TI Denied if you don't get your shots?

[amaroo]

Hmmm, one for the memory bank. I've never linked travel insurance and vaccinations .... seems obvious with hindsight.

Aussie woman’s nightmare flight

That's because travel insurance won't pay out a claim for a disease that could have been prevented by immunisation.

In other words, those who skip their pre-flights jabs risk voiding their policy - which means if they do fall ill, they may have to foot the entire bill themselves

 

[Pushka]

Hmmm, one for the memory bank. I've never linked travel insurance and vaccinations .... seems obvious with hindsight.

Aussie woman’s nightmare flight

That is a huge can of worms. Surely that has to be stated in the PDS?

Although in the example above it wouldn’t have been covered anyway as she’d return to OZ. A friend developed HepA in Africa and she thought she was just very tanned. Her physician husband knew better. Then she turned yellow.

I wonder whose ‘recommendations’ they use as a criteria.

 

[RooFlyer]

That's because travel insurance won't pay out a claim for a disease that could have been prevented by immunisation.

Methinks that's a rather broad statement in the news story.

Just checked my Covermore/Helloworld PDS, and no mention of vaccinations etc, including in 'exclusions'. That said, I always go with full suite of relevant vaccinations.

Treatment in Australia (but probably not loss of income) would be covered by private health insurance (if they had it and at an appropriate level).

 

[Gold60]

my understanding is that as a general principle of insurance, you are not supposed to do anything that contributes to your illness/injury, and that not having the shots could greatly increase your level of risk ?

That is a huge can of worms. Surely that has to be stated in the PDS?

.................................................
I wonder whose ‘recommendations’ they use as a criteria.

 

[Pushka]

my understanding is that as a general principle of insurance, you are not supposed to do anything that contributes to your illness/injury, and that not having the shots could greatly increase your level of risk ?

It’s a minefield. That logic could be applied to say walking up stairs and falling!

 

[amaroo]

Methinks that's a rather broad statement in the news story.

Just checked my Covermore/Helloworld PDS, and no mention of vaccinations etc, including in 'exclusions'. That said, I always go with full suite of relevant vaccinations.

Treatment in Australia (but probably not loss of income) would be covered by private health insurance (if they had it and at an appropriate level).

Reading my QBE policy I reckon it could fall under "existing medical condition"

An existing medical condition is

1. 1. any physical, MentalI illness or medical condition (including pregnancy), defect,Illness or disease of which
      you were aware or should reasonably have been aware, and for which treatment, medication, preventative medication, advice, preventative advice or investigation has been received or prescribed by a medical or dental adviser in the 90 days prior to the issue of the Certificate of Insurance and also within 30 days prior to booking a particular trip.

 

[Gold60]

hopefully you could appeal to their sense of fairness and reasonableness, if they have one !!!

but i do see your point though. how many drinks is too many, so to speak - it is different for all of us.

It’s a minefield. That logic could be applied to say walking up stairs and falling!

 

[Pushka]

hopefully you could appeal to their sense of fairness and reasonableness, if they have one !!!

but i do see your point though. how many drinks is too many, so to speak - it is different for all of us.

This is an Insurance company we are referencing here

 

[Gold60]

Yeah i know..

They are all must attend the same business school for ethics, morality and fair play that the bankers, financial planners and friends who have recently appeared at the Banking RC go to ? ...

This is an Insurance company we are referencing here

 

[drron]

Hmmm, one for the memory bank. I've never linked travel insurance and vaccinations .... seems obvious with hindsight.

Aussie woman’s nightmare flight

So this is a Travel writer going to Uganda and did not take malaria prophylaxis.I wouldn't trust anything she wrote.The advice is not hidden-
Health Information for Travelers to Uganda - Traveler view | Travelers' Health | CDC
And did she really want the Malaria to hit whilst she was still in Uganda.
And by the way it is possible to be infected with Malaria parasites in Australia.Rare but it has happened.

