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Beware of what "pre-existing" means
Wanted to share my experience with IMGlobal and patriot america plus insurance which will hopefully save folks some money.
I purchased the patriot america plus plan for my parents (indian citizens) visiting USA (have been doing for past several years). I bought that plan as it was comprehensive, had PPO network and covered "acute onset" of pre-existing conditions. My mom had no "pre-existing" condition and she always got a full medical checkup and a clean bill of health from one of the best hospitals in India before visiting US and I have all of the records. This time unfortunately, she had a a cardiac arrest while in US and had to under go emergent bypass surgery.
I had a horrible experience working through IMG and seeing the ugly side of american healthcare system. First they denied the "pre-approval" for surgery which takes a whopping 5 days to process. So you've already had the surgery by the time they decide on even the pre-approval. The reason for denial was "pre-existing" condition. They also denied all the claims after the fact as "pre-existing" as well. No explanation for how they came to that conclusion. Just the 2 words - "pre-existing".
I went through their appeal process and submitted mom's comprehensive medical records for last 3 years which showed all her vitals, labs in green. They finally gave me an answer that heart conditions are considered chronic. Even if the patient didn't know about it, and none of the tests showed it, artery blockage doesn't happen overnight. Wow.. Human bodies deteriorate over time. So from that perspective everything (short of an accident) in the world is pre-existing.
I have given up on the fight with IMG and patriot america. Hopefully this review will help people save some money or at least be informed of the risks. My recommendation would be to never invite parents over unless you can buy a comprehensive plan which covers pre-existing conditions for travelers. And that does not exist to the best of my knowledge.
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I purchased the patriot america plus plan for my parents (indian citizens) visiting USA (have been doing for past several years). I bought that plan as it was comprehensive, had PPO network and covered "acute onset" of pre-existing conditions. My mom had no "pre-existing" condition and she always got a full medical checkup and a clean bill of health from one of the best hospitals in India before visiting US and I have all of the records. This time unfortunately, she had a a cardiac arrest while in US and had to under go emergent bypass surgery.
I had a horrible experience working through IMG and seeing the ugly side of american healthcare system. First they denied the "pre-approval" for surgery which takes a whopping 5 days to process. So you've already had the surgery by the time they decide on even the pre-approval. The reason for denial was "pre-existing" condition. They also denied all the claims after the fact as "pre-existing" as well. No explanation for how they came to that conclusion. Just the 2 words - "pre-existing".
I went through their appeal process and submitted mom's comprehensive medical records for last 3 years which showed all her vitals, labs in green. They finally gave me an answer that heart conditions are considered chronic. Even if the patient didn't know about it, and none of the tests showed it, artery blockage doesn't happen overnight. Wow.. Human bodies deteriorate over time. So from that perspective everything (short of an accident) in the world is pre-existing.
I have given up on the fight with IMG and patriot america. Hopefully this review will help people save some money or at least be informed of the risks. My recommendation would be to never invite parents over unless you can buy a comprehensive plan which covers pre-existing conditions for travelers. And that does not exist to the best of my knowledge.
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