Moving from the United States
Moving from the US
Medicare and Medicaid do not pay for care outside the United States, apart from three narrow Medicare hospital cases. COBRA only continues the employer plan you already had. VA cover abroad is limited to service-connected care. TRICARE can pay. International health insurance is the cover that pays the hospital where you live.
Information only, not insurance, tax, or benefits advice. Official rules and your plan documents take precedence. Checked 4 October 2026.
- Medicaid
Does not pay care outside the United States. Moving can also end state residency.
- Medicare
Does not pay overseas, except three narrow foreign-hospital cases. Part B can keep billing.
- COBRA
Continues the old employer plan, usually for 18 months. It adds no geography the plan did not already have.
- Marketplace and ACA
A Healthcare.gov plan is for people living in the US. The subsidy does not travel with you.
- Travel insurance
A trip policy is not a policy you live on. Check the length, the home-country return, and evacuation.
- VA care
The Foreign Medical Program can pay service-connected care abroad. It is not full health cover.
- TRICARE
Often does pay overseas. For retirees on TRICARE For Life, TRICARE becomes the first payer when Medicare does not.
Common questions
- Does US public health cover work overseas?
- Medicaid does not pay for care outside the United States. Medicare does not either, except three narrow foreign-hospital cases. A US employer plan continued under COBRA only covers what that plan already covered.
- What should I buy before I move?
- International health insurance that pays in the country you are moving to, bought before you fly. A short travel policy is not the same product.