day or a month, accidents and sicknesses can strike at any time, without warning. Plus, currently we are living in a recessions, when everything is expensive. Without proper travel insurance, you will suffer greatly. There are many travel medical insurance choices out there that you can pick. One choice is MultiNational Underwriters. They offer low prices and will cover many of your international vacation medical protection needs. The good thing is the Free international travel medical quote. Obtaining travel insurance should be your first priority when you book the Easter vacation. Now you can go almost anywhere you want to go.

Posted 3/2/09 by C. Jalleh

With many airlines offering discounted travel packages, I read of more and more families travelling together, with kids in tow :-) 

I remember the time I had to make a business trip with my 9-month-old baby.

Besides worrying about his water, food and medicines, I was most concerned about our safety. The best advice our travel agent gave us was to buy international travel insurance.

Although the airlines provided some travel medical insurance, you’ll find that your medical and life insurance policies (unless stated specifically) provide coverage for you while you’re in your home country ONLY.

MultiNational Underwriters (www.mnui.com) provides international coverage (for short-term and long-term trips) for lost baggage, medical treatment and most importantly, emergency evacuations (which includes acts of terrorism, political evacuation, and complications of pregnancy).

Insured by Lloyd’s, the world’s largest and oldest insurance, the Atlas series (for US and non-US citizens) sounds useful especially as the coverage provides assistance with:
a) emergency cash transfers;
b) emergency message relays to family, friends and co-workers;
c) a round-trip (air/ground) ticket for a family member to the hospital where you’re hospitalized and
d) return of minor children - in case you’re hospitalized and your child is left unattended (e.g. you’re in a coma or in the ICU) for more than 3 days, they can arrange for your child to be flown back to the airport terminal of your home country.

While the above scenario sounds scary, as a frequent traveler, I can assure you that ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN when you are on travel.

It’s always better to be safe than sorry. If you’re travelling anytime soon, how about getting a free international medical insurance quote? At least you’ll have an idea how much international travel insurance would cost.

Don’t be “penny wise, pound foolish” - with travel insurance, you can then really sit back and relax your family holiday.

Have a happy day!

Posted 1/30/09 by J. Halsted

One of my girlfriends went to Asia recently (a volunteer vacation that took her into Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia & the Philippines, and maybe a couple more countries). She had been saving quite a while to do this and planned to spend a few months over there.

During the first week of her trip she had an appendicitis attack and had to have immediate surgery. She said that she was very lucky for two reasons: 1) She was in a major city when it happened and 2) she had purchased international travel medical insurance.

While I may take all I can with me to keep us safe when we travel I certainly don’t plan for emergency medical care, mostly because we are healthy. But so was she. This has made me rethink our travel a bit and look into travel insurance a bit more closely.

I found this site for a Free International Medical Insurance Quote. I input all the info requested and got an instant quote for Doug & I (children under 9 are free) It was not a lot of money for the peace of mind it brings.

Of course you want to read up on travel insurance yourself and see if it is worth it for you, personally. MultiNational Underwriters (www.mnui.com) has lots of information to help you decide.

Posted 1/25/09 by Debbie Brewer

This past week I was hospitalized with pneumonia.  It was totally unexpected and I am still not feeling up to par.  Thankfully I was at home and not traveling when I came down with it.  The cost of an unexpected illness while traveling can be extremely high.  If you’re traveling overseas, those costs can skyrocket even higher.

I have always recommended you get travel insurance to protect the investment of your trip.  Now I am recommending you also get travel insurance for your health.  That’s right!  You can buy health insurance to protect you while traveling.  MultiNational Underwriters (MNU) is a US based company that allows you to purchase health insurance for as little as $1 per day.  You choose your deductible, amount of coverage, and dates you want to be covered.  MNU will do the rest.  No, they can’t guarantee you won’t get sick while you are on vacation or business.  What they can do is provide you peace of mind knowing that if you do fall ill, it won’t bankrupt you.  You are covered. 

Have a graduate student who is planning time abroad after graduation?  MNU has coverage for them too. 

Check out their website (www.mnui.com) before your next trip overseas.  They offer 24 hour support – Protect yourself with health insurance for travelers.  Free travel medical insurance quote.

Posted 12/23/08 by I. Suing

Many Philippine travelers, either Filipino native who are already residing outside the country, or  tourists around the globe, are not aware that their insurance does not have international coverage. Travel insurance is important, especially when you travel outside your home country. When you are visiting other countries such as the Philippines you just don’t know what to expect out there during your trip. Before you travel get more information for your international travel insurance. It is still a very good idea when you travel to get a travel medical insurance for you and your family. You can get more information by visiting www.mnui.com. You can also get a free travel medical insurance quote by visiting www.mnui.com website.

Posted 10/22/08 by Andrew Marane

I travel overseas quite a bit, some for work and some for business. It is important to remember that your health insurance that you have in the U.S. rarely covers you if you need medical treatment outside the country.

I found this out on a trip to the Philippines where I woke up with a bad stomach ache. Fortunately the hotel clinic was able to handle it because I knew the hospitals require payment before you can check out and if it were serious it could have been quite expensive. It would have been so much easier to check with www.mnui.com before I went on my trip to ensure I was covered.

Before you travel overseas, check with your health insurance provider and if they don’t cover you, which most don’t, Click here for a FREE travel insurance quote.

It is better to make sure you are covered when you travel overseas and it will give you some piece of mind.

Posted 10/23/08 by IDOGCOW

With the Dollar is coming back in value against the Euro and as we approach the end of the year, many people’s thoughts are turning (back) to international travel. In the rush to get on a plane and see (or is that flee) our far flung friends and family one thing that may slip off the to-do list is to check the level, if any, of medical coverage you take with you on holiday. Does your health insurance plan cover you and your family should a medical emergency arise? Perhaps you should examine international travel insurance.
At mnui.com they offer same-day coverage for these trips for as little as $1 per day, and that even includes emergency medical evacuation coverage. Coverage that can be provide real peace of mind, especially when traveling in areas with questionable medical facilities or where your language skills are not up to the level of a local.
You have nothing to lose and possibly everything to gain so why not give it a look. Click here for a FREE travel insurance quote.
Even if nothing goes wrong, you’ll be more relaxed and can enjoy your time abroad. Happy traveling!