Every year, hundreds of thousands of Americans travel to the Dominican Republic for beach vacations in Punta Cana, resort retreats in Puerto Plata, and family visits to Santo Domingo. Most trips go exactly as planned. But some don’t. And when a medical emergency strikes in a foreign country, even one just two hours from Miami, the path home can feel impossibly complicated.
This is what every traveler should know before they take their trip.
For more information on how our missions work, check out our mission stories, see our air ambulance service, or our medical traveling partner service.
What the U.S. Embassy Can Do (And What It Can’t)
This is the question we hear most from families after an emergency in the Dominican Republic: “Can the Embassy help get my loved one home?” They can, in part, and knowing all of the details helps.
The U.S. Embassy in Santo Domingo has an American Citizen Services (ACS) Unit available 24 hours a day at +(809) 567-7775 (press 0 for emergencies). You can also reach them at 1-829-947-6370 or by email at DominicanRepublic.ACS@gdit-gss.com.
What the Embassy can do:
- Provide a vetted list of local hospitals and physicians
- Help contact family members back in the United States on your behalf
- Refer you to air ambulance and medical evacuation providers
- Help you navigate the local system when you don’t know where to turn
- Assist with emergency passport replacement if documents are lost
What the Embassy cannot do:
- Pay for medical care or transport
- Authorize a hospital to release your loved one
- Arrange or operate a medical flight
- Make clinical decisions on your behalf
Consular Agencies Near Popular Tourist Areas
If your emergency is outside Santo Domingo — which is likely, given how many Americans visit the resort corridors — there are consular agencies closer to where you may be:
- Punta Cana: puntacanaconsularagency@state.gov
- Puerto Plata: puertoplataconsularagency@state.gov
- Emergency line for all locations: +(809) 567-7775
These agencies have limited services compared to the full Embassy, but they maintain emergency contacts and can help you connect with the right resources quickly.
The Healthcare Reality in the Dominican Republic
Private hospitals in major tourist areas — particularly around Punta Cana and Santo Domingo — can handle emergency stabilization reasonably well. The U.S. Embassy maintains a list of recommended facilities, including Hospiten Bávaro and Hospital IMG Punta Cana, for visitors in the eastern resort area.
But stabilization is not the same as the level of care many patients need for serious cardiac, neurological, or surgical conditions. Even in quality private facilities, access to subspecialists, advanced imaging, and complex interventional procedures may fall short of what an academic medical center in the U.S. can provide.
That gap — between what’s available locally and what your loved one truly needs — is exactly what air ambulance repatriation is designed to bridge.
The U.S. Embassy itself acknowledges on its website that medical evacuation to the United States can cost well over $50,000, and that travelers without insurance frequently face serious financial and logistical barriers.
Travel Care Air will always tell you the full cost upfront, clearly, before any commitment is made. No hidden fees, no surprises after the mission. If you have travel insurance with medical evacuation coverage, we work directly with your insurer and provide all clinical documentation needed to support your claim. If you don’t have coverage, we can walk you through your options — including payment arrangements — so that cost doesn’t become the reason a loved one doesn’t get home.
For more on navigating coverage and costs, see our guides on financial options for families needing air medical transport and will my health insurance pay for an air ambulance. Purchasing travel insurance with explicit medical evacuation coverage before departure remains the single most important financial protection any American traveler to the Dominican Republic can carry.
How a Dominican Republic-to-U.S. Air Ambulance Actually Works
Here is what the process looks like when a family calls Travel Care Air after a medical emergency in the Dominican Republic:
Step 1 — You call us. It doesn’t matter if you have all the answers yet. Call anyway. U.S./Canada: 1-800-524-7633 | International: +1-715-479-8881. We respond within 15 minutes, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Step 2 — We review the patient’s condition. Our Medical Director conducts a peer-to-peer clinical review with the treating physician at the Dominican hospital. This determines whether transport is appropriate now, what level of crew is needed, and whether any stabilization milestones need to be reached first.
Step 3 — We build the plan. That includes the aircraft, the medical crew matched to your loved one’s specific diagnosis, ground transport on both ends, and confirmation of a receiving hospital in the U.S. that has accepted the patient before we ever leave the ground.
Step 4 — We fly. A critical care flight nurse and paramedic (or physician, depending on the case) travel bedside with the patient for the entire flight. The Dominican Republic is close in distance — most U.S. cities are reachable in under four hours — but the clinical preparation before wheels-up is what determines whether the patient arrives safely.
Step 5 — Handoff at the receiving hospital. Our crew provides a full clinical briefing to the receiving team. The patient moves from a hospital bed in Punta Cana or Santo Domingo to a hospital bed in their home city, with no gap in medical supervision.
We fly to destinations across the United States from the Dominican Republic — whether your family is returning to Florida, New York, Texas, or anywhere in between.
If You’re in This Situation Right Now — Do These Things in Order
- If the patient needs immediate emergency transport locally, call ProMed at 809-412-5555 or the general emergency line 911.
- Call the U.S. Embassy ACS emergency line: +(809) 567-7775. Press 0. Tell them you have a medical emergency involving a U.S. citizen. Available 24/7.
- Ask the hospital for written medical records, like diagnosis, medications, imaging, and lab results. Even in Spanish, our team can work with them.
- Call Travel Care Air: 1-800-524-7633. We begin the clinical and logistics review immediately.
- Contact your travel insurance provider as early as possible. We can provide documentation to support your claim.
- Identify a receiving hospital in the U.S. This can be their regular hospital, a specialist center, or a facility near family. We handle the acceptance coordination if needed.
What Air Ambulance Handles That a Commercial Flight Cannot
The Dominican Republic is close, in fact, it’s just two hours from Miami. Families sometimes wonder if a commercial flight with a wheelchair is sufficient. For many serious conditions, it is not. Here is what an air ambulance provides that a commercial cabin cannot:
- Continuous cardiac monitoring with a clinical crew who can respond immediately to any change
- Oxygen management calibrated to altitude and the patient’s specific needs
- IV medication and infusion pump management throughout the flight
- A full stretcher system and hospital-grade equipment
- Bedside-to-bedside coordination with no gap in care at any transition point
- Medical record translation and clinical handoff to the U.S. receiving team
You can learn more about how we approach international medical coordination in our guide on how we coordinate hospital care worldwide, and understand costs and coverage in our resource on what medical repatriation insurance covers.
Before You Travel: Three Things to Do Now
If you’re heading to the Dominican Republic and haven’t done these yet, take five minutes before your trip:
- Save the U.S. Embassy emergency number in your phone: +(809) 567-7775
- Purchase travel insurance that explicitly includes medical evacuation — verify the coverage amount and that air ambulance transport is included
- Save Travel Care Air’s number: 1-800-524-7633 (U.S./Canada) or +1-715-479-8881 (International)
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the U.S. Embassy arrange my loved one’s medical flight home?
No — but it can refer you to vetted providers and help you navigate the situation. The actual medical transport is arranged by an air ambulance company. Travel Care Air works with Embassy referrals regularly.
How long does it take to arrange a flight from the Dominican Republic?
With good access to the patient’s medical information and a confirmed receiving hospital, many missions can be organized within 24 to 48 hours. The DR’s international airports in Punta Cana (PUJ), Santo Domