Posted August 10, 2022 by Christine Elerick, Director, Member Experience
With summertime upon us, many families are gearing up for their annual summer getaways — from lakeside adventures to beachside fun.
Now that your bags are packed, hotel reservations confirmed and the gas tank is filled (or boarding passes printed), you’re all set, right? Wrong. Packing your health coverage should also be on your to-do list before you hit the road (or board the plane). Even when having fun in the sun, the unfortunate can happen.
SummaCare makes it easy to ensure your health coverage travels with you with value-added benefits for most members so you can manage your health care anytime, anywhere — whether you’re traveling 100 miles away or 1,000. Check out 5 benefits to most SummaCare health plans that are essential while traveling this summer.
Travel coverage (Assist America®)
Most SummaCare health plans include a unique global emergency assistance program provided by Assist America®. This program immediately connects you to qualified healthcare providers, hospitals, pharmacies and other services if you experience an emergency while traveling more than 100 miles away from your permanent residence or in another country for up to 90 days.
Find out how to activate services before your trip on summacare.com. Assist America is an added benefit available to SummaCare Medicare and most SummaCare Individual and Family plan members at no extra cost.
Virtual visits
Even on vacation, health concerns can pop up. You may have questions about pesky bug bites that swell, sudden rashes or sinus problems. You might even need a quick check-in for managing a mental health condition.
Members can schedule virtual visits with their primary care providers (PCPs) on their smartphone, tablet or computer. You’ll need to contact your PCP’s office directly to see if virtual visits (telemedicine) are applicable and if a copay would apply.
Most SummaCare members have access to Teladoc® as part of their coverage. Members can speak with a licensed physician by web, phone or mobile app through Teladoc for primary care physician, dermatology and/or behavioral health visits that can be scheduled 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Go to teladoc.com or call 1.800.835.2362 (TTY: 1.855.636.1578) to set up your Teladoc account. Your doctor or the Teladoc provider will give you further instruction.
24-hour nurse line
For non-urgent medical questions that don’t require a PCP appointment, you can contact SummaCare’s Nurse Line. Nurses are available to assist you with questions about an illness or injury, identifying an urgent or emergency symptom, locating a primary care physician, specialist or hospital for care, identifying medication interactions and more.
Members can talk with a registered nurse 24/7/365 at no extra cost for help answering their non-urgent healthcare questions or deciding where to go for care. Call 800.379.5001 (TTY 711) to speak to a registered nurse.
WebMD to keep your fitness level on-the-go
Staying healthy doesn’t take a vacation. That’s why SummaCare members get exclusive access to WebMD’s Health Manager online tool. You can set personal goals, monitor your health progress — even while on vacation — track results, and set personal health and wellness reminders. It’s like having a personal health coach working with you 24/7.
Visit summacare.com/plancentral to login or register then click on the WebMD icon at the bottom of the page.
Plan Central
While vacationing out of state, your health coverage benefits are one login away. Plan Central allows you to manage your health and wellness all from one convenient, online location.
If you need immediate medical attention, Plan Central is perfect for storing your personal health record, as well. A history of your doctor visits, lab results, immunization records, such as COVID-19 vaccine records, and medication history are located in one convenient place.
Visit summacare.com/plancentral to login or register.
Don’t let traveling get in the way of your health. Contact SummaCare to learn more about our health plan benefits that travel with you.
SummaCare is an HMO and HMO-POS plan with a Medicare contract. Enrollment in SummaCare depends on contract renewal.
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