AirMed Memberships in Asia. Frequently Asked Questions

Here you will find the answers to some of the mostly commonly asked questions about our company, air ambulance services, and AirMed Global evacuation and repatriation memberships.

Q. How is AirMed different from travel insurance?

With AirMed, there are no deductibles, no claims to file, no maximum dollar limits and no out-of-pocket expenses. Also, travel insurance normally covers just one trip, but an annual plan with AirMed covers every trip you take, all year long. AirMed is an important supplement to existing travel insurance in many ways.

Most travel insurance provides transport to “the nearest appropriate facility” and that can be anywhere but back home where you want to be. That means you have no control as to where you will get treated. An AirMed Traveler (or family/personal physicians) can always decide if they want to be transported, and which hospital is best for them—no matter how far away it is.

Let’s say you live in Hong Kong and have a skiing, heart problem or bad virus in Sapporo, Japan. You may be taken to that “nearest appropriate facility” hospital in Tokyo for several weeks. With AirMed, we get you all the way home. An AirMed air ambulance membership will transport you to anywhere, from anywhere, provided it is 300 km from your home.

Q. What’s the catch?

AirMed has built a worldwide reputation for readily helping hospitalized members, not preventing access to service. We approve over 98% of all requests for medevac transports. The other 2% could resolve their problems in much simpler ways. Please read the Terms & Conditions to make sure that you fully understand what you are buying – and then travel with confidence knowing that the best medevac team is a phone call away, just in case you need us.

Q. What does “No Medical Necessity” mean?

It means that, unlike travel insurance or premium credit card plans, AirMed Travellers don’t have to be critically ill or injured to qualify for a medical flight. As long as the hospitalized member meets the medical necessity (opinion of the attending doctor, receiving doctor and AirMed physicians) and that patient will be better off at a different hospital, the member should call to arrange for the air evac.

Q. My travel insurance policy covers air ambulance service, so why would I pay to be an AirMed Traveler member?

First, read the fine print on your travel insurance. Your insurer probably gets you to the “nearest appropriate facility,” and may even pay to fly someone to be with you. But it does not cover hotel, food or other expenses, and you have no control over your medical care or destination. It will cost a great deal of time and money for anyone to be at your side during your recovery; and no travel insurance guarantees you the choice of getting on a medical flight home (or to any hospital), where you can enjoy the comfort and loving support of family and friends.—not to mention your own doctors.

In addition, you may wish to read the fine print carefully because some policies provide medical evacuation consultation only i.e. only the advice and not the actual evacuation service.

Q. I have both travel insurance and AirMed membership. In case where I chose to have AirMed transport me home will my insurer pay for my home hospital expenses?

Travel policies cover only injury and sickness when overseas, so while overseas hospital bills are typically covered (up to a certain limit depending on the type of policy you purchase) , insurers also set aside an allowance for follow-up medical expenses at home hospital (normally 5-10 percent of the overseas hospital expenses limit). Read your policy.

However, most employed persons in Hong Kong and Macau have either company or private health insurance for injury, sickness and home hospitalisation expenses. This will cover them to some extent on home hospital bills.

        In cases where you have AirMed membership and also a travel insurance covering medical evacuation, before AirMed evacuates you, we will negotiate with the insurer an amicable solution your best interest, i.e. part of the insurer’s savings on medical evacuation cost earmarked for your home hospital expenses . This is not dissimilar to a situation where you have more than 1 travel insurance policy, i.e. insurers share the costs. AirMed’s membership is an additional option which allows you to decide the best option available to you.

Q. I’m from Macau but I frequently ski in the Sapporo, Japan. Suppose I have a severe orthopedic injury, and I want to fly to Hong Kong for specialized care. Will AirMed Traveler fly me to Hong Kong rather than to my home Macau?

If you are hospitalized as an inpatient and require the services of a specialty hospital located between 300 km to 3,000 km from home. AirMed will provide air medical transportation to that facility, provided you are unable to travel by commercial means without a medical escort

Q. It’s so cheap; there must be some kind of deductible or co-pay or something, right?

Nope. Not a single claim form to fill out either. There’s just an annual fee, HK$5000 for an individual membership , HK$3800 for a Student Abroad , HK$6500 for a couple and HK$7800 for a family of 5. Soon there will be short term memberships for trips of only 1-30 days.

Q. Why is it important that AirMed International owns its planes?

Because when the chips are down, you want the smartest and most capable air ambulance team on your side--not the one who comes in with the lowest 'bid.'  There's a reason that AirMed International is the fixed-wing air ambulance service for the Mayo Clinic. AirMed teams have flown many medevac missions for the U.S. Armed Forces, and AirMed is one of only 3 approved U.S. Department of Defence carriers. AirMed medical jets are specially designed to be flying emergency rooms, and our pilots, doctors and nurses (not contracted pilots or med teams) have the experience and logistical ability to handle the most complicated situations in high altitude and sea-level missions. Very few people really know how to do that, but we do.

AirMed is committed to the highest quality of care and transportation, so owning our own planes holds us fully accountable to our member's experience.  We are not an air ambulance broker. We're the real deal.

Q. You can’t have aircraft everywhere. What if I am in a location far from an AirMed jet?

When it makes sense, we coordinate with the best international rescue teams in other countries to get a member stabilized and out of a bad situation, while an official AirMed aircraft, doctor and trauma nurse are en route to the location.

