Travelling for March Break? Don't Leave Home Without This

Alia McMullen

Filed under: Budgeting & Planning, Family Finances, Health, Insurance, Travel

So, you're in Florida on your March break vacation and you fall off your jet ski and break your leg. The hospital slaps you with a $35,000 bill, but it's OK. You have insurance, right? Um, please say you have travel health insurance.

Sure, it's not often that you break a leg, so you think the chances of it happening during your holiday are low. But, then again, how often do you play around on a jet ski? And think about more common traveller health complaints, such as food poisoning or that trip to the hospital to relieve your child of that scary asthma attack.

Royal Bank of Canada says about one in 10 Canadians will travel outside Canada this spring break, according to a poll of more than 1,000 Canadians."Spring Break is a popular time to travel, whether it's a quick one-day cross border stop with the kids or a longer trip to a sunny destination," says Tim Bzowey, vice-president, Travel, RBC Insurance. "What parents may not be aware of is the high cost of medical care outside Canada for minor injuries like sprains or an asthma attack."

He says parents could expect to pay up to $1,000 if their child sprained an ankle in the Mayan Riviera and up to $750 if their child suffered an asthma attack in Buffalo that required a visit to a local hospital.

"Employer plans or credit cards may offer travel insurance coverage, but it's wise to compare benefits,"he says. "Credit cards often provide coverage for a shorter number of days or restrict the amount you can claim, and employment benefits may not cover all medical emergencies or may limit travel benefits."

Mr. Bzowey says government health insurance plans only cover a small portion of out-of-country medical costs. For example, OHIP would only cover $2,000 of that $35,000 broken leg in Florida.

So before packing those bags and slapping on the sun screen, RBC recommends you:

Check for any gaps in your insurance coverage provided by your employer, the government and credit cards to avoid being caught out.
Make sure your employer insurance extends to your children. Some policies have age limits for covered children.
Does your insurance cover the cost of safely sending your child home if you fall ill and are not able to care for them.
Can you afford unexpected costs without insurance, such as hospital fees, additional hotel accommodation, long distance phone calls?
Does your insurance make up front payments? Many hospitals require payment on the spot, which could be as high as $20,000.

So play around with the numbers. That little extra expense of taking out insurance before travelling could protect your wallet in case of a lapse in health.

http://xml.channel.aol.com/xmlpublisher/fetch.v2.xml?option=expand_relative_urls&dataUrlNodes=uiConfig,feedConfig,entry&id=850501&pid=850500&uts=1268364473

http://cdn.channel.aol.com/cs_feed_v1_6/csfeedwrapper.swf

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

With the current concerns over the H1N1 influenza (swine flu) pandemic, it's more important than ever for travelers to be proactive about staying well. Before heading overseas, visit your doctor for a checkup and then check the Centers for Disease Control travel health page for updates on infectious diseases-cholera, tuberculosis, yellow fever, influenza-that are particularly endemic in outlying destinations. Click the CDC's Travel Safe podcasts for in-depth trip advisories. The World Health Organization also has detailed information on pandemic vaccines and international health issues.

It's important to be aware of potential pitfalls not only when you arrive at a destination, but when you're in transit. Wipe your hands often with antibacterial wipes or sanitizers. Use them to clean your environment, from your airplane seat to your hotel room. Don't forget the taxi to the airport.

Even if you are just traveling to Peoria, easy preventive measures are important to practice while away from home. Here are more tips for keeping you sneeze free.

iStock

Getty Images North America

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

In recommended doses, immune-boosting complex vitamin formulations can help to counter stress, which is known to lower your resistance to common ailments. And these days, we all know how stressful travel can be, especially with long lines at security checkpoints, grumpy officials, and departure delays.

T+L Recommends: Berocca and Airborne are popular effervescent tablets ideal for packing in a carry-on. The Mayo Clinic also offers useful information on the efficacy of supplements and herbal remedies, as well as healthy lifestyle tips about nutrition and stress management.

