for release August 31, 2001
The Sandwich Generation . . . Helping Your Aging Parents
by Carol Abaya, M.A.
Are you juggling doing errands for your aging parents, your children, yourself and working at the same time? Are you tired, stressed out and upset that your once vibrant parent is now frail and needy?
Do you feel alone? Rest assured you are not alone! The Sandwich Generation is dedicated to the 50 million Americans who may have elder/parent care concerns and/or responsibilities.
TRAVEL INSURANCE IS WORTHWHILE
Question: My husband and I are in our late 70s, and want to take a cruise. The travel agent is pressuring us to buy insurance that cost several hundred dollars. We have Medicare. Why do we need anything else?
Answer: There are various kinds of travel and trip cancellation insurance which cover many possible events. You might have prepaid, but get sick and can't make the trip at all. Your plane may be delayed, you miss the connecting flight and might even miss the ship. Or the trip itself may be canceled at the last minute because the tour or ship company has financial problems. You might get sick while traveling and need medical care. In such situations, you'll get a refund with insurance.
A friend of mine got very sick in China. He had to be airlifted to a hospital in Hong Kong, and a month later flown back to the U.S. His daughter had to fly to China, then Hong Kong, and stay in a hotel.
While they maxed out several credit cards (medical bills alone were $40,000+), they were reimbursed by the insurance he had.
Medicare does not pay for care outside the U.S.A. And if you belong to a Medicare HMO, it may not pay for Medicare care outside the local plan area. HMOs are required by federal law to pay for emergency care. Again it is limited to the U.S.
So, paying a few hundred dollars to protect several thousand should be carefully evaluated. Needless to say, you need to be clear on what is covered and what is specifically excluded.
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Question: My mother, 66, has recently learned that she has an elderly aunt and cousins in South Africa. She wants to go visit them. I hear it's dangerous there and am trying to discourage her. I need ammunition.
Answer: A very interesting question, Last year I spent five weeks traveling
throughout the Republic of South Africa. I had an awesome - and very safe
- time. I traveled
alone -- not with a large group -- and never had a problem.
South Africa is a beautiful, modern and clean country. The roads are much better there than in NYC or even where I live. You can eat food wherever you go and drink water from the faucet in 99% of the country.
The scenery is incredible. The garden route, along the southern coast, is awash with flowers in April and October.
There are air conditioned marbled shopping malls with internationally named products - Gucci , Fendi, Estee Lauder as well as local goods. The people, wherever you go, are very friendly. Awesome natural caves and game reserves are nature's paradises. Sun City is an incredible resort - with activities for the whole family, two world class golf courses, a casino, and theater.
Every country and large city has areas that tourists should avoid.. It would be pretty silly to say tourists shouldn't visit New York because a few areas are unsafe.
So, plan well beforehand, do practice basic safety behavior, and
enjoy!
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Do you have a question? Send it in. Although letters cannot be answered individually, appropriate letters will be answered in this column whenever possible. Letters may be edited. Send letters to Ms. Carol Abaya, c/o Name\Address of YOUR newspaper (or mail direct to her at PO Box 132,Wickatunk, NJ 07765-0132) or e-mail her at SandwchGen@aol.com.
Carol Abaya is an international-award-winning journalist and creator of the unique magazine The Sandwich Generation: You & Your Aging Parents.
NOTES TO EDITORS: text = 480 words; other material = 160 words
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©2001 by Globe Syndicate, all rights reserved.