More Travel Overseas, More Buy Travel Coverage

It doesn't seem to make sense, but with fuel prices high, consumer confidence low and groceries and everything else going up, AAA says more Americans will travel abroad this summer than last., a 2.6% increase.

A recent article from the LA Times suggests they may choose a less expensive destination, or spend less once there, but travel abroad they will yet.

They will also be protecting themselves better. A recent article from the Arizona Republic, reprinted in the Detroit Free Press says travel coverage is more in demand as well. This echoes a trend we wrote about last summer. What's interesting is the fastest growing segment of travel insurance is medical evacuation and other medical related coverage.

As baby boomers begin to reap the rewards of their collective lifetime of hard work, it's hardly suprising those traveling are also looking to safeguard their health. It is increasingly important to them that, in an emergency, they can be cared for by the doctors and hospitals they know and trust, and who know their specific medical situations. Medical evacuation membership programs, like Air Ambulance Card give them the peace of mind of knowing they will choose which hospital they will be flown to in an emergency, and the financial protection of knowing they won't pay a dime more than the low yearly membership price.

Frightening Fall in France

There is a terrifying story out of Nebraska that shows the worst can happen in the most idyllic of spots. A teen on a school trip with his parents was walking on an ancient town wall in the south of France when he fell two stories and broke his back. The Omaha World-Herald tells a terrifying story of how his parents, who didn't speak French, couldn't tell the nurses, who were lifting their son up, that he had broken his back and shouldn't be moved.
Injury in a foreign country is frightening. But imagine if a language barrier made it life-threatening.

Expedia.com: Business Travelers Think Safety

Expedia Corporate Travel says their new survey finds business travelers are keeping safety at the top of their list of concerns.

No big surprise here. Studies have consistently found that's a top concern of travelers, especially when they are flying internationally.

Hmmm, if only there was a way to allay their fears. Hmmmm, if only there was a way to assure them they could get home to their loved ones and the doctor and hospital OF THEIR CHOICE if they became sick or injured away from home.

WAIT A MINUTE!!! What about Air Ambulance Card?! Prepaid medical evacuation coverage, fly you home to the US or Canadian hospital of your choice aboard a dedicated medical aircraft if they are hospitalized 150 miles or more from home, hold your loved ones' hands the whole time you are in the air. Perfect. Now, if only someone could help spread the word. (hint)

First Aid Kit for Travelers

I thought this was a great list from an article in the LA Times, reprinted by the Chicago Trib. Of course, there's one thing missing from this... your Air Ambulance Card!

TRAVEL SHORTS
Items every traveler's first-aid kit should contain
Your all-purpose blister-fighting, sting-cooling, bite-soothing bag

By Vani Rangachar
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

What should every traveler's first-aid kit contain? Here is a list of items recommended by Dr. Brian Terry, a specialist in travel medicine who practices at the Healthy Traveler Clinic in Pasadena, Calif., and Dr. Christopher Van Tilburg, an emergency and wilderness physician and editor of Wilderness Medicine magazine in Salt Lake City:

• Antibiotic: Depending on where you're headed, include a broad- spectrum prescription antibiotic such as Zithromax or Cipro.

• Antibiotic cream to treat cuts.

• Antifungal creams.

• Antihistamine (such as Benadryl) for allergies and bug bites.

• Anti-malarial medication, if you are traveling to a part of the world where the risk is high.

"It's absolutely vital," Terry says.

• Bug spray with DEET.

Terry recommends Ultrathon.

• Condoms, for safe sex/

"People don't talk about these things, but they are very important," Terry says.

• Cotton swabs.

• Dental floss and an emergency dental kit (for example, temporary dental cement)

• Digital fever thermometer in a hard carrying case so it won't break.

• Earplugs.

• Elastic (Ace) bandages, 1 1/2 or 2 inches wide.

These bandages are useful for binding major wounds, says Van Tilburg.

• Electrolyte tablets to combat dehydration.

• Eyeglass repair kit.

• First-aid tape.

"My favorite is Johnson & Johnson waterproof first-aid tape," which sticks well and can be used to treat wounds and blisters, Van Tilburg says.

• Hand sanitizers.

But keep it in your purse or backpack, Terry says.

• Hydrocortisone ointment or cream to get the itch out of bug bites.

• Ibuprofen or other pain reliever.

• Imodium for symptomatic relief of diarrhea.

