On the surface, it might seem that when you’re overseas, travel insurance has you covered, but that couldn’t be further from the truth, especially when you have a Japanese workforce to consider.
What comes to mind when you consider travel insurance? What’s covered? It can seem the one-size-fits-all solution, but the reality is you’re likely to just be covering the basics, especially when it comes to health and well-being.
Medical emergencies – accidents, or even death – would have a level of cover, perhaps emergency evacuation too, and maybe support for prescription, but largely travel insurance is for the smaller, but nonetheless challenging things that happen when you’re away: lost luggage; cancelled flights; misplaced wallets. More importantly, it’s really only suitable for short-term stints abroad, holidays or trips of six months of less. It’s far from ideal when you’re looking to stay for any longer period of time in a destination, or even several destinations for that matter, should the job entail international travel.
Longer-term, if you have workers overseas, you’ll want cover that looks after health and well-being on every level, and you’ll want it to be protection that comes from a provider that has specific knowledge not only of the destination country or territory, but also the person covered, and the nuances that come from their own country and culture of origin.
International health insurance – such as Cigna Healthcare’s Global Expatriate Medical Coverage - goes beyond emergency situations, it looks after the employee in every aspect of their life, for the entire period they are away from home.
Some key differences:
Long-term. Global Expatriate Medical Coverage is made for workers spending longer-term periods away from Japan, often 12-month periods, not the short-stints for holiday makers.
Specific care needs. Global Expatriate Medical Coverage considers the requirements of the individual, whether it’s because they require maternity support, at any stage of the pregnancy, including the birth/delivery. It can even assist a stage before and help with fertility treatment.
There might also be a pre-existing condition, or chronic illness, that requires support/treatment while overseas – this could also include rehabilitation from an injury.
Preventative care. This can be both mental and physical, with Global Expatriate Medical Coverage, Cigna Healthcare aims to support your workers in every aspect of their health, either with help and advice on how to stay fit and healthy, to providing 24/7 telehealth support with a Japanese-dedicated customer service line or giving access to an online portal full of information.
Everyday care. Dental, chiropractic, physical therapy, Cigna Healthcare’s Global Expatriate Medical Coverage can ensure your workers have the health care essentials covered, as well as being there should the worse happen.
Country specific. The global network that comes from being with Cigna Healthcare, means the health care support always reflects the country or territory in which your employees are based – the cover is always based on extensive experience of the destination, using insider knowledge to ensure every situation is covered.
Complete cover. Travel insurance is often very specific and limited in what is covered, meaning you can incur considerable additional and administrative costs from having to add additional policies to ensure the health needs of your employees are covered. With Cigna Healthcare everything can be organised in one place, with no gaps in coverage, and its network is extensive, so you’re covered for every eventuality.
Your cover, your language. One of the biggest concerns for many is that when help is needed, especially when it relates health, you literally don’t speak the same language as the person trying to help you. Cigna Healthcare is always there to support your employees in their language, with a full Japanese-language service and support, so nothing gets lost in translation, and they never feel isolated, wherever they are in the world.
Cashless. Often with travel insurance, you have to foot the bill first, before attempting to get reimbursed when you return from travelling, with Cigna Healthcare, any costs for health care while away are paid for by Cigna Healthcare, meaning neither employee or employer are out of pocket.
There are other nuances too, travel insurance is by-and-large non-specific when it comes to what it covers, whereas international health insurance is, as the name suggests, medical-focused. And, with plans such as Cigna Healthcare’s Global Expatriate Medical Coverage you can have a choice of where you receive your care – travel insurance often requires you to return home before receiving long-term care.