Comprehensive travel insurance coverage in Europe for a suspected undiagnosed illness ?

For context, I am 19 years old and a US citizen living in the US. I am not very familiar with health insurance so forgive me if these are stupid questions.

I have recently become convinced that I have a serious illness, although I have not yet been diagnosed.

I had plans to imminently travel to Europe to stay with one of my close friends who lives there, however this recent development obviously complicates this possibility.

As I am on terrible terms with both of my parents and would not want them to know about any medical care/diagnosis that I sought out, but since I am on their (low quality) insurance policy it is my understanding that they would by notified of any treatment that I receive.

Neither of them would be willing to contribute to my medical expenses, which I fear might be prohibitive here in the US (especially given my experience with my family insurance plan).

I have looked into getting my own policy but from what I gather I am outside of the enrollment window and would not be able to do it until next year. **If this is not the case/there is a way to get around this I would be very interested**

I have heard that medical treatment is substantially cheaper in Europe (the country I am going to has that reputation) and I have reasonably high savings, although likely not enough to cover the complete expenses out of pocket (which I want to do everything in my power to avoid anyways).

Ideally, if I will need to undergo substantial treatment, I would want to be with my friend abroad.

See also  Does COBRA coverage terminate immediately after joining new employer's insurance or can it still be used until the end of the month?

For these reasons I have been looking into getting Travel Medical Insurance, but feel uncertain about whether it will actually help.

Particularly:

**It has been unclear to me whether a policy exists that would cover these types of medical expenses or, even if there is, if I would be disqualified for a pre-existing condition (and also, whether seeking a diagnosis before my departure date would change anything).**

**It is further unclear to me about whether my parents would be notified on my current insurance plan even if I sought treatment abroad under travel medical insurance coverage and if there is a way to avoid this happening (this is the less important consideration by far). **

**I would want to get the most comprehensive plan possible to try to front load the costs, even if it turns out to be unnecessary, but I am unsure about what I should be looking for exactly. I would hope to be covered for diagnosis, medication and surgery if necessary. Is this even possible?**

I am not really interested in whether this is prudent but rather, whether if it is possible.

submitted by /u/questrillionaire
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