Insurance vs Saving Up

The world is becoming increasingly globally connected. Teams work remotely, and more countries offer easy-to-get residencies and digital nomad visas. As more services are provided, setting up life as a digital nomad becomes more complex.

How you set up your healthcare remains a personal decision, and there is no one-fits-all solution. One question you may ask yourself is whether you should pay for health insurance or save up money for medical emergencies.

💰 Pros for saving up money

• No monthly fees: Having no health insurance saves you money on monthly premiums. However, putting money aside also reduces your monthly budget.
• Control: Your choice is how much money you want to save each month for medical emergencies.

💸 Cons for saving up money

• Time: Saving up for medical emergencies might take time. Your financial situation affects how much you can set aside in your health emergency fund and how much money you can put into it every month. If you start with €0 and commit to a monthly amount of €200, your emergency fund will be worth €2,400 after 12 months.
• Emergencies: If you have an accident while your emergency fund is still small, for example, a scooter accident in Mexico or a tropical disease in Thailand, and you need medical emergency care, inpatient treatment (you stay in the hospital overnight), or surgery, you will have to pay out of your pocket. A scooter crash in Bali might be affordable if you have no serious injuries, but imagine an accident in the USA, in Europe, or in Australia. These countries have high healthcare costs that you have to pay.
• Checkups & preventive care: Each time you want to have a health checkup, have your teeth cleaned, control your eyesight, or get a vaccine, you pay the medical bill out of your pocket. Checkups, especially for cancer, become more important with age and should not be ignored.
• Chronic illnesses: In the unfortunate event you develop a chronic illness, this illness is now counted as a pre-existing condition. If you want to sign up for health insurance in the future, and you have one or more pre-existing conditions, this will result in high premiums you need to pay each month.
• Long-term care: If you had an accident, and your recovery requires long-term treatments or rehabilitation through physiotherapy, you pay for this long-term treatment out of your pocket.
• Visas and residencies: If you want to travel to Europe’s Schengen countries, Thailand, Singapore, Panama, Turkey, and many other countries, having travel health insurance is mandatory. Although practically, nearly no immigration officer asks travelers to show their insurance policy, you are legally required to have one.
• Discipline: Saving up money for medical emergencies requires a lot of discipline. You can help by setting aside the money in a separate bank account.
• High inflation and low interest rates: However, many banks don’t pay much interest anymore, and others even charge maintenance fees. Money that sits in a bank account might be affected by inflation or exchange rates. In other words, the money might decrease in value over time.

🤔 Saving up for emergencies might work if you

• You have a lot of money and feel confident paying for an emergency surgery out of pocket in the countries you travel to.
• You have access to your home country's national health care system, which covers long-term recovery treatments, chronic illnesses, and required rehabilitation care.

🛟 Pros of having health insurance

• Immediate cover: You are covered from day 1 and don’t need to worry about medical costs.
• Emergencies: From day 1, you are covered for emergencies, from scooter crashes to sports accidents.
• Checkups & preventive care: If you sign up for travel health insurance, checkups and preventive care will most likely not be included in your insurance. If you choose to sign up for international health insurance, you are covered for medically necessary treatments, regular checkups, vision and dental care, mental health care, physiotherapy, and much more, depending on the terms of your insurance provider.
• Chronic illness: If you have international health insurance, chronic illnesses that develop after you sign up for the insurance will be covered. Chronic illness is most likely not covered by travel health insurance.
• Long-term care: International health insurance is designed to cover long-term care, and in some cases, lifelong. There is no termination date, and the coverage is valid as long as you pay the monthly premium. This is different when having travel health insurance, as this type of insurance is only valid for a certain period, for example, 1 year.
• Visas & residencies: Depending on the maximum amount the insurance covers, you should be legally able to travel wherever you want. If you wish to apply for digital nomad visas or residencies in a foreign country, you might need proof of your health insurance.
• Mental well-being: You don’t need to worry about medical bills and the costs of medical emergency care. Depending on your health insurance (travel vs. international) you might not even worry about long-time care and costly rehabilitation treatments. It can be a relief to know that someone will take care of you when you need it.

📅 Cons of having health insurance

• Monthly costs: Depending on your insurance type, you must pay the monthly premium. When signing up for travel health insurance, the monthly fee should be less than €100. The monthly premium will be higher when signing up for international health insurance. The monthly cost depends greatly on your age, the region of cover, and the chosen deductible. In the case of international health insurance, the costs depend on your health conditions as you fill out a medical questionnaire beforehand.
• Rising premiums: Be aware that premiums will rise as well over time in times of global inflation, economic recession, and rising costs.
• Access to a national health care system: If you have access to a national health care system, for example, in your home country or in any other country where you have residency or no visa restrictions, it is possible that in this individual case, international health insurance is not necessary. However, as soon as you leave your home country, the least you can do is sign up for good travel health insurance.

🤓 Having health insurance is for you if you...

• Don’t have a lot of money or don’t want to spend a lot of money in case of emergency, or medically necessary treatments.
• Don’t have access to a national health care system.
• Have a family you care for, and you want to ensure you are medically and financially secure.
• You want to be covered for preventive care, mental health treatments, check-ups, vision, and dental care, which are all the regular medical services covered by most national health care systems.
• You're an active person and want to have the peace of mind that no matter which trail you hike, sport you exercise in, or route you take today, you are covered at least for emergencies.

💡Summary

🌱 Get travel health or international health insurance with Genki

We offer travel health insurance (Genki Explorer) and international health insurance (Genki Native). Here is a quick overview.

🛟 Travel health insurance with Genki

Genki Explorer

• Who is this for: Short-term travelers and digital nomads with long-term health coverage at home.
• Region of cover: Worldwide. Every single country. Depending on your travel plans, you can choose to have full or limited cover in the USA & Canada.
• Home country: Your chosen home country should be a country where you have no visa restrictions and access to long-term health coverage, like local health insurance or the public health system. However, visiting friends and family is covered for up to 42 consecutive days within 180 days.
• Inclusions & exclusions: Medical emergencies and medically necessary treatments (ear infection, flu), initial mental health issues, and sports injuries are covered. Pre-existing conditions and pre-existing pregnancies are not covered. See all benefits.
• Monthly costs: Genki Explorer starts from €72 a month (prices for ages 0-29). The monthly costs depend on the chosen deductible, and if you want to include or exclude the USA & Canada.

☂️ International health insurance with Genki

Genki Native

• Who is this for: Digital nomads, expats, and other long-term travelers who want complete health cover.
• Region of cover: Worldwide (limited in Canada & USA).
• Period of cover: As long as you want. Life-long if you wish. The minimum contract is 1 year with a monthly payment plan.
• Home country: Genki Native is available for people from every country (even nomads without any legal residence). You can choose to have limited or full cover in your country of citizenship.
• Genki Native Basic: Genki Native Basic covers necessary medical treatment (inpatient and outpatient treatments) at any licensed doctor or hospital up to €1,000,000 per year. That includes accidents and emergencies, as well as common illnesses and injuries.
• Genki Native Premium: Genki Native Premium also covers preventive care/check-ups, plus dental, vision, maternity, mental health, and more. Genki Native Premium has no overall limit for medical costs and also includes full cover in your country of citizenship.
• Monthly costs: Genki Native starts from €180 a month (prices for ages 20-34). The monthly costs depend on the result of a medical questionnaire, your age, the chosen deductible, and the region of cover (incl. or excl. USA and Canada).