Have a health condition? You can still get covered, but the clock starts the day you book your trip.
If you manage a health condition (high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, arthritis), you may assume travel insurance won't cover you. The truth is better than that: you have strong options. But they come with timing rules, and missing a deadline can leave your condition uncovered.
Insurers define it broadly: any illness, injury, or condition for which you had symptoms, sought treatment, or took medication during a set “lookback” period before buying your policy. Controlled conditions count too. Well-managed diabetes or high blood pressure is still pre-existing in an insurer's eyes. Each plan defines the exact lookback length in its official plan documents, so check the plan you're buying.
1. Plans that cover pre-existing conditions outright. BCBS Global Solutions travel medical plans cover pre-existing conditions. No waiver, no extra step, no deadline to beat.
2. Plans with a pre-existing condition waiver. HTH TripProtector Classic and Preferred waive the pre-existing condition exclusion if you buy early enough: within 14 days of your initial trip deposit for Classic, or 21 days for Preferred. You must also be medically able to travel when you buy, and the booking must be your first and only booking for that trip and destination. (TripProtector Economy does not offer the waiver.)
Compare plans that cover pre-existing conditions, with or without a waiver.
Get a Medical Quote Compare TripProtector PlansIf you buy after the 14- or 21-day window, the pre-existing exclusion applies to waiver-based plans. You still have options:
Quick answers about pre-existing conditions and travel insurance.
Any illness, injury, or condition for which you had symptoms, sought treatment, or took medication during the plan's lookback period before purchase, including controlled conditions like high blood pressure or diabetes. Each plan defines the exact period in its official plan documents.
Yes. BCBS Global Solutions travel medical plans cover pre-existing conditions with no waiver or purchase deadline required.
On TripProtector Classic, the pre-existing condition exclusion is waived if you buy within 14 days of your initial trip deposit; on Preferred, within 21 days. You must be medically able to travel when you buy, and the booking must be your first and only booking for that trip and destination. Economy does not offer the waiver.
The pre-existing condition exclusion applies. You can still choose a plan that covers pre-existing conditions outright, such as BCBS Global Solutions, or add Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) to TripProtector Preferred, an optional upgrade reimbursing 75% of prepaid trip costs. It is available when purchased within 21 days of your initial deposit and you cancel at least 48 hours before departure.
They count as pre-existing conditions, so the same rules apply: choose a plan that covers them outright, or buy within the waiver window.
Original Medicare generally does not cover medical care outside the U.S. at all, pre-existing or not. See our guide to Medicare and international travel for details.