I have summarized all the emergency medical travel insurance available with your Canadian credit card issued by all major banks of Canada.
- American Express Out of Province and Country Emergency Medical Insurance
- BMO Out of Province Emergency Medical Protection Insurance
- CIBC Out of Province Emergency Medical Travel Insurance
- RBC Out of Province Emergency Medical Travel Insurance
- Scotiabank Travel Emergency Medical Insurance
- TD Travel Medical Insurance
If you do not want to read through all the coverage information, the most important question is, which is the best credit card in Canada for travel insurance?
There are a few aspects that make this the best emergency medical travel insurance available in Canada through a credit card.
5,000,000 Coverage for Core Health Services
We never anticipate using insurance. So, if I ever do need to use insurance, I ask myself, what if I am in a bad accident in the USA. We always hear about expensive medical bills. I have no experience with the US health care system, but also, I don’t ever want anyone in my family to be worried about, if we have sufficient coverage. With $5,000,000 coverage, I am confident I will never cross that limit.
No lower limits on core health services
I define core health services as:
- Hospital accommodation
- Doctor’s bills
- Private registered nurse
- Ambulance, both ground and air
- Paramedical services
- Diagnostic services
- Medical Appliances
There is no other card issuer in Canada who has no lower limits on any of the services defined above. I never want to be in a situation, where I cannot afford a service that is medically necessary for treatment, and yet, my credit card company will not cover me.
31 Days Validity for Adults
31 Days is the longest validity across all cards in Canada. Most vacations for most of us are typically less than 31 days.
10 Days Validity for Older People
10 Days is the longest validity across all cards in Canada. Most vacations for most of us are typically less than 10 days.
Conclusion
When I started writing the series of articles, I never imagined CIBC would have the best travel insurance policy. I always thought American Express Platinum was the gold standard. Personally, this was very insightful, and for my family, I will be ensuring that we have the appropriate travel insurance, either through CIBC or a private insurance provider.
Hello Moli, I have read your nice comprehensive emergency medical travel insurance assessment. It is very informative and well presented. With respect to credit card insurance coverage associated with Scotiabank, I am not sure if you could have a second look at the current Scotiabank T&C. When one reads the updated certificate of Scotiabank insurance, stable pre-existing conditions up to 180 days for individuals under 75 years of age seem to have individuals covered, and in the case where the person is 75 years of age or older, the insurance seems allow coverage of the medical condition of the individual if it was stable for the 365 days prior to the date the Trip was booked. Does that make sense?
Here is the excerpt:
‘For Travel Emergency Medical Insurance, a Pre-existing Condition does not include a Medical Condition which is controlled by the consistent use of medications prescribed by a Doctor, provided that, during the 180-day period or 365-day period, as applicable, before the Insured Person’s departure, there has been no other treatment or investigation recommended and there has been no change in medication. A new medication or increase/decrease in dosage constitutes a change.’
Hello Luc,
My interpretation of the comment was that a pre-existing condition is defined as what you have listed above. But if you read through the exclusions, it explicitly states:
No benefits are payable for any expenses incurred directly or indirectly as a result of:
a) any Pre-existing Condition;
Which is why I believe Scotiabank does not provide any coverage for any pre-existing coverage at all. I am happy to connect with you directly if you are interpreting something else.
Hello Moli, I have followed up directly with Manulife today, the Scotiabank Emergency Medical Insurance info line for their credit cards. Their interpretation of the insurance certificate info is tricky indeed.
If Scotiabank cardholders and family members are below 65 years old, they are covered IF preexisting medical conditions are ‘stable’ 6 months prior to travel. This ‘stable’ preexisting medical condition exception is ‘clarified’ specifically in the definition section of the certificate. As such, any change in medication dose – even a slight decrease (!) or increase of it during this six-month period prior to travel – is considered being NOT medically ‘stable’. Moreover, if one is 65 or over, the medical ‘stability’ is expected to be over 1 year and the period of days covered is greatly lower. These fine prints in the insurance certificate can be easily overlooked and expose cardholders and their family to risk; can’t they?
Hello Luc,
I see how that might be a valid interpretation. I will provide credit to you and make the update on the Scotiabank article. But definitely, it is confusing, and designed to limit payouts by Scotiabank. Ultimtaely, my conclusion is, Scotiabank has one of the weaker coverage of pre-existing conditions in Canada.
But I have definitely helped clients avoid purchasing travel insurance, because they falsely assumed their health condition would be deemed stable, which for recent issues would not be the case.