Cuba Health Travel Insurance Question

By Circles Robinson

HAVANA TIMES, March 10 — Cuban authorities have created uncertainty in the tourism market due to a new regulation announced earlier this week that all visitors must have a travel health insurance policy approved by or purchased from the Cuban government.

As several Havana Times readers commented on the post “Cuba Imposes Health Insurance on Visitors” it makes complete sense that people traveling to the island have coverage that guarantees Cuba’s ability to treat them at a fair cost and maintain its free health system for locals.

Havana Times has consulted several people in the travel industry who speculate that the price for such a policy to be sold by Cuba as of May 1st will range from 7 Euros (US $10) for a month to 5 Euros (US $7) per day.

With Cuba promoting tourism as one of its top cash revenue sources —over 2.4 million people visited the island in 2009— it makes sense for the authorities to clarify the situation ASAP.

People considering a trip to Cuba need to know if their insurance company is on the list of approved firms and, if not, what it will cost for to buy the Cuban policy and what exactly it covers.