El Salvador Expat Health Insurance
The Republic of El Salvador in Central America faces the Pacific Ocean and borders Guatemala and Honduras. The region was populated by various Native American tribes, such as the Maya, Pipil, Lenca and Cuzcatlan before Spanish conquest in the 16th century. Independence from Spain took place in 1821 following several revolts; the Republic of El Salvador was founded in 1898 following the breakup of the Greater Republic of Central America. Lying close to the equator, El Salvador’s climate is tropical with distinct rainy and dry seasons. Despite its small size, El Salvador’s varied topography includes volcanic mountains, beaches, forests and a host of exotic and unique flora and fauna. With its historic mix of Native American and Spanish influences, El Salvador is culturally rich in cuisine, music and the arts.
El Salvador Healthcare System
Salvadorian overall health is about average by global standards; life expectancy is 68 years for males and 76 for females. Total annual health expenditure per capita is US$427, which is 6.4 percent of GDP (this represents a drop of 1.3 percentage points in spending since 2002). The dollar amount is far below the average in the WHO’s Region of the Americas. Government expenditure makes up 60.43 percent of total healthcare funding. However, there are serious gaps in the delivery of health care in El Salvador. According to WHO estimates, 41.7 percent of Salvadorians have limited access to health care services, and 78 percent lack health insurance – public or private. Most private health care spending (87.93 percent) comes from out of pocket expenditure; however, private El Salvador health insurance is steadily increasing as a percentage of private health spending, from 6.62 percent in 2002, to 12.06 percent in 2009. The Salvadorian health care workforce is quite understaffed by regional standards. There are 16 doctors and 4.1 nurses and midwives per 10,000 inhabitants; compared with 22.5 doctors and 61.5 nurses and midwives on average in the Americas.
According to WHO figures, prevalence of communicable diseases in El Salvador is in line with regional averages. HIV affects 8 of every 1,000 adults, and tuberculosis affects 33 of every 100,000 Salvadorians. The WHO’s Global Alert and Response team has issued several bulletins on outbreaks of dengue and haemorrhagic fever.
Salvadorian utilisation of antenatal, birth and infant care is slightly below Americas regional averages; 84 percent of Salvadorean births are attended by skilled health care personnel (compared with 93 percent in the region). Most deaths in El Salvador come from the non-transmissible chronic diseases associated with affluent societies, such as cancer and cardiac illnesses.
Public health investment has seen gains in access to improved drinking water sources in El Salvador in the past two decades, particularly in rural areas. Currently, about 90 percent of Salvadorians have access to improved drinking water sources; about three fourths of rural inhabitants have access to clean drinking water. Similarly, improvements in sanitation facilities have been made over the past decades in rural areas. Nearly 90 percent of Salvadorians have access to improved facilities, and gains are being made in rural areas. However, few of these facilities would measure up to developed world standards.
The election of a new government in 2009 represents an opportunity for improvement in the provision of public health care; the Ministry of Health has created a series of health care objectives in order to improve equity in the provision of care. The Ministry, in cooperation with the WHO, have created a strategic agenda for 2010 – 11 including a restructuring of El Salvador’s National Health System.
El Salvador has much to offer the tourist, though its tropical environment and risk of natural disaster require advance preparation. The US Centres for Disease Control have issued a series of guidelines to advise potential visitors to El Salvador. First, the CDC recommends visiting a travel health clinic or physician four to six weeks before departure to ensure vaccinations are up to date. Given its tropical environment, parts of El Salvador are at risk for malaria. Wearing long sleeved clothing, sleeping under mosquito nets and using insect repellent with DEET are all suggested against malaria and other insect-borne diseases like dengue fever. Anti-malarial pills may be taken on a preventative basis with a physician’s consent, primaquine is recommended.
Given its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, El Salvador is prone to earthquakes, which can often result in landslides and other serious issues. The most recent serious earthquake occurred in 2005 and caused serious property damage, injuries and fatalities. El Salvador has also suffered from volcanic eruptions and hurricanes, although the latter are rare since the country does not face the Caribbean.
El Salvador Expat Health Insurance
While El Salvador has recently improved its safety and medical care, in an emergency, local health care services will often not be equipped to treat medical issues beyond initial stabilisation. Many such cases will require expensive air evacuation to the US, which as the most expensive health care costs in the world. Even in non-emergency cases costs can run to tens of thousands of US dollars due to medical flights, transportation, surgeries, hospital stays and prescriptions in El Salvador. Expat health insurance plans can cover you for the aforementioned treatment costs, both for private El Salvadorian clinics and for emergency medical evacuation.
Having a reliable international health insurance plan is vital in handling such situations, and Global Health Insurance can help ensure that you and your family have access to quality international care globally and in El Salvador. Expat health insurance policies that Global Health Insurance works with include options to cover maternity, dental, alternative care, specialists and emergency evacuation. Each health care plan can be customised to suit the requirements of you and your loved ones, your colleagues or your tour group. Please contact one of our experienced Global Health Insurance advisors today for further details. Advisors are available 24 hours per day.
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| do you have any insurance plan for Ivf treatment? Like if the first attempt is not successful then is there any plan to cover the next attempt? | |