      For example, AirMed worked with the Chilean Air Force to rescue an Alabama veterinarian in Antarctica, which was the subject of a National Geographic special. (The vet was treating sled dogs and became ill.) We pride ourselves on superior global logistics, and we do whatever it takes to get a member home as quickly as possible.

      We have bases in multiple cities so it’s safe to say we’ll be there within a few hours. The last thing we want to do is prolong your misery.

Q. Does AirMed fly to every country?

AirMed International professionals are the most experienced, U.S.-based air medical transport and repatriation experts in the world, and they have conducted 17,000+ air medical missions in more than 150 nations on 6 continents. But American civilians and registered aircraft (including ours) are not currently allowed into Iraq, North Korea, or Somalia.

Q. What if I become injured or ill during a trip, but not severely enough to require ambulance transport?

Day or night, including weekends and holidays, AirMed members can call our emergency toll-free number (or call collect from overseas) and consult with an experienced medical professional with the expertise and global network knowledge. If deemed a non emergency medical transport, we’ll help find an experienced doctor so you can recover as quickly as possible.

Q. How ill or injured must I be to be eligible for transport?

You must be hospitalized over 300km from your home and cannot travel by commercial means, such as a commercial airplane, cruise ship or rental car. Attending doctor’s medical opinion will be taken into consideration.

Q. Does this affect my health insurance coverage?

No. No claims are submitted to your health insurer should you require air medical transport because, as an AirMed member, your transport from hospital bed to hospital bed is prepaid. However, hospitalization and related medical expenses are subject to the terms, conditions and exclusions of your health plan.

Q. What about ground ambulance service?

Your AirMed Traveler membership pays for the ambulance from whatever hospital you are in to the AirMed International plane and from the AirMed jet at your destination to the receiving hospital. An AirMed medical doctor and/or nurse will accompany you until you are fully checked in. That is what we mean by “bedside-to-bedside” transport.

Q. May I give an AirMed membership as a gift?

Yes absolutely. An AirMed Traveler membership is a valuable (and potentially lifesaving) gift for newlyweds on a honeymoon, new retirees, students going abroad, or any traveling executive.

Q. Do I have to be in perfect health to qualify for membership?

No. In fact, we do not need any information about your current or past health status on our membership application. However, individuals who are hospitalized at the time of enrollment are not eligible for transport services for that hospitalization. Some restrictions regarding organ transplants are also found in our Terms & Conditions.

Q. My daughter is going on a study abroad program. Can she be an AirMed Traveler?

Yes definitely, and it is a very good idea, because if she becomes seriously ill or injured you will want the best possible care in that country, as well as the option to bring your daughter home. If you have an AirMed family membership for medical transportation service and she is a full-time student aged 19 to 26, your daughter is automatically covered for up to 90 days of study anywhere in the world. 

If her program has her staying longer than 90 days outside Hong Kong or Macau, you may purchase a Student Abroad Plan for emergency medical transportation that covers students through age 26.

Q. How do I request an AirMed transport?

Call our emergency number, day or night, including holidays and weekends. The numbers can be found on your membership card, which we encourage you to keep with you at all times. Hong Kong: 852-3756-3680. From a foreign country, you may call collect +1 205-443-4880. Toll-free in North America, call 800-356-2161.

Q. May I get an AirMed transport if I am not a member?

Absolutely. We do paid air medical transports frequently, providing the same top-level medical care that we offer members. Because of the quality of our aircraft, medical staff, and complicated logistics, AirMed International requires the full fee (normally $20,000–$200,000, depending on medical needs and distance) wired to our bank or charged on a credit card before takeoff. Please call 800-356-2161 or 205-443-4880 to obtain a free quote and make arrangements. You can fill out an air ambulance quote request form as well.

Q. Is there an age limit for membership?

Individual or Family AirMed Traveler membership is available to persons up to age 75.

Q. I am the HR director for my company, and I would like to add the AirMed Traveler program as an attractive recruiting benefit. Do you offer AirMed group discounts?

Definitely. Please call AirMed’s Sales Department at +852 3756 3680 to discuss a cost-effective rate structure. You can also email sales@airmed.com.

Q. What if I am pregnant, or we have a new baby?

For the safety of the mother and unborn child, AirMed Travelers may only be transported until the 27th week of pregnancy (through the second trimester). If farther along, we can help expectant members find the best medical care at the location. Under many circumstances, if the baby is born with complications, we can transport both mother and child (with dad, of course) to the hospital of their choice.

Q. Will AirMed allow the member’s traveling companion accompany the member during the transport? 

If room allows, a traveling companion(s) and one small piece of luggage may accompany the transport patient at no additional costs. Most other air ambulance companies do not have aircraft large enough to offer this.

Q. I am being transferred to my company's overseas office for two years. Is my family eligible for membership?

Definitely, but the rates are different for medical transportation memberships when you live outside Hong Kong or Macau for more than 90 consecutive days. Contact us at any of our telephone numbers for more information.

Hong Kong 852-3756-3680.

From a foreign country, you may call collect +1 205-443-4880.

Toll-free in North America, call 800-356-2161.

www.airmedglobal.com