Emergency Travel Medical Benefit

You could be faced with potentially high medical care costs if you have a medical emergency while travelling outside Canada. The Emergency Travel Medical Benefit can help protect you against these costs, and offers you the convenience of having one less arrangement to make each time you travel.

The Emergency Travel Medical Benefit provides coverage for medical services and supplies you need because of a medical emergency during trips that begin and end in Canada. The maximum amount payable per covered trip is $1 million Canadian.

Coverage levels

• Scales 1 to 4 – This is an optional benefit that covers you for trips up to 30 days.
• Guaranteed Acceptance Plan (GAP) – Coverage is included in the plan, for trips up to 9 days.

Basic coverage information

This benefit covers basic emergency medical treatment services and supplies, including:

• Treatment by a physician
• Hospital accommodation
• Medical services and supplies, such as anesthesia, blood, casts and dressings
• Prescribed drugs when provided on an in-patient or outpatient basis
• Ambulance service
• Dental accident treatment

Medical conditions and/or symptoms that existed before any trip are excluded from coverage.

The Emergency Travel Medical Benefit also gives you access to emergency travel assistance when travelling anywhere outside Canada, or in Canada if you're more than 500 kilometres from home. Service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Assistance co-ordinators can help you locate hospitals, clinics and physicians, qualified legal assistance, local interpreters and appropriate services for replacing lost passports. Other emergency services include:

• Hospital admission assistance
• Assistance for unattended children
• Return of vehicle
• Medical evacuation
• Family member travel assistance

With this option, you will receive a travel medical card. This convenient wallet card makes it easy for you to access medical services, supplies and assistance in case of a medical emergency while travelling.

Detailed coverage information

Expenses for the following services and supplies are covered when incurred during a covered trip. The provision of these services and supplies must be related to emergency medical treatment resulting from a medical emergency.

Emergency medical treatment means medical treatment immediately required for the relief of an injury or an acute episode of sickness.

Medical emergency means any injury or sickness which arises suddenly, cannot reasonably be anticipated and requires emergency medical treatment.

Non-emergency treatment or surgery means:

• Any treatment or surgery not required for immediate relief of acute pain or suffering or which could reasonably be delayed until you return home, including periodic check-ups or examinations and regular care for chronic conditions
• Any treatment you receive outside of Canada following emergency medical treatment, including follow-up visits and rehabilitation, if your medical condition permits you to return home
• Any treatment or surgery for a medical condition where the medical condition would not have prevented you from returning home for treatment or surgery
• Any medical or hospital services that you specifically traveled for to obtain, whether or not on the advice of a physician

Benefits payable for emergency medical treatment and emergency medical assistance services are limited to customary charges for the service or supply provided.

Ambulance services

• Ambulance services, including air ambulance, to the nearest centre where essential treatment is available
• Where air ambulance service is required, coverage for a medical attendant is also included, if required
• We must pre-approve and arrange for air ambulance services

Hospital services

• Hospital in-patient services and supplies, including room and board and general nursing care while confined to a hospital semi-private room, ward, coronary care unit or intensive care unit for acute care
• Surgery
• Hospital outpatient services and supplies

Physician services – the services of a licensed physician.

Emergency dental treatment – Benefits payable for emergency dental treatment provided for treatment to a sound natural tooth, required as a result of a blow from an external force, are limited to $1,000 per covered trip, and for a reason other than a blow from an external force, are limited to $200 per covered trip.

Private duty nursing services – a professional nurse, who is not a member of the insured’s family, when provided during hospital confinement for emergency medical treatment, when ordered by a physician.

Miscellaneous services and supplies

The following miscellaneous services and supplies are covered when provided on an in-patient or outpatient basis:

• Anaesthesia and its administration
• Diagnostic X-ray and laboratory examination
• Whole blood, blood plasma and blood products
• Oxygen and its administration
• Casts, dressings, crutches, canes, slings and splints
• Prescription drugs requiring a prescription by law
• Rental of medical appliances, a hospital-type bed, wheelchair, crutches, braces, etc. (not to exceed the cost of purchase)

Emergency medical assistance services

This benefit pays for, or reimburses expenses for, the following emergency medical assistance services resulting from a medical emergency, where arranged by the assistance centre if pre-approved.

Medical evacuation and repatriation

• Transportation to the nearest hospital where treatment is available or to a hospital in Canada
• Coverage for a medical attendant is also included, if required

We reserve the right to transfer you to another hospital or return you to your home province or territory. We will be absolved of any further liability for that medical emergency if you refuse the transfer request.

Return home

• Your return home by economy seating (or by upgraded seating or air ambulance if medically necessary), as well as additional seats for a stretcher, if required
• If you’re hospitalized and unable to accompany home any other insured person who is on a covered trip with you, a one-way economy flight for each such insured person to return home
• Return or round trip transportation for an attendant for any insured person who is unable to travel alone may be covered, if we consider it necessary

Benefits under the Return Home provision are limited to $5,000 per insured per covered trip.

