Haiti Health Insurance for Expats

International Health Insurance for Expats in Haiti

Expats should secure international health insurance in Haiti for maximum protection and healthcare access. This is because healthcare access in Haiti is extremely problematic with understaffed, poorly-supplied, and crowded facilities with long waiting times.

This Pacific Prime guide on health insurance in Haiti will discuss the country’s healthcare system along with health insurance options to ensure access to quality healthcare for expats, as well as general health and safety tips in the country.

Recommended International Health Insurance Plans for Expatriates Living in Haiti

The Healthcare System in Haiti

Haiti suffers from a declining healthcare system due to a combination of various factors like violence, along with the country’s vulnerability to natural disasters like earthquakes or hurricanes. Because of this, the country’s healthcare accessibility is incredibly inconsistent.

Public hospitals are not only limited in accessibility, but facilities are also short on medical staff and are underequipped. Private hospitals are more difficult to access, and only available to those who can afford them.

Below we will discuss public and private hospitals available in Haiti.

Public Hospitals in Haiti

Haiti’s public healthcare suffers from many challenges such as limited accessibility, staff shortage, and under-equipped facilities. While public hospitals will allow access to basic medical care, these aforementioned issues will make it extremely problematic for expats to seek quality healthcare.

Certain hospitals may also be crowded with long waiting times, delaying expats from accessing treatment. Below is an example of a public hospital in Haiti:

• Saint Joseph Hospital: This hospital, in addition to providing medical assistance, also creates programs catered to Haitian children such as food programs for malnourished children.

Because of the limitations mentioned earlier, expats tend to shy away from public hospitals in favor of their private counterparts.

Private Hospitals in Haiti

While available, private hospitals in Haiti are only available to those who can truly afford the much higher cost in exchange for greater quality treatment. Private hospitals grant greater quality of care along with more multilingual staff.

Even still, depending on where in Haiti you live, you may also have difficulties accessing quality private hospitals, which all goes back to Haiti’s recurring issue of inconsistent healthcare accessibility. Below is an example of a private hospital in Haiti:

• Adventist Hospital of Haiti: This hospital is overseen by a Seventh-day Adventist Church and offers a multitude of areas of medical services such as outpatient care, emergency rooms, physical rehabilitation, and more.

Health Insurance Options for Expats in Haiti

With limited healthcare accessibility in mind, expats will want to secure private health insurance to keep their finances safe in the event of medical emergencies like illnesses or injuries.

Because Haiti lacks a state or government health insurance program, coupled with its already problematic limited healthcare access, private health insurance is a common, preferred option for expats. Below we will discuss health insurance options for expats in Haiti.

Haiti’s Lack of Public Health Insurance System

Haiti lacks a public health insurance system, which plays into the country’s limited access to healthcare. There is also no guarantee of quality in Haiti’s various public facilities due to staff shortages and lack of supply of medical equipment.

Additionally, there is also no guarantee of multilingual medical staff, which means the language barrier could make it extremely difficult for expats to understand and communicate with medical staff in public hospitals. What’s more, hospitals may also be crowded with long waiting times.

Because of the country’s limited access to healthcare as is, coupled with the common drawbacks of public hospitals in the country, private health insurance is generally preferred among expats.

Private Health Insurance in Haiti

Due to the common drawbacks of public hospitals in Haiti, private health insurance is generally preferred among expats. This can be seen in benefits such as free specialist and hospital selections.

Below is a quick rundown of the general benefits of private health insurance for expats in Haiti:

• Free Selection: Private health insurance will allow expats to freely select any specific hospital or doctor as they would like. These specific choices may also include hospitals with shorter waiting times or multilingual staff, which brings us to our next few points.
• Access to Multilingual Medical Staff: Through the free selection feature of private health insurance, expats will be able to choose specific hospitals with multilingual staff, making it much easier for expats to communicate with and understand what the medical staff are saying.
• Access to Hospitals with Shorter Waiting Times: Additionally, the free selection feature also allows expats to freely choose any specific hospital known for offering much shorter waiting times, allowing them to access treatment in a timely manner.
• Additional Benefits as Needed: Private health insurance will also allow expats to freely add any benefits like vision or dental coverage as they need, which would be especially useful for families to ensure maximum coverage and healthcare access, especially in Haiti.

To ensure maximum healthcare access as an expat, especially in a country where healthcare is as limited as Haiti, we strongly recommend that you invest in an international health insurance plan.

Let’s say you live in certain areas of Haiti where limited hospital accessibility is unfortunately common, and assuming your international health insurance plan covers medical evacuation, you can then call for medical evacuation to access better hospitals abroad without paying out of pocket.

Recommended International Health Insurance Plans for Expats in Haiti

Notable international health insurance providers recommended for expats in Haiti include AXA, Cigna, Geoblue, and more. These insurers will allow expats to access quality healthcare as well as different additional benefits.

In the following sections, we will briefly describe each insurer and provide a quick rundown of their general shared benefits.

April International

April International’s health insurance plans are uniquely crafted for expats, offering hospitalization, outpatient services, dental, and maternity coverage. Additionally, they also include user-friendly mobile claims and support, a 24/7 telemedicine service, and a vast direct billing network.

