Expatriate health insurance is something that many people tend to overlook. I even did so myself until I had a tragic accident a few months ago that nearly cost me my life. Things that can cost dearly—both to your body AND to your wallet—can come at any time from any thing. For me, it was a simple night at a bar, enjoying a few drinks, that has left me to this day still feeling the repercussions.

While simply sitting at a bar in a city like Shanghai may seem safe enough, it (like many other things in life) can be a recipe for disaster in the making. For me, it was the unchecked broken bottle that fell a moment ago to the floor, the inconspicuous puddle of spilled drinks, and nature’s call that conspired against me. Rising to go to the bathroom I was jostled from behind, lost my footing in the slippery pool, and in my fall my hand found that broken glass from just a moment before. Sliced to the bone through my hand and part of my wrist, my friends rushed me to the hospital where I underwent extensive surgery to stop the bleeding and hopefully return some sort of function to my hand. I was lucky in both accounts, for if I had arrived just a little bit later I could have died from blood loss and if the glass had sliced just a little bit more to the right I would have suffered nerve damage to two of my fingers.

Yet the story doesn’t end there. Because I had no insurance to cover the thousands of dollars in medical expenses I incurred I had to pay everything out of my own pocket. Even though this happened in China where medical care is significantly cheaper with poorer quality service for local citizens than in the U.S., proper coverage for expatriates such as me can be nearly as costly as medical coverage done in America. That one incident cost me all of my savings that I had laid away so far, and even my family had to give me some in order to fully cover the costs. I’ve spent the last few months trying to rebuild my reserves, and so far I’ve only been able to get back a fraction of what I previously had.

I’m not the only one that has found himself in this situation either. Countless travelers both young and old live, work, and/or travel throughout China on a regular basis without proper insurance. Unless an expat is working here under a company that has medical insurance included into their contract (and few young expats such as myself do) then the only choice is to purchase insurance privately. This can actually be done through overseas services around the world that can be quite costly or local agencies that provide coverage to residents and travelers for a reasonable amount.

Needless to say I learned my lesson. Take it from me—insurance is a must for today’s day and age. Don’t get caught off guard overseas and have to pay everything out of your own pocket, because who knows what will happen next? Broken leg? Traffic accident? Catch a strange disease in a foreign land? Ask yourself, will you be prepared for whatever might happen?