"But take it with an antibiotic," Terry says.

• Indigestion remedies, such as Gaviscon or Maalox.

• Moleskin or mole foam for blisters.

• Motion sickness medicine (over-the-counter, such as Dramamine, or prescription scopolamine tablets or patches).

• Nasal decongestant spray (such as Afrin).

• Nitrile gloves.

Nitrile is more flexible and less likely to cause allergies than latex, Van Tilburg says.

• Pencil and notebook or Post-it Notes.

"For writing directions if you are looking for a doctor," Terry says.

• Safety pins.

• Scissors that fold.

Terry recommends Slip-N-Snips, about $5 online or at retail establishments.

• Sunscreen, waterproof, with an SPF of 25 or higher and UVB and UVA protection.

The waterproof kind stays on longer when you sweat, Van Tilburg and Terry say.

• Throat lozenges (such as Cepacol).

• Tweezers.

Get "a good pair of metal tweezers that work, with a pointy or flat tip," says Terry (who uses jeweler's forceps).

• Urinary-tract-infection medication.

Carry whatever your doctor recommends, Terry says.

• Wilderness trips: Van Tilburg recommends items for wound care, water purification and CPR.

For wound care, take adhesive bandages, soap and hand sanitizers. "The key to wound care in the wilderness is cleaning it properly," he says. For water purification, he recommends chlorine tablets because they taste better than iodine and work faster. Also: a CPR mask and a pair of vinyl or nitrile gloves. "Some store-bought first-aid kits don' t come with these," Van Tilburg says.

• Yeast infection medication, over-the-counter or whatever your doctor prescribes.

Link

Who says Customer Service is Dead? Long live Air Ambulance Card!

So we took a call over the weekend from a member who couldn't find her
updated membership cards. She was planning a trip and wanted to make sure
her family could get home in the event of a medical emergency.
Imagine her surprise when she was able to talk to a REAL LIVE PERSON, and
not only that, ONE OF OUR ADMINISTRATORS, on a Sunday night!
The family joined four years ago after a medical mishap in the Bahamas, when her husband, a
cardiologist, was dosed with GHB at a restaurant. After a stint in a
Bahamian hospital, he was flown to Miami (at considerable personal expense,
no doubt) where they performed the blood tests he hadn't been given on the
island.
Luckily... This weekend's emergency was just a case of misplaced mail... But
it's nice to know if our members need our services on a Sunday night in an
overseas hospital... A real live person will be there to take the call.

Link

Stranded in Dubai

We're at the New York Times Travel Show, and just talked to a woman who perfectly illustrates why travelers need Air Ambulance Card.

Sabrina Oslinker of Pennsylvania traveled to India for her brother's wedding. She'd just had open heart surgery the year before. Thanks to India's noted pollution, Oslinker wound up in a hospital in Bangalore with an acute respiratory infection. The hospital promptly snatched up her passport and credit card... and admitted her.

You can imagine Oslinker wanted to go home. "I love my doctors here. There is nothing like the U.S." Her husband, a travel agent, purchased travel insurnce for her before she left. It did its job, it covered her medical bills in India, but it would not bring her home.

After seven days in an Indian hospital, Oslinker was released and headed for the airport, but the airline wouldn't let her board. She insisted, and got as far as Dubai where the airport doctor informed her she could not board the 16 hour flight home.

Now, imagine if she had had an Air Ambulance Card membership. We would have flown a dedicatd medical jet to pick her up, and fly her home. No hassles, no arguments.

Next time Oslinker travels... "I probaly will buy one of these things! I probably will buy this, so I can come home."

Air Ambulance Card Bring More than Patients Home

How is this for Value Added? On a recent trip to Germany, an Air Ambulance Card member left his camera on a train. This was not a "point and shoot," not an aged 35mm. This was a $1500 Nikon. Needless to say, hopes for the camera's safe return were dim.
However, this loyal Air Ambulance Card member has been dutifully placing personalized luggage tags, which he receives with his new AAC membership cards each year, on all of his travel gear.
This luggage tag was the only identifying marker on his camera bag.
Well, what do y0u know? The German railroad operators found the bag, called the number, and is returning the camera to our member.
I know you are all rushing off to your filing cabinets to find those tags you stashed away. Lost them? We'll send new ones when you renew.
And for those of you who want to know how to get the tags... they're free... when you buy one of our pre-paid air medical transports memberships!