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temporary insurance to travel to another state?

Hello,

I currently live in Texas and have Blue Cross Blue Shield.. In order for me to go out of network to another state it would be more expensive since my deductible is very high..and not even sure if they would cover some of the costs. I had spine surgery 1 1/2 years ago and have had some complications from that and I need to get another opinion outside of this area and state.. Is there such thing as temporary insurance and considering my health problems now would it be easy to apply for? Just curious.. Thanks for your help
2 Responses
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715883 tn?1260911191
Health insurance should follow you where ever you go.  But if you see a specialist that happens to be in another state Why wouldn't it be covered?  There are many reasons Insurance won't cover.  They could simply say no.  Have you called them and asked? Look on the back of your insurance card and call the member benefits or providers phone number.  Typically a toll free number.  THIS IS IMPORTANT: Try real hard to talk to a real person.  If you have to, do not press a button to hear in English.  Don't press any button and act like you are calling from a rotary phone.  Doing this will get you to a real person.  Then ask is the service is covered don't mention you are going out of state, yet.  They will ask for your information SS# or card Id, maybe date of birth to confirm.
If you get a no that it is not covered, ask politely what has to be done to get it covered. It may be as simple as getting a letter from you primary physician and or your primary doctor and another doctor stating Medical Necessity, also called CMN or Certificate of Medical Necessity.  Make sure the doc signs the letter and take it to your insurance.

Keep a copy for your records because they can get lost.

They may require the doctor to call the insurance company.  Tell me how many doctors have the time to make calls to insurance companies?  It may take this to get it covered.
If you care to find out what is covered or not you can go to your insurance companies web site and search there. BC/BS follows Medicare guidelines, so you can also go to medicare.gov and search there.

I worked in Healthcare and verified coverage.  Anthem, BS/BC, Empire and others require a CMN for many items.  Some insurance companies Require CMN for every item used in your care.  I have had to enlist medical office managers in getting CMN's and conversing with doctors as well. I did at one point, go on foot to get a doctor to sign a CMN for a Hospital Bed almost 2 years after the patient died so it could be covered!

The above works only in the United States that I am aware of.

Helpful - 0
282113 tn?1388159749
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Dear ms38,

I agree with boaz1 (who sounds like has had considerable experience in getting CMN & pre-approvals) that carriers require justifications for second opinions and by calling the carrier and asking the right questions you may be able to figure out a way to get that covered.  
As for temporary or any other type of health insurance goes, I don’t know of any that would cover pre-existing conditions; so keep working at your current carrier to figure it the best possible coverage.

Sincerely,

Amir Mostafaie
Helpful - 0

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