Listed below are key examples of the shared areas of coverage seen throughout their health insurance plans:

AXA

Health insurance plans from AXA Global provide different levels of customizable coverage, granting options for hospitalization, outpatient treatments, emergency care, and medical evacuation. Due to its flexibility, it’s easy to see why AXA’s plans are a favorite among expats.

The following are examples of shared areas coverage included in all of AXA’s various health insurance plans:

Cigna Global

Cigna Global offers comprehensive, customizable health insurance plans, granting expats maximum flexibility thanks to 24/7 customer service ready to assist them whenever and wherever they need. The types of health insurance plans available from Cigna Global are as follows:

• Silver
• Gold
• Platinum

Geoblue

Geoblue’s Xplorer health insurance plan comes in two variations, namely the essential and premier plans. These plans are designed for expats traveling overseas from the United States for business, studying, or just leisure purposes.

Expats can also pick worldwide coverage options with or without the US. The following are some of the common, notable features seen throughout Geoblue’s different health insurance plans:

Factors to Consider When Securing Insurance in Haiti

Expats in Haiti, when securing health insurance, must take crucial factors such as foregoing price-based decisions in favor of comprehensiveness-based decisions and the country’s limited healthcare access into consideration.

The following are key features expats must take into careful consideration when securing adequate health insurance in Haiti:

• Never Decide Based Solely on Price: Always remember that the cheapest plan, while affordable, will not guarantee maximum coverage, leaving gaps in coverage among your unique healthcare needs. Instead, decide with the comprehensiveness of benefits in mind.
• Comprehensiveness Comes First: Decide based on the comprehensiveness of plans. You can start by defining your healthcare priorities and select benefits you’d need such as dental, vision, or maternity coverage. This would be especially useful for families to ensure maximum coverage for all members.
• Haiti’s Poor Healthcare Accessibility: Healthcare accessibility in Haiti is unfortunately extremely limited. To make matters worse, public hospitals are understaffed (which results in long waiting times) and under-supplied.
• Medical Evacuation Coverage: Assuming you happen to live in certain parts of Haiti where healthcare is limited, if your international health insurance plan covers medical evacuation, use this benefit to call for transportation to access better hospitals abroad.

Health and Safety Tips for Expats in Haiti

Expats in Haiti should be mindful of infectious, spreadable diseases such as dengue and cholera as well as safety concerns such as theft or kidnapping. Below are notable Haitian health and safety factors to keep in mind for expats as well as prevention tips.

• Dengue and Cholera: Dengue is transmitted through mosquitoes while cholera is transmitted through contaminated water and food. Dengue’s symptoms include fever, malaise and fatigue, headaches, vomiting, and rashes while cholera’s symptoms include diarrhea, dehydration, and can be fatal if untreated.
  • Prevention: Avoid contaminated food and water as well as pre-made food in favor of freshly made meals. Wear protective clothing to also prevent contact with mosquitoes, keep doors and windows closed, and, if you need to, install a mosquito trap at home to prevent mosquito infestation.
  • Malaria Prevention: While there is no vaccine for the mosquito-borne disease malaria, expats can prevent the disease by bringing antimalarial medicines and taking them accordingly.
• Theft and Kidnapping: Common crimes in Haiti include theft and kidnapping. Specifically, when you’re not aware, someone could steal your belongings (including money or valuables) or take your child.
  • Prevention: Don’t bring your valuables and large sums of cash along. Instead, leave them at home or in your hotel. In addition to not leaving your belongings unattended, be sure to also not leave your children unattended to not leave them vulnerable to kidnappers.

Recommended Vaccines for Expats in Haiti

Beyond staying up to date on their routine vaccines like influenza and COVID-19 vaccines, other additional vaccines are strongly recommended for expats in Haiti. These include Cholera, Hepatitis A and B, Measles, and more.

Listed below are the vaccines recommended for expats in Haiti:

• Hepatitis A and B
• Cholera
• Measles
• Yellow Fever
• Rabies
• Typhoid

For more information on each vaccine’s additional recommendations, please click the link below to the CDC’s guide for further reading:

Haiti - Traveler view | Travelers' Health | CDC

Emergency Numbers for Expats in Haiti

There are numerous emergency numbers expats can use in the event of emergencies. Below are emergency numbers in Haiti expats should know:

• Police: 114
• Fire Department: 115
• Ambulance: 116

Frequently Asked Questions

How is the healthcare system in Haiti?

According to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), only 60% of Haiti’s 8 million residents can access healthcare services. This shows that even with public hospitals available, healthcare accessibility in Haiti is unfortunately extremely limited.

Are hospitals in Haiti good?

Public hospitals in Haiti are poor in quality, as seen in their understaffed facilities (which results in long waiting times) and shortage of medical supplies. While private hospitals are available, they are only available for those who can afford them.

What are some common health issues in Haiti?

Some common health issues in Haiti include cholera and dengue, the former of which is transmitted through contaminated food and water while the latter is transmitted through mosquitoes. Also, watch out for malaria and the Zika virus.

Get a Quote

With the incredibly limited access to healthcare in Haiti, international health insurance is strongly recommended for expats. If your plan covers medical evacuation, you can then access better hospitals overseas to get the treatment you need.

Fortunately, that’s where Pacific Prime comes in. With our brokers garnering over 20 years of experience, we can help you craft an efficient safety net for not only yourself but also your family by helping you select the right health insurance plan to ensure maximum comprehensive coverage.

Contact us today or compare quotes with our online quotation system!