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

Bring prescription medications in your carry-on luggage, as well as copies of all prescriptions, including generic names for the same. Pack a note from your prescribing physician regarding controlled and intravenous substances. Check with the Department of State or American Embassy to ensure that your medication is permitted into the country you'll be visiting. For travel in remote areas where health clinics are questionable or few and far between, consider asking your doctor for sterilized syringes as well.

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

Use a travel medical kit such as the one by Magellan's featured above. Here's a list of items you should pack:
- antidiarrheal medication (bismuth subsalicylate, loperamide)
- antihistamine
- anti–motion sickness medication
- pain medication, such as aspirin, acetaminophen, or ibuprofen
- mild laxative
- cough suppressant/expectorant
- cough drops
- antacid
- antifungal and antibacterial ointments or creams
- one-percent solution hydrocortisone cream
- insect repellent containing DEET (30–50) or picaridin (up to 15)
- lubricating eye drops

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

Channel your inner Howard Hughes and wipe your hands often with antibacterial wipes or sanitizers that contain at least 60 perfect alcohol, the minimum that will kill most germs on contact (Frais, featured, is one brand we recommend). It doesn't hurt to also sanitize your environment, whether it's your hotel room, airplane tray table, or the back seat of a taxi. (Just consider how many people touch the plasma TV screens installed in many cabs these days.) After checking into a hotel room, swipe surfaces such as remote controls, telephone cradles, doorknobs, and light switches. Remember that those pretty throw pillows and comforter covers on the guest bed are not always changed or washed regularly. On many airlines, the same is true of standard-issue blankets and headrest covers.

T+L Recommends: JetBlue sells a fleece throw and neck pillow combo for $7 on most routes. It's worth every cent, and you get to keep them.

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

As we all know, normal body temperature is 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit or 37 degrees Centigrade. Even the slightest elevation (1.8–3.6 degrees F) in the body's thermoregulatory set point indicates a fever, which is actually your immune system's first mechanism to neutralize bacterial and viral infections. Fever, in short, is a response to disease and indicates it's usually time to seek medical attention.

T+L Recommends: Buy your own digital thermometer.

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

Before leaving on an extended trip or traveling in areas where there is risk of contracting a life-threatening disease, make sure your vaccinations, especially for influenza, are up to date. Whether you are planning to visit Antarctica or Zanzibar, the Centers for Disease Control provides a detailed list of health risks and advice for almost every international destination.

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

When they're not feeling well, Japanese regularly don face masks in public, because it's considered rude to spread germs. In fact, on Japan Airlines, masks are available on request. In business and first class, the JAL amenity kit includes a special moisture mask to help passengers breathe easier. With extremely low humidity levels onboard aircraft, travelers may often experience discomforting dryness in their nose and throat, especially during long-haul journeys. And, if you simply can't get your head around the idea of wearing a mask, at least cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you sneeze. In fact, avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth altogether: this is how most bacteria and viruses enter your system.

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

Rough travel and extreme sports can quickly dehydrate your body, especially in hot, dry climates such as the American Southwest or East Africa. Stock up on purified, bottled water in areas where a safe source may not exist. As a backup, carry oral rehydration solutions (ORS), which typically contain salts and a simple sugar such as glucose, to counter intestinal disorders and heat exhaustion.

T+L Recommends: Eastern Mountain Sports sells oral rehydration salts and portable ultraviolet water purifiers. On flights, skip sugary, caffeinated soft drinks from the beverage cart for healthier green tea, which contains immune-boosting, detoxifying polyphenol compounds.

Top Tips for Healthy Travel

Carrying heavy luggage, walking long distances between terminals, being stuck in a traffic jam with a minivan full of antsy children during a road trip-it all takes a toll on your body. Look for hammocks on the beach or curtained cabanas around the pool-or just climb into your bed for a guilt-free nap.

T+L Recommends: In the city that never sleeps, YeloCab is a midtown Manhattan cocoon where shoppers can take a load off during 20- to 40-minute sleep therapy sessions in private cabins with zero-gravity chairs and simulated sunrise wake-up calls.

Top Tips for Healthy Travel