Need a Medical Evacuation? Here’s What to Expect.

Let’s say you’re on a tour to see the ancient pyramids in Egypt and you trip and fall, breaking your leg. Or you’re enjoying the Florida sunshine when your spouse has a severe case of appendicitis. We’ve seen cases like these and many others, including members who need to be transported from small clinics in remote areas after suffering a heart attack. So, what happens in situations when you’re far from home and suddenly have a medical emergency? First things first: get to the hospital or other local medical facility if a hospital isn’t available nearby.

If you are an EA+ member, once you have been admitted, contact EA+. Our medical team will work with the facility treating you to determine if you need to be moved to a different location. Every case is different, so we’ll take the following factors (plus others) into consideration:

• Your condition
• Your location
• Distance to be traveled to a more appropriate medical facility (if necessary)

If our medical team determines that it’s best for you to be moved to another hospital, EA+ will arrange and provide this service. It will require documentation for you and the attending doctors to complete first, so that we can provide transportation. This transportation will happen by ground or air ambulance, which is also known as a medical evacuation.

You may also be moved by medical evacuation if you suffer an injury that makes it impossible to travel commercially, such as on a plane or train. EA+ will handle every detail of sending the ambulance to you, and we will also gain admittance for you at the receiving hospital. Take a look at the video below to learn more about what happens in an air ambulance.

What if you didn’t have EA+? 

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners reports that the average air ambulance trip WITHIN THE U.S. is about 52 miles, with a cost ranging between $12,000 and $25,000 per flight. What if you are outside the country? Here are emergency medical evacuation costs from these countries to the U.S.:

• Caribbean and Mexico: $15,000 to $25,000
• South America: $40,000 to $75,000
• Parts of Europe: $65,000 to $90,000
• Asia, Australia and the Middle East: $165,000 to $225,000

References:

How Much Does an Air Ambulance Cost?