Vacation Accident Leaves Couple Financially Devastated

You're finally ready to go on that vacation you've scrimped and saved for - but what if something catastrophic happens? Are you covered for medical care or other losses?

Mary Beth Wenger reports: you might be stunned at what you're not covered for even if you planned ahead. And the balance will come out of your hard-earned savings.

Like many retirees, John and Helen Pierce of Berkshire County loved to travel.

But this past May, just after they crossed the Canadian border from Maine, the Pierces had a catastrophic car accident that changed their lives forever.

"She broke the fifth vertebrae in her neck," said John, describing his wife's injuries. "We had to spend a week and a half in a hospital in St. John, New Brunswick."

John emerged with just scrapes and bruises, but Helen was paralyzed. In a few days, though, they received an even bigger shock: Medicare did not cover them outside the U.S.

"We found it was zero, no coverage whatsoever out of the country," said John.

As soon as Helen was stable, the hospital flew her out -- but the air ambulance cost them $16,0000.

"It had to be paid up-front," said John. "Luckily, I had a credit card with a $20,000-limit."

For now, Helen is convalescing with family in an Atlanta hospital while John tries to shoulder the staggering bills -- which he hasn't even fully tallied yet.

"They're more than my retirement, I can tell you that," said John.

Consequently, the Pierces are looking at selling their Berkshire County home, their retirement home and many of their assets. They were smart enough to get supplemental insurance but that didn't cover everything.

Stephanie Abrams, a host of a syndicated travel radio talk show sponsored in part by the travel insurance industry, says there are all kinds of travel policies available.

"Before you travel, you really need to have insurance," said Abrams. "Even for people that are covered to some degree, they may not be fully covered."

"A lot of people don't want to pay, but I say penny-wise, pound-foolish," Abrams continued. "It'll be four to eight percent of the cost of your trip."

Abrams says if you need transport to the U.S. as the Pierces did, it can be costly: "I've heard numbers of 120,000 to get home from Brazil, 160,000 from Sicily."

But for $295 a year, a family can get on a plan that would let them fly in an air ambulance anywhere they want.

A fundraiser at Cranwell resort in Lenox where Helen once worked raised $19,000 for the Pierces. But as far as insurance goes, John advises: Don't leave home without it.

"I checked to see what my coverage was, but I never checked to see what my coverage wasn't," said John.

(Mary Beth Wenger, CBS 6 Albany)