The World's Worst Travel Insurer

International Medical Assistance has a terrible reputation despite being my leading source of business. It often calls over a hundred times per year. Almost every doctor who knows IMA including the colleague who covers when I’m away, refuses its calls because it’s so hard to get paid.

Most travel insurers pay within a month or two. If they don’t, a call to the claims department corrects matters.

IMA never pays within two months. When I call, the claims department assures me that a check will be mailed in the near future or that my invoice never arrived. When I call a week later, I might hear the same explanation.

IMA was in business when I took up hotel doctoring in the 1980s and, for obvious reasons, happy to send patients. It didn’t take long for me to grow annoyed. Payment could take six month and required persistent phone calls. In 1993, with my practice prospering, I began refusing its calls.

In 1998, IMA changed ownership. A representative called to apologize for past difficulties and promise that it would now pay promptly.

But nothing changed. Checks didn’t arrive. I resumed pestering the billing department. By that time hotel doctoring was catching on so I had several competitors. IMA was irritating to deal with, but it provided plenty of business and – eventually – paid.

My frustration tolerance has diminished with age. In 2012 I was considering dropping IMA when a representative called to announce that it was again under new management. Payment would now be made every month directly into my checking account.

Sure enough, in January 2013, December’s payments appeared – minus several visits. Wearily, I picked up the phone. The problem remained when the February payment appeared, also for too little. The March payment was too much but it didn’t even out. April’s payment was also excessive; now I owed them. The May payment again missed several visits. By 2014 IMA had given up bank deposits and was back to sending checks. Slowly. That’s when I realized that IMA is cheap and stupid but probably not dishonest. Delaying payments saves money in the short run, but the P.R. damage far outweighs it. On the other hand, I have no competition for its business in Los Angeles.

D as in "Dog"

A travel insurer sent me to Koreatown, an older area of Los Angeles, home to a mixture of Koreans and Hispanics. It’s a colorful neighborhood, and like all colorful neighborhoods, parking is a chore. I found a spot several blocks away from the apartment.

Travel insurance patients are subletting or visiting friends, so searching the directory near the locked entrance never reveals their name. Phoning her number, I heard a voicemail message. That was not bad news because insurance services pay for no-shows, but I had to make an effort. I phoned the agency to explain. The dispatcher urged me to wait while she tried to contact the client. I waited. After five minutes, a resident entered the building; I followed and knocked on apartment 1D. The lady who answered denied that anyone needed a doctor.

After another ten minutes, I decided I’d done my duty and returned to my car. My phone rang as I arrived.

The client was taking a shower, said the dispatcher. She was now ready to receive me. I recounted my experience at apartment 1D, but 1B turned out to be the correct number. In my defense, during the original call I confirmed that the patient was in 1D as in “dog.” But English was not the first language for both guest and dispatcher.