Re. IMG:
IMG also has a Global Medical Insurance plan with Worldwide (including US) coverage, whose Gold and Platinum levels benefits include Preventative Care. The Platinum plan has no limitations on Pre-Existing Conditions (brochure screenshot below).
The monthly premium for a $2500 deductible us under $300, for the Platinum plan, while it’s well over $300 for the Bronze plan with the US insurers for the same deductible. Here’s IMG Global’s quote for a male, late 30s, US resident:
What’s extra interesting is that IMG doesn’t have an open enrollment period. I don’t know how they deal with the adverse selection but IMG seems like an interesting option even for Americans who don’t have regular health insurance coverage and plan on medical tourism. The eligibility requirements are:
Global Medical Insurance is available to individuals and families of all nationalities. U.S.
citizens must plan to be residing outside the U.S. on or before their effective renewal dates,
and for at least six (6) out of the next 12 months. Additional eligibility restrictions apply to
non-U.S. citizens residing in the United States.
The only catch I’ve found*, and fortunately not applicable to those of use who stay in the US less than 35 days/year, is that the plan is not ACA-compliant, so you’ll have to pay a tax penalty if you’re a US tax resident and do stay in the US for more than 35 days a year.
UPDATE: I’ve found a lot of terrible reviews for IMG (Yelp, reviewcentre, this site, some on reddit).
- They seem to deny everything as a “pre-existing condition”
- Take weeks to respond to claims
- It also appears you need to mail documents physically (“you must attach the original documents”), even if you use their “interactive PDF” claims form. Nowhere on their site have I found any mention of scanning documents, or “digital copies”. You can fax stuff though.
None of the reviewers complaining about IMG mentioned being on the Premium plan, so maybe those customers get treated better; or maybe that’s wishful thinking.
* Have I missed something?