The Daily Telegraph has a good look at evacuation insurance or an assistance company as the British call it. Evacuation insurance is an additional insurance that goes hand in hand with your health insurance when you live abroad. In many countries, particularly the poorest ones, the local healthcare system is insufficient when it comes to treating terrible injuries or illnesses. Even in some of the more developed countries around the world, evacuation insurance is a necessity to to get someone specialized treatment that can be found in only a few of the wealthiest countries in the world.
I personally think evacuation insurance is something you should spring for, particularly if you are a retiree. If you are working or retiring to a very impoverished country, it is a necessity. For many people, including all citizens in the developed world (and Americans in 2014), your healthcare is guaranteed. When you live abroad as an expat, your healthcare is covered by private insurance and is not guaranteed. That means if you are in the hospital and your condition is costing the insurance company a great deal of money, they might drop coverage. Evacuation insurance gives the private insurance company a way out and allows your guaranteed health coverage to take over.
For a more in-depth look at health insurance and healthcare abroad, you’ll want to check out my upcoming e-book The Financial Guide to Retiring Abroad. Healthcare for expats is a subject that is hardly ever discussed, but is an essential part of living abroad. In my time abroad in the Middle East, I always had healthcare, but like most young people I never went to the doctor and took it for granted. That was a mistake. Having access to good healthcare is an essential part of living abroad, and you are taking a risk by ignoring it.