 

[RooFlyer]

Reading my QBE policy I reckon it could fall under "existing medical condition"

Surely only if you had malaria, rabies, etc as an existing condition? Then, vaccination is a bit late

 

[amaroo]

So this is a Travel writer going to Uganda and did not take malaria prophylaxis.I wouldn't trust anything she wrote.The advice is not hidden-
Health Information for Travelers to Uganda - Traveler view | Travelers' Health | CDC
And did she really want the Malaria to hit whilst she was still in Uganda.
And by the way it is possible to be infected with Malaria parasites in Australia.Rare but it has happened.

Agreed. What I found interesting is the comment stating travel insurance "may be" dependant upon vaccinations .... would be good if the Government could swing the axe this hard with the anti vaxxers.

 

[amaroo]

Surely only if you had malaria, rabies, etc as an existing condition? Then, vaccination is a bit late

I'm no lawyer, but the words I highlighted seems to provide significant wiggle room for the TI industry.

 

[suze2000]

And by the way it is possible to be infected with Malaria parasites in Australia.Rare but it has happened.

Citation?

And I have to agree with previous comments that if she spent that long in hospital she's very lucky that it did not hit while she was in Africa. Who knows if they would have been able to give her the appropriate treatment if she was that ill?

 

[amaroo]

Methinks that's a rather broad statement in the news story.

Just checked my Covermore/Helloworld PDS, and no mention of vaccinations etc, including in 'exclusions'. That said, I always go with full suite of relevant vaccinations.

Treatment in Australia (but probably not loss of income) would be covered by private health insurance (if they had it and at an appropriate level).

Curiosity got the better of me. We were with TID for a few years....

 

[drron]

Citation?

And I have to agree with previous comments that if she spent that long in hospital she's very lucky that it did not hit while she was in Africa. Who knows if they would have been able to give her the appropriate treatment if she was that ill?

Here is the incident with the most infections.several other single cases in FNQ.
An outbreak of Plasmodium vivax malaria in Far North Queensland, 2002

 

[RooFlyer]

Curiosity got the better of me. We were with TID for a few years....

Looks like my Covermore/Helloworld policy is the 'go-to' one for anti-vaxers , definitely no similar wording in my PDS.

That said, if you go to a malarial area, then I think its reasonable for the insurance company to require you to take some preventative care, just like most won't cover you for risky activities without extra premium.

 

[suze2000]

Here is the incident with the most infections.several other single cases in FNQ.
An outbreak of Plasmodium vivax malaria in Far North Queensland, 2002

Thanks. It's so rare though it's gotta be a long way down the list of thoughts though when a patient comes in with a fever.

 

[drron]

Looks like my Covermore/Helloworld policy is the 'go-to' one for anti-vaxers , definitely no similar wording in my PDS.

That said, if you go to a malarial area, then I think its reasonable for the insurance company to require you to take some preventative care, just like most won't cover you for risky activities without extra premium.

And it has happened.I used to be active on Trip advisor.One of the things that gave me the irrits was a Japanese lass who told everyone travelling to SE Asia there was never a need for malaria prophylaxis.I had a real argument with her when a QLD fellow going to Cambodia asked the question.he ended up not taking anything.
Fast forward 3 months and I was working in Mackay and a very sick local was admitted after falling ill in Cambodia.Cerebral malaria was diagnosed.Just before being transferred to the Townsville ICU he asked me if I was drron.Well yes.His travel insurance had not paid out on the medical expenses in Cambodia or the change fee for his early return home.

 

[drron]

Thanks. It's so rare though it's gotta be a long way down the list of thoughts though when a patient comes in with a fever.

Not so rare with returning travellers.The fever also often has a distinct timing.
I have diagnosed several cases.the first was when I was an intern at RPAH in Sydney-I had just returned from 6 weeks on the medical service in the Solomon Islands so was very aware at the time.The fellow was a professional photographer recently returned from PNG-still have the signed copy of his book.