Travelling to exotic place at least once in every 3 year is everyone’s dream as it gives a big relief from the hectic schedule. In addition to this; people get to explore new places, understand different cultures and many more. However many people think that foreign trip requires just a visa and a ticket. But this is incorrect.

One most important thing people miss out is mandatory health insurance in some countries. If you don’t have medical insurance, then you won’t even get visa stamped. And even if it is not mandatory, you should always buy travel insurance covering medical expenses when visiting abroad because it provides coverage to the travelers for the following. These covers vary for each insurer:

• Medical expenses incurred hospitalization, dental expenses, ambulance and others
• Loss of passport
• Flight delayed
• Accidental death, total or partial disability, and others
• Personal accident
• Loss of possessions such as luggage, documents etc. and many more.

Amongst the above listed benefits of travel insurance, the most important one is the medical cover. Imagine you are going to country where cost of medical treatment is very high and you do not have medical insurance. There is a greater chance that medical cost will hurt your savings as you’ll end up paying in the other country’s local currency.

So which are the top most visited countries where health insurance is must either for students or tourists?

1. USA: Although US offers best healthcare in the world, undergoing medical treatment over there is most expensive. This is the reason why health insurance is must for tourists in USA. For e.g. coronary bypass surgery in US costs around $1, 00,000 whereas in India it is around $7000. So you can imagine the financial risk involved when no sufficient health plan is taken.
2. Schengen Countries: Amongst the most beautiful places in the world are in Schengen countries which include Switzerland, Greece, UK, Iceland, Spain, Germany and many others. But medical expenses in these countries are also very high compared to India. For e.g. in UK, open heart surgery costs around £20,000 but in India the same surgery will cost around £5000. So you can imagine the cost of undergoing medical treatment in these countries.
3. UAE: The rule remains the same, no health insurance – no visa.
4. New Zealand: NZ mandates having health insurance for visiting students.
5. Russia: Applicant for Russian visa will be denied if health insurance is not taken.
6. Thailand: It is a new entrant to the list as medical insurance for travelers is made mandatory by Thai tourism.

There are few other countries as well but the above listed ones are the favorite tourists destination. Even if the above listed countries require medical insurance, travelers should buy health insurance while traveling in any country. Especially when you have senior persons accompanying, you must have it. Because in case of emergency, coverage provided helps in a big way – most importantly it saves you money.