smartraveller.gov.au - Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
It's a must see destination.
It's a must see destination.
Staying in good health while travelling can help to ensure your trip overseas is a happy and enjoyable one. This brochure provides health information and travel tips to help you prepare for a safe and healthy journey.
Organising comprehensive travel insurance before you depart should be an essential part of your holiday preparations and can save you the worry of unexpected medical costs.
Regardless of how healthy and fit you are - if you cannot afford travel insurance, you cannot afford to travel.
When organising your insurance, fully disclose any pre-existing medical conditions in writing. If the insurance company refuses to cover your pre-existing medical condition, be sure to take out insurance to cover other health and travel-related issues, not related to your pre-existing condition. In cases where full coverage is not provided, travellers should consider the potential financial risks very carefully before deciding whether to proceed with the planned travel overseas.
It’s a good idea to shop around when choosing an insurance policy and to make sure the cover provided is adequate for your needs and covers you for the whole time you will be away. You should check the small print of your insurance policy very carefully to see if any exclusions might apply and that your policy includes cover for emergency treatment, hospitalisation and repatriation to Australia if necessary.
Cruise passengers are strongly encouraged to take out travel insurance appropriate to their circumstances. Although Medicare benefits are payable between two Australian ports they are not payable for journeys between an Australian port and a foreign port or between two foreign ports.
If you plan on participating in adventure tourism or sports like scuba diving, parasailing or skiing, be up-front about your plans with your insurance provider and ensure your policy covers these activities.
If you are planning to rely on the travel insurance provided by your credit card, you should, before travelling, obtain written confirmation of what exactly the insurance covers, the period of time you will be covered for and what conditions are attached. You should also inquire as to who actually provides the cover, as some credit card providers provide the insurance through a third party. Also ensure that you have the correct contact details and policy numbers for the third party insurer. Don’t assume your application has been accepted and processed or that just by having a credit card you are entitled to immediate coverage when you leave the country. You don’t want to find out once you are in trouble that your travel insurance does not cover everything you thought it would, or that your insurance was not activated.
CASE STUDY: A young man worked in a US ski resort for four months, then took time off to travel around the US. He permitted his 12-month travel insurance policy to expire just a few days before his departure for home. He was hit by a car while crossing a road and suffered serious head injuries. He was admitted unconscious to intensive care and required highly intensive sophisticated care until he was able to be flown back to Australia. He was still unconscious and returned on a stretcher. The cost to the family for the medical evacuation alone was $80,000. They have taken out a second mortgage on their house to raise the funds.
Don't base your decision to take out insurance on the assumption that 'it won’t happen to me'. Accidents do happen. Medical standards differ from country to country. Hospitalisation, medical evacuations, or even the return of a deceased person's remains to Australia, can be very expensive.
Be aware when organising your insurance that uninsured travellers (or their families) are held personally liable for covering any medical and associated costs they incur. Overseas medical costs are not covered by Medicare. Some families have been bankrupted, forced to sell off assets such as homes, or cash out superannuation to bring loved ones back to Australia for treatment.
If you extend your stay overseas, make sure you contact your insurer in time to extend your cover.
For further information, the Insurance Council of Australia and the Financial Ombudsman Service have issued guides on travel insurance for travellers (pdf). They cover the main issues to look for when selecting travel insurance to ensure you are appropriately and adequately covered. The Australian Securities and Investment Commission website also lists a number of useful tips.
Before you go overseas, you need to consider your health and health related matters.
Seek professional advice at least 6-8 weeks before travelling. For those going to live or work overseas you need to seek advice 6 months before you go. For those leaving at short notice, it is never too late to seek advice.
For travellers with pre-existing medical conditions, you should have a check-up with your treating doctor and dentist, and have the condition(s) stabilised and as well-managed as possible. Supplies of routine medications should be obtained, and for complex medical conditions, a management plan developed with the treating doctors, and a letter of authority for medications to be carried and used overseas (see note below on carrying medicines overseas).
Travel health specialists focus on providing up-to-date individualised advice about health risks. Many common health issues affecting Australian travellers are due to avoidable causes.
Reducing the risk of motor vehicle accidents, eating and drinking safely, avoiding insects and animals, practicing safe-sex, avoiding blood and body-fluid transmitted diseases are all important areas for discussion. Such information helps travellers reduce the risks of accidents and other health hazards that may ruin the trip.
People with pre-existing illness, those with immune-system problems or those taking a variety of medications, babies, children, pregnant travellers, and elderly persons may have increased health risks that need to be managed more carefully. People who have migrated to Australia, and their children, and are travelling back to another country to visit friends and relatives, (known as "VFR" travellers), are especially vulnerable to health hazards and need specialised advice.
To get travel health advice, update your routine vaccinations and get the appropriate and relevant travel vaccines, seek an appointment with a doctor familiar with travel health at least 6-8 weeks before you depart. Not all GPs are skilled in this area, which is why expert travel health services are available. In particular, for travellers with complex medical problems, or undertaking longer and more exotic or specialised travel, travel medicine specialists are most useful. They can also provide special travellers' medical kits.
For some travel, immunisation is not compulsory, but for all travellers, being up-to-date with your routine vaccinations remains important, and for most travel, whether in developed or developing countries, there are a range of vaccine-preventable diseases which should be considered. For example, hepatitis A is a common food and water-borne disease that is easy to get, but very easily prevented by vaccine. Risk for other diseases will depend on the purpose, nature, season, duration and destination of travel and your own behaviour.