Extended stay – If you’re unable to return to your home province or territory by the originally scheduled date of return because you’re hospitalized on that date, this benefit covers any unexpected additional hotel accommodations and meals incurred by you and by a person who accompanied you on the covered trip and who wishes to stay with you. This benefit is limited to $200 per day to a maximum of $2,000 per covered trip. Coverage begins on the day after the originally scheduled date of return.

Identification of deceased insured – If you die during a covered trip, this benefit will pay reasonable travel, hotel accommodation and meal expenses for one person to identify your remains. This benefit is limited to $5,000 per insured person.

Repatriation of deceased insured – If you die during a covered trip, this benefit will cover the cost of services and supplies legally required for the preparation of your body and the cost for its return transportation to Canada. This benefit is limited to $5,000 per insured person.

Burial or cremation of deceased insured at the place of death – If you die during a covered trip, this benefit will cover the cost of services and supplies legally required for the preparation of your body for burial or cremation at the place of death. This benefit is limited to $3,000 per insured person.

The insured person’s closest relative will decide whether to have the body buried or cremated or returned to Canada.

Transportation to bedside – If you’re on a covered trip alone, hospitalized and expected to remain in hospital for more than 7 consecutive days, this benefit will cover the cost for reasonable travel, hotel accommodation and meal expenses for one person to visit you. This benefit is limited to $5,000 per covered trip.

Trip cancellation

If, before a scheduled departure, you are required to cancel a trip because of:

• Your death or the death of an extended family member occurring within 22 days of the scheduled departure date
• An injury or sickness, which did not result from a pre-existing condition, that caused you to be unable to start the trip. The attending physician must substantiate in writing that before the scheduled departure date, he or she advised you to cancel the trip or that the injury or sickness made it impossible for you to start the trip
• The injury or sickness, which did not result from a pre-existing condition, of an extended family member which required immediate hospitalization with an expected stay of at least 3 days
• The enforceable call of an insured to jury duty or sudden and unexpected subpoena to act as a witness in a court of law during the trip

This benefit will reimburse the cost of pre-paid travel expenses that are not refundable or recoverable from any other source (limited to $2,500 per insured or $5,000 for all insureds per covered trip).

For a benefit to become payable under the trip cancellation provision, you must notify us within 7 days of any cancellation in travel arrangements and send satisfactory proof of the reason for cancellation within 7 days of the scheduled trip.

Trip interruption

• If you have to end a covered trip and return to your home province or territory because of a medical emergency, the cost of any non-refundable prepaid travel for you and for each insured person travelling with you who has to return home.
• If you don’t return home and opt to continue travelling after the medical emergency has ended, the additional cost of travel for you and each insured person travelling with you. If required, Great-West will reimburse the additional cost for hotel accommodation and meals you and any insured person travelling with you incur because of the interruption

Benefits payable under the trip interruption provision are limited to $2,500 per insured person or $5,000 for all insured persons per covered trip.

Unexpected return – If you must return to your home province or territory because an extended family member who is not on the covered trip with you is suffering from an unforeseeable sickness or injury requiring intensive care treatment or who has died, this benefit will reimburse the cost of any non-refundable prepaid for each insured person who is on the covered trip. It will also pay any extra cost for a one-way economy flight home (limited to $5,000 per insured per covered trip).

Vehicle return – If, for medical reasons, you or any accompanying person are unable to drive an automobile owned or leased to your home or to the place to where the automobile must be returned, this benefit covers the cost of returning the automobile (limited to $2,000 per covered trip).

If you don’t notify the assistance centre, as required, the benefits payable under this option will be reduced by 20%, up to a maximum of $10,000. This reduction in benefits payable does not apply if the total expenses incurred for medical services and supplies do not exceed $500.

Exceptions and limitations

Travel insurance is designed to cover losses arising from sudden and unforeseeable circumstances. This benefit doesn’t cover expenses arising from or related to pre-existing conditions.

The emergency travel medical benefit rider contains a pre-existing condition exclusion that applies to expenses due to any injury or sickness or change in medical condition that happened in the 90 days before your trip if you are under age 60, or in the 365 days before your trip if you are age 60 or over. In addition, for individuals age 60 and over on their departure date, there is an exclusion in the policy for circulatory or heart conditions if the individual is taking or has taken any medication for that circulatory or heart condition in the 365 days before their trip.

The policy also contains other limitations and exclusions common for this type of insurance. For example, there is no coverage for expenses incurred for non-emergency treatment, treatment if travel was undertaken against the advice of a physician, or if caused by participation in hazardous or professional sports activities.

It is important to read and understand your policy before you travel, as your coverage may be subject to certain limitations and exceptions.

If you need more information, talk to your financial security advisor, or contact us and we’ll put you in touch with a financial security advisor in your area.