Do I need a passport to travel with American Physicians Network? What about a visa?
All travelers to international destinations are required to present a passport upon arrival. In fact, many airlines will not let you book international flights without the appropriate travel documents. Travelers need to have a current passport. Most countries require that the passport expiration date is more than six months in the future.
Passports
Clients from the United States can apply for a new US passport here or at their local post office. The average processing time for a new passport is 4 to 8 weeks.
For clients who need their passport sooner, or want to avoid the hassles of making an appointment with the post office, we have partnered with Travisa/ CIBT to provide our clients with hassle-free and expedited service. Travelers who use the link on our page will receive a 15% discount on all Travisa/ CIBT services including emergency and rush services. Travisa will also assist clients with any visas, if needed*.
(If you need emergency turn around services, please call Travisa directly at 800-929-2428 and give the account name: American Physicians Network for the discount.)
Visas
The majority of our clients do not need visas to travel to our medical destinations. Exceptions include clients traveling for extended periods (such as clients using rehabilitation services) or clients undergoing on-going cancer treatment regimens. This is typically only required for clients who will be abroad for more than 90 days. The visa application process may require an on-site visit to the local consulate in the destination country.
In these cases, we refer our clients to Travisa for executive services – that include visa services at destination countries.
For rehab clients, the rehab staff will assist in the visa process.
What about travel insurance?
American Physicians Network strongly recommends that every client (and travel companion) purchase travel insurance. While travel insurance will not cover elective, and previously scheduled medical travel, travel insurance will help with any other emergencies that may arise during your trip such as unanticipated illness among anyone in your party, accidents, missed flights/ cancellations and other hassles.
According to a Forbes article, (and multiple other sources) these are the best travel insurance companies: (listed alphabetically)
Allianz Global Travel insurance
American Express Travel insurance – policyholders are not required to have American Express credit cards
Take a look at each policy and decide what’s best for you.
What about electric current? Cell phones? Currency? Weather?
Clients will receive a complete information packet with information about their destination. American Physicians Network will also recommend additional materials for clients who would like more in-depth information about the culture, culinary practices and tourism sites and history of their destination.
Clients in our Escorted tours (group or private executive) will be invited to participate in a wide variety of events and activities designed to highlight unique culture, history, and culinary experiences. Each trip is unique with different musical, tourism and culinary activities.
Do you only work with hospitals and doctors overseas?
Answer: We assist clients with both domestic (USA) and international health travel. We have international clients, and clients on unrestricted budgets that request specific American facilities or physicians and we are happy to arrange for these services. However, due to the nature of the American healthcare system, we are unable to vet these American hospitals and providers in any in-depth fashion.
The majority of our clients select overseas options for both quality of services and cost of service.
How do I pay for my surgery? I don’t have insurance.
Answer: Many of our clients apply for small secure and unsecured loans at their current bank. Since they have an established relationship with these financial institutions, these clients are often able to secure more favorable interest rates, and avoid predatory loan practices (such as payday type loans or high interest rate credit cards.)
APN is currently exploring other financing options for our clients, who may not have collateral or optimal credit ratings.
Other clients are able to secure the necessary funds thru charitable enterprises, such as church bake sales, silent auctions, ‘Go Fund Me’ and other campaigns. Since surgery overseas is generally much more affordable, the majority of clients are able to raise funds using these options. (It is much easier to raise 15,000 dollars than 150,000.)
*American Physicians Network has negotiated this discount for our clients. We receive no monies or financial compensation from any of the companies listed above.