Medicare and Travel: How Your Coverage Works When You’re Away from Home
Retirement often brings the freedom to travel—whether that means visiting grandkids across the country, spending winters in a warmer state, or exploring the streets of Paris. But many retirees are surprised to learn that not all Medicare plans travel well.
Understanding the difference between routine care and emergency care, and how various Medicare options handle each while you’re away from home, can help you avoid unexpected bills and headaches.
This guide is for travelers who live primarily in the U.S. but may spend extended time elsewhere—think snowbirds, road trippers, or international vacationers.
We’ll walk through what to expect with Original Medicare, Medicare Advantage, and Medicare Supplement (Medigap) plans—plus share tips to help you prepare for wherever the journey takes you.
Routine vs Emergency Care
It’s important to understand the difference between Routine Care and Emergency Care.
- Emergency care is treatment you need immediately due to a serious or unexpected medical issue (e.g., heart attack, broken bone, or serious infection).
- Routine care includes checkups, chronic condition management, prescription refills, and other non-emergency services.
Some Medicare plans only cover emergency or urgent care when you’re away from home. Others cover routine care anywhere you go. That difference can greatly affect your experience if you get sick on the road.
Medicare Options
Original Medicare (Part A and Part B)
Part A (Hospital Insurance) covers inpatient hospital stays, skilled nursing care, hospice, and some home health services.
Part B (Medical Insurance) covers doctor visits, outpatient care, preventive services, and durable medical equipment.
How it handles travel:
- Covers you anywhere in the U.S. and its territories (including Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, etc.) as long as the provider accepts Medicare.
- No routine coverage overseas. Foreign coverage is extremely limited and only applies in rare cases (like when you’re traveling through Canada between Alaska and another U.S. state, or on a ship near a U.S. port).
Original Medicare with a Supplement
Medigap policies are sold by private insurers to cover costs that Original Medicare doesn’t—like deductibles, coinsurance, and copayments.
Supplement policies work nationwide—you can see any doctor or hospital that accepts Medicare, making it ideal for travelers within the U.S.
Supplement policies come in different Plan Letters (Plans C, D, F, G, M, and N) with some plans offering foreign travel emergency coverage:
- Covers 80% of emergency care abroad, up to $50,000 lifetime, after a $250 deductible.
- Coverage applies only in the first 60 days of each trip.
- Must be medically necessary and begin during the trip.
- For drug coverage, you’ll need to add a standalone Part D plan for prescription drugs. These plans have pharmacy networks, so check if your preferred pharmacy is covered in all your travel locations.
Medicare Advantage
Medicare Advantage plans are offered by private insurers as an alternative to Original Medicare. These plans bundle Part A and Part B, and often include Part D (prescription drug coverage), dental, vision, and other extras.
Most Medicare Advantage plans are:
- HMOs (Health Maintenance Organizations): Require you to use providers in-network and often need referrals.
- PPOs (Preferred Provider Organizations): Offer more flexibility but charge more for out-of-network care.
How it handles travel:
- Coverage is typically restricted to a geographic service area, especially for routine care.
- Most plans cover emergency and urgent care anywhere in the U.S.
- International emergency coverage may be offered as a plan perk—but it’s not guaranteed and varies significantly by plan.
- For drug coverage, most plans include Part D for drug coverage. Coverage on the road depends on whether your pharmacy is in-network.
Special Note for Snowbirds
If you spend part of the year in one state (e.g., Michigan in the summer) and another in winter (e.g., Florida), you’re considered a “snowbird”.
- Original Medicare + Medigap is ideal with no networks, no referrals, nationwide access.
- Medicare Advantage plans may not work well unless:
- You stay in-network (some large PPOs offer national provider access).
- Your plan offers “visitor” or “travel benefit” programs (few do).
Travel Medical Insurance
For longer or multiple international trips, it may be beneficial to consider purchasing travel medical insurance, especially for medical evacuation, which can cost tens of thousands of dollars and is not covered by Medicare.