Malaria is a disease spread by mosquito bites in infected areas, and no vaccination is available. Specific medications may be required for prevention. Travel medicine experts can provide specific advice.
While vaccines can prevent you from contracting some diseases, it is important to remember:
To find out more about healthy travel, vaccinations and health alerts visit:
World Health Organization - www.who.int/ith/en/index.html
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US Government) - www.cdc.gov/travel/defauly/aspx
Immunise Australia Program (Australian Government) - www.immunise.health.gov.au
Before leaving home, you should check that your medications are legal in the countries you are visiting and/or transiting. You can do this by contacting the country’s mission (embassy, high commission or consulate).
Since the National Health Act was amended in 1999, it has been an offence to carry or post Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) medicines overseas unless they are for your personal use, or the use of someone travelling with you.
Only Australian residents living in Australia at the time a PBS prescription is dispensed are entitled to receive PBS-subsidised medication and there are restrictions on the amount of PBS medicine that can be carried or sent overseas.
When planning to travel overseas with PBS medicine, including over-the-counter or private prescription medications, it is important that you:
If you have to inject your medication, it may be preferable to carry your own needles and syringes but you should check with the mission of the country you are visiting to make sure this is acceptable. If you need to carry needles and syringes with you on the plane, inform your airline before you travel and, if necessary, arrange a letter from your doctor explaining why you need to carry them.
If you buy needles and syringes while overseas, ensure you buy packs that are sealed and sterile.
It is important to be aware that some medicines that are readily available in Australia may not be available overseas, or if they are available they may be packaged under a different brand name. Keep an eye on the strength of the active ingredients of similar sounding medications overseas – they can vary.
Do not try to save luggage space by combining medications into one container. Keep all medications in the original, labelled container to avoid problems at customs.
More information on travelling with medicines is available from Medicare Australia’s website or by phoning the Travelling with PBS medicine enquiry line on 1800 500 147.
CASE STUDY: Josef and Louise prepared well. They took out travel insurance, left copies of their documents and their itinerary with their family and took separate copies of their passport details with them. They were organised - and excited. When they arrived at the airport in Vienna Josef was so excited that his pulse was racing. Louise managed to get the luggage and Josef into a taxi and to the right hotel. From there she rang the Australian embassy, which provided her with a list of English-speaking doctors. Before Louise made an appointment with the doctor, she noticed the hotel pharmacy displaying a packet of medication with the same name as the medication that Josef had taken previously. Buying the packet of medication was a near fatal error. Louise didn't know that the medication was twice as strong as the Australian product. Josef's heart attack that night (although minor) meant the cancellation of their trip of a lifetime.
TIP: Always check the strength of a medication with a doctor. Don't buy off-the-shelf medication even if an Australian doctor has prescribed it, as strengths may vary from country to country.
If you have a disability and are planning to travel overseas, the first thing to remember is that Australia's arrangements for people with disabilities are among the best in the world. As it is unlikely that you will find similar facilities in many countries overseas, it is important to plan ahead.
Australia has health care agreements with some countries including Finland, the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
These agreements enable Australians to access urgent or emergency treatment overseas. However, general medical services are only provided when the need for treatment arises and it would be unreasonable to delay treatment until the individual's return to Australia.
It is important to remember that:
If you wish to be treated under the relevant reciprocal health care agreement, you must advise the medical staff in the country you are visiting. To prove you are eligible for treatment, you will need to provide the local authorities with:
Further information about international health agreements can also be found by calling 132 011.
If relevant, you must notify the Department of Veteran’s Affairs (DVA) of your intention to travel overseas before you leave and get detailed information about your entitlements and your responsibilities. Further information is available at the DVA website or by contacting DVA on 133 254.
While the DVA Gold Card can be used anywhere in Australia it cannot be used overseas for all conditions. There is no guarantee that Gold Card holders will be covered for all health care overseas.
Yellow fever
Insurance companies
Companies who offer travel insurance often have in place a 24-hour assistance call centre that you can call from anywhere in the world. If you get sick overseas or are involved in a medical emergency, you should contact your travel insurance provider as soon as possible. Ensure that you don’t leave Australia without the correct procedures and contact numbers for contacting your insurer from overseas.
The Australian Government will do what it can to help Australians in difficulties overseas. However, Australians need to appreciate that when they go abroad they leave behind Australia's support systems, emergency service capabilities and medical facilities. There are legal and practical limits to what consular officers can do for travellers overseas and Australians need to have realistic expectations.
A directory of Australian overseas posts and Canadian posts that assist Australians appear in Travel Smart: Hints for Australian Travellers booklet. This booklet is issued with your passport.
Australians overseas in need of counselling services can contact our Consular Emergency Centre (CEC) on +61 2 6261 3305 who can transfer you to a Lifeline Telephone Counsellor.
The 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre (CEC) in Canberra can also be contacted for assistance from anywhere in the world on +61 2 6261 3305 or 1300 555 135 (local call cost within Australia).
The Consular Services Charter available to order or read online on smartraveller.gov.au sets out the standard of service all Australians can expect to receive from consular staff.
While every care has been taken in preparing this brochure, neither the Australian Government nor its agents or employees, including any member of Australia's diplomatic and consular staff abroad, can accept liability for any injury, loss or damage arising in respect of any statement contained herein.
Consular Policy Branch
Department of Foreign Affairs
and Trade
R. G. Casey Building
John McEwen Crescent
BARTON ACT 0221
Tel (02) 6261 3305; 1300 555 135
Information for travellers and travel advisories are available from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s smartraveller website: smartraveller.gov.au.
November 2008
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