• Submitted by: admin
• Travel and Tourism
• Health and Medicine
• 04 / 26 / 2010

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Buying medical insurance for a trip to Cuba may not be as costly as I quoted here earlier, or as complicated as many travelers fear. (See  "E-zine says $50 will cover travel insurance.")

A Miami expert on charter flights sends me the following explanation.

Beginning May 1, Havanatur, the Havana-based travel group that deals with U.S. charter companies, will charge a $46-per-passenger medical insurance premium to every charterer as part of the overall landing fee.

The insurance coverage is good for 30 days. When a traveler arrives in Cuba, his airline ticket will be stamped with proof of 30-day protection. The stamped ticket is, in effect, his policy.

But will the charterer collect the whole $46 from the traveler when it issues him his ticket? Not necessarily, my source says.

Most likely, the charterer will charge the traveler less and absorb the loss, as an inducement to gain and keep the traveler's business, the source says.

It's all a matter of competition, and the charter companies rely on volume sales to stay in business, he tells me. It would be counterproductive for the charterer to charge the traveler more than the established $46.

The bottom line is that, while medical insurance is now inescapable, the charterer can help you keep its cost down. Shop around and check.

By Renato Pérez Pizarro.

Source: The Miami Herald