International terrorism and the frequent lack of quality health care abroad mean big business for Medex Assistance Corp.
The Towson firm provides evacuation and medical assistance services to executives, entrepreneurs and consumers traveling abroad. The insurance coverage costs as little as $4 per day.
“We accomplish this through a network of 43,000 international partners,” said Linda McGee, president of Medex?s Insurance Service Division.
Members of Medex?s 75-member staff work around the clock, making sure executives from companies such as Black & Decker have options overseas in the event of an emergency.
While most executives traveling abroad have medical insurance that promises to reimburse foreign hospitals and doctors, many facilities will not wait for payment.
However, there are times when the quality or lack medical care is the issue, McGee said.
Recently, an executive covered by Medex suffered a cerebral hemorrhage while doing business in China, where medical facilities were not state-of-the-art.
“We had him airlifted out to an excellent facility in our network,” she said.
In addition to airlifting its clients for medical emergencies, Medex has a network of chartered pilots on standby who can evacuate clients if they find themselves in the middle of a terrorist attack or political unrest.
The company recently evacuated some executives stranded in Haiti during a period of unrest, McGee said.
Buying such coverage when traveling abroad is not a luxury, said Dr. Michael Zimring, director of the Center for Wilderness and Travel Medicine at Mercy Medical Center.
“It is essential,” he said.
Still flying
U.S. citizens? air travel overseas since Sept. 11:
» 2001: 33.6 million
» 2002: 31.4 million
» 2003: 32.1 million
» 2004: 36.5 million
» 2005: 34.7 million
Source: www.medexassist.com
