Expat Health Insurance and US continuation of Insurance

bethey

I wasn't sure if this would be more appropriate here or in the health and well being area - please move if you think it should be there...

In the ongoing soap opera that is my life it's looking like I'll be in India for a year or so [yes, I know - 180 days ONLY on a tourist visa but we'll be getting married and I'll be applying for the X visa].

Those of you who are US citizens know the craziness that is our health insurance system here. I'm currently covered by an employer group policy. I can take COBRA coverage when I leave for up to 18 months but that will run into thousands of dollars per year. I thought about completely dropping traditional insurance and to just rely on travel insurance...but given the length of time and the fact I'll be changing residency led me to think that may not be smart either.

Oh, and then my HR manager started to talk about gaps in coverage being used as loop holes that a new policy [when I eventually return to the US] could use to deny coverage in the future.

What on earth do unemployed expats do? Is there reputable expat insurance? I have calls in with insurance companies here but noone seemed to have a clue as to what I was talking about.

In a perfect world I would just like high-deductable, catastrophic event insurance policy since I'll be in India and not utilizing the US healthcare system unless something super crazy occurs. I just want to cover my butt for coming back to the US and being "covered" without a gap.

Unfortunately I do have a couple of typical medical conditions that could then be shuffled into the "pre-existing" catergory if I drop insurance.

birds

Not familiar with the American situation but we have been using William Russell from the UK for years. Quick with settling and many options to tailor a package as per your requirements.

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Of the estimated 500 million dogs in the world, approximately 75% are strays, of which about 25 million live in India.