Did you know that Medicare alone does not cover services - even emergencies - outside the United States? The only exception is if you need medical services while in Canada while traveling between Alaska and another state.

What if you have a supplement to Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan? It’s important to get answers before you travel, either outside of Minnesota or abroad, since medical expenses could hit your pocketbook hard if you haven’t planned ahead.

For travel outside of Minnesota but within the United States. Coverage depends on two factors: 1) Does your supplement have a provider network? and 2) Are you being treated for an emergency or a non-emergency? If you have a Basic or Extended Basic medigap policy, or an Advantage Private Fee-for-service Plan, there’s no provider network. Thus, your plan’s benefits will operate the same in any other state as it does in Minnesota.

If your plan has a provider network, as most do, going out of the network may result in very limited or zero benefits, except for a medical emergency. (All Medicare supplements and Advantage plans cover emergency care within the United States if you go outside the network. Benefits will vary. Many have an emergency-room co-pay.)

Some plans’ networks cover certain counties in Minnesota, while others cover many states. If you don’t have one, ask for the list of your plan’s network providers. If you use a non-network provider for non-emergency care, you could be responsible for 100 percent of costs (under an Advantage HMO or Point-of-Service (POS) plan), or you could be responsible for various levels of co-pays (under most other supplements in which Medicare still pays 80 percent of covered services).

Check your plan to see if it offers a travel benefit or an extended absence benefit, so that if you travel or live outside of Minnesota for part of the year, you can activate this option to get in-network benefits while you are away.

For travel outside the United States. Since Medicare doesn’t cover it, make sure your supplement or Advantage plan does. Check to see if coverage is for urgent care or just emergency care. Of the plans available to Minnesotans that do cover emergency care in foreign countries, benefits range from one plan that pays 100 percent of foreign country emergency care to several plans that pay 80 percent of urgent care, to plans that pay 80 percent for emergency care only, to a handful that pay everything except a co-pay to the foreign hospital. If your supplement or Advantage plan doesn’t cover emergency care outside the United States, consider purchasing temporary travel insurance coverage to cover health emergencies. Be sure to read the policy carefully before you buy to be sure it covers just what you need.

Bring along your insurance cards. You will need proof of Medicare and insurance coverage, whether in or outside the United States. In a foreign country, you may have to pay the bill and then send it to your insurance company for reimbursement after you get home. Get an itemized bill from the hospital or doctor at the time you are treated. An itemized bill is different from a receipt; it lists specific services and supplies you received and cost of each, and the name, address and phone number of the facility or physician. The bill doesn’t have to be in English. Health plans are able to translate it - but it must be itemized.

So, before you leave on a trip, add “health insurance preparation” to your to-do list. Call your plan to ask about travel benefits and how much it would pay. If you are looking for a plan that would cover you while you travel, you can get unbiased research by calling the Senior Federation’s Health Plan Information Center Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-noon and 1-3 p.m., at 651/783-5045, or toll free at 1-866/783-5045.