What costs are covered by the international health insurance for students and language students?
Students as well as language students who are going abroad for a longer period of time should not do without taking out an international health insurance. This is not only true when staying at a university or a language school outside the EU, but also in other cases. The European Health Insurance Card, EHIC for short, which is issued by the normal health insurance company in the home country, does cover basic medical care - but only up to the rate that is also common in Germany. Surprisingly, the costs for health treatments in other European countries are usually more expensive than in Germany. Since the German statutory health insurance only reimburses the German cost rate, one would be stuck with the difference. That's why you need student health insurance abroad.
Benefits:
Important: Outside of Europe, the statutory health insurance does not pay at all. If you have to be treated in a clinic in Madrid because of a special illness, for example, an international health insurance will pay for it. The normal health insurance would not pay these costs - and that can quickly become very expensive without additional insurance. Included in the benefits are basically costs for medication, medical care and for a possible return transport home. The money will be reimbursed by the insurance company afterwards. The exact benefits for the student health insurance abroad must be discussed in advance with the insurance company and contractually agreed upon, so that you do not experience any nasty surprises. Furthermore, it is important to know the period covered by the international health insurance. On average, such a policy is valid for one to three months, unless it is explicitly a long-term international health insurance.
Why is it important to have health insurance abroad as a student?
As a privately insured student, you may enjoy the same comprehensive protection when travelling abroad as you do in Germany. This applies at least mostly to EU countries and up to a maximum period of one year. In countries that do not belong to the EU, such as the USA, the insurance cover is often only valid for a few months, which is hardly sufficient for a whole semester. However, the exact regulations are different for each health insurance company.
Therefore, it is important to check a contract and the conditions very carefully and to change the tariff in case of doubt or to take out a student health insurance abroad. Because this cannot be done spontaneously before the trip, one should already deal with the topic several months before departure and choose a suitable insurer.
If you fall ill as a student abroad without having taken out an international health insurance, you have to expect to be asked to pay for medical treatment immediately: Treatments must be paid for immediately, and the bill for them can then be submitted later to the health insurance company, which will then reimburse the money. For young people, who often don't have too much savings anyway, this can quickly become a big problem.
When does the foreign health insurance take effect?
A good international health insurance will cover the most important costs for medical treatment, be it outpatient or inpatient. It also covers expenses for medication as well as for a return transport home, if this is reasonable and justifiable from a medical point of view. If students or language students have to be treated after an accident or due to an illness, the international health insurance will usually cover these costs. You don't have to worry about anything and can fully concentrate on your recovery.
Which costs are not covered by the health insurance abroad? Unfortunately, not all possible benefits are included in a travel insurance: There are almost always some clauses in the contract that exclude explicit cases from the insurance coverage. Mostly you can recognize these passages in the small print if they start with "No obligation to pay benefits exists...". These often include chronic illnesses, for example. What exactly is paid and what is not, however, should always be discussed individually with the insurer - and this is mandatory even before the conclusion of a contract.
Everything that is not literally explained in the contract should also be covered in writing. This way, you can protect yourself and don't have to worry about your money if you submit an invoice for emergency allergy treatment to the international health insurance company and they suddenly reply that this case is not covered at all.
Can you take out international health insurance at a later date?
No, for this you have to be on German ground, otherwise it is not possible for the insurance company to check the time of the illness.
It is therefore important that the travel insurance covers the entire period during which you are abroad. There are special insurances for language students and students who enrol for a semester or for a longer period at a university or language school abroad. With most insurers, students can take out insurance for a maximum period of five years - after which they will need to re-insure. Travel health insurance policies are also often subject to a maximum entry age, which for policies for students and language students is a maximum of 34 years .
Is the international health insurance from credit cards sufficient?
More and more credit card providers are offering their customers special international health insurance as part of the credit card contract. The bill for medical treatment or medication abroad is then paid directly by the credit card provider. At first glance, this is quite attractive for all credit card holders, but one should not be too blinded by this.
Often the benefits are tied to certain conditions and are very limited. It often happens that the credit card provider covers the costs for basic medical care, but not for special treatments in private clinics or for medication. It is in your own interest to check this situation and, if necessary, discuss it with your insurer. In most cases, it is always better to take out an additional policy with which you are really comprehensively protected abroad. In no case should you automatically rely on the term "travel insurance" being sufficient. In the worst case, this can lead to a nasty misunderstanding with expensive consequences.
