Travel insurance for the UK: why "they have the NHS" does not mean you are covered

The UK's public health service treats visitors for true emergencies, but non-emergency care, prescriptions and anything beyond urgent treatment are billed to foreign visitors in full. Here is what to insure.

A common assumption among US travelers is that the UK's National Health Service (NHS) means "free healthcare for everyone," which leads some to skip travel insurance entirely. That is a costly misunderstanding.

What the NHS actually covers for a US visitor

NHS emergency departments will treat genuine emergencies for anyone regardless of insurance or residency, but non-emergency care — a GP visit for an infection, ongoing treatment, prescriptions — is chargeable to overseas visitors who are not covered by a reciprocal healthcare agreement, and the US has no such agreement with the UK. Medicare provides no coverage in the UK at all, and most US employer plans either exclude the UK or pay out-of-network rates after you have paid the bill yourself.

What a policy should include

$50,000 in medical coverage is typically more than enough for a UK trip given the overall lower cost of care compared to the US private system, but confirm the policy covers both emergency and necessary non-emergency treatment, since some policies only cover true emergencies. Evacuation coverage matters less here than in remote destinations, though it is worth having for repatriation after a serious illness.

Typical cost

A one- to two-week policy for a healthy adult typically runs $20–$45, among the cheaper destinations to insure given the UK's developed, accessible healthcare infrastructure.