Medical plans get new travel exclusions
Manulife changes rules on paying for emergency treatment
A new group of Canadians could have travel plans spoiled by a change of prescription.
One of the country’s largest life insurers has suddenly added explicit rules that would yank emergency medical coverage from employees and retirees who are insured by their employers’ group medical plans.
Manulife Financial announced late in November that, as of Dec.1, it would not pay for emergency medical care outside of Canada if a member of a group plan was not in stable health for at least 90 days prior to travel.
Aperson’s health could be deemed unstable after a change of medication, even if the doctor decided the condition of his or her patient had improved and that a lower dosage of medication was warranted.
“This provision will formalize our existing business practice and help to clarify the coverage available to plan members,” Manulife said in a notice emailed to certificate holders.
“It will also help provide a better plan member experience in the event of a claim.”
Veteran purchasers of individual travel medical insurance have long been subject to such health-stability clauses. (Individual plans also exclude coverage if a policyholder falls while drunk or travels to a place deemed unstable by the Department of External Affairs.) But group insurance plans had been regarded as an oasis of more complete coverage.
Dave Patriarche, of Mainstay In- surance Brokerage Inc. in Thornhill, said Desjardins Financial Security also added a health stability clause to contracts — after a short notice period — effective Dec.15 last year.
Patriarche worries that some certificate holders may be unaware of the new health restriction announced by Manulife due to the short notice period and the method of providing the notification.
It is vital to be aware of all policy conditions and exclusions before travelling abroad. Otherwise, the cost of a medical emergency could be financially devastating.
Canadians have had two stark reminders about the importance of travel medical insurance this past year, and sellers of travel insurance like Robin Ingle of Ingle International are reporting an increase in sales.
Former Toronto Argonauts cheerleader Anna Leibenko had no insurance when she fell, hit her head and suffered a coma in Croatia in August. Neither did the family of 11-year-old Jaylynn Graham, of Sarnia, when she suffered a stroke while on vacation in Jamaica.
Ross Quigley of Medipac International Inc., marketer of the plan endorsed by the Canadian Snowbird Association, says there are a few cases each year of travellers who disqualify themselves for coverage by lying on applications. “We are seeing a little bit more of the “I’m going to lie and see if they will figure it out,” says Quigley. He warns it’s best to be sure before leaving that you meet all of the conditions of a contract. “We get four or five (who lie and get found out) each year.” Prices are about 4 per cent higher on average for coverage from Medipac, whose busiest sales day each year is the day after Christmas. But shoppers will also see price increases of as much as10 per cent for some other plans this season, says Pascal Bino of Avalon Actuarial Consulting in Montreal. “The major thing to say to consumers is to be really, really, careful when filling out medical questionnaires,” Bino said. Some travellers will have to read through several different levels of health status to find the right one that applies to them, while other plans have point scores, and other plans that require individual underwriting are becoming more common, he said. Matt Davies, a senior product specialist at Ingle International, says the television show Marketplace focused on travel medical insurance for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. this year, and the program seems to have resonated with consumers. “The positive outcome of reports like the one featured on CBC Marketplace is that we have noticed an increased attention to detail on the part of consumers who realize how critical it is to provide complete, accurate, and detailed information when making such an important purchase,” Davies wrote in an email message. jamesdaw@sympatico.ca