As a diver, you face risks that nondivers needn’t worry about. These include lung overexpansion injuries and decompression sickness (DCS). Treatment for these injuries usually involves the use of a recompression chamber.
If you need such treatment, will your health insurance cover it? They often don’t. If they do, they may not cover related expenses such as air ambulance evacuation. If you are not covered, you could face tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills. You may even be denied treatment due to your inability to pay.
You won’t have to worry about these things if you have dive accident insurance through Divers Alert Network (DAN). DAN insurance covers what your regular health insurance may not. It provides peace of mind knowing that a diving accident won’t bankrupt you and that you can get the treatment you need when you need it.
However, your DAN membership and insurance do more than just pay for treatment. It helps fund DAN’s many research and education programs. It also helps pay for DAN’s 24-hour emergency medical hotline.
If you think you may be suffering from DCS or another diving malady, you can call the hotline and speak directly with a diving physician. The doctor will help you assess the situation and recommend a course of action.
If the injury is severe enough to require EMS, DAN should be your next call after dialing 911. Remember that most ER physician are unfamiliar with treating diving injuries. The hotline allows ER doctors to talk directly to a fellow physician who can help guide them through unfamiliar territory.
Another thing DAN does is provide dive centers, instructors and dive sites with affordable professional liability insurance. Without this, we’d be unable to operate.
You can sign up for DAN membership and insurance online at DAN.org. It’s not only affordable but something you can’t afford to be without.