At Last Medipac’s Travel Insurance Lines are Quiet.
Inadequate flu protection got the better of the 2014-15 travel insurance season, making our emergency assistance lines busier than ever. Only 16 percent of North America's inhabitants were protected from viruses that belatedly mutated right when the flu shots were updated. Many of our staff and snowbird clients battled with persistent and difficult-to-shake-off flu for several days.
Flu causes viral pneumonia, a major threat to the immune system, and several of our clients took a trip to the hospital to get rid of it. Doctors and clinics were busy from years on end because the virus spread easily through towns and cities and was quick to contaminate. No one knows for sure if Obamacare regulations have anything to do with it but doctors appear to be filling emergency rooms to the brim after briefly examining their patients.
Talking about the dollar decline is not easy. It came as a surprise when from $110 per barrel, oil dropped to $45. Not to mention, an NDP provincial government was elected in conservative Alberta. Cost of living during the winter season increased by 20 percent, so everyone paid more for food, rent, gasoline, clothing and rest and recreation. We worked hard to ensure travel insurance rates remained low this past year and were optimistic about the Canadian dollar. However, things did not work out as hoped and the oil issue could be responsible. Still, the answer may not be as simple as it seems.
At best, given the inevitability of price increase for travel insurance, we ought to carefully plan out our trips this travel season. The first quarter of this year was our high claims period and we reached a peak of $1.28, averaging more than $1.24 Canadian dollar for U.S.- dollar medical bills. Dollar hedges have given us a little boost but with the new season at hand, we will strive to come up with a competent pricing model.
Spring went well and now a wonderful summer season is here. Get out there and have fun!