A Minnesota man’s all-expenses-paid dream vacation turned into a financial disaster after he caught the flu aboard a Norwegian cruise—and was left with a staggering $47,000 medical bill.
Mike Cameron and his girlfriend, Tamra Masterman, had won a free weeklong Caribbean cruise, setting sail from Miami on January 5. But what was supposed to be a relaxing getaway quickly spiraled into a nightmare when Cameron fell ill.
Seeking treatment at the onboard medical center, Cameron recovered within three days, believing he was covered under the cruise line’s insurance policy. Instead, he was blindsided at the end of the trip with a bill that could financially ruin him.
“To turn around the day we are leaving and get handed a $47,000 bill, I just didn’t even know what to do,” Cameron told Fox 9.
Adding insult to injury, Cameron says that while he was receiving treatment, Norwegian’s medical staff repeatedly reassured him that he was covered. “Everyone in the medical ward kept saying, ‘Don’t worry, you have $20,000 coverage, you’ll be just fine,’” he recalled.
But when it came time to pay up, the cruise line didn’t hesitate to max out two of his credit cards and demand an additional $21,000—money Cameron simply doesn’t have.
Now, the couple is facing an impossible situation, with Cameron fearing he could lose everything. “You start thinking, ‘Are you going to lose your house, are you going to lose your cars?’” Masterman said.
Cameron had taken precautions, purchasing travel insurance from the cruise line itself, which was supposed to cover up to $20,000 in medical expenses. But now, he’s caught in a bureaucratic battle, as neither his health insurance nor the cruise’s travel insurance wants to foot the remaining bill.
“The traveler’s insurance doesn’t want to pay it until we run it by our health insurance. The health insurance doesn’t want to pay it because it’s abroad,” Masterman explained.
The cruise line, meanwhile, is refusing to budge. Norwegian Cruises sent Cameron a letter defending its astronomical medical pricing, calling it “closely comparable to other cruise lines” and “fair and reasonable.”
Cameron’s story is a cautionary tale for travelers who assume that cruise-provided insurance will protect them. As more major corporations take advantage of consumers, stories like this highlight the dangers of relying on big business to do the right thing.
Meanwhile, Cameron is left wondering how he’ll ever recover from the financial blow. “I don’t know how I’m ever going to pay them off. I’m going to have to, but I don’t know how,” he said.
As Norwegian rakes in billions from vacationers each year, one has to ask—how is it “fair and reasonable” to financially devastate a guest over three days of flu treatment? This isn’t about covering medical costs; it’s about corporate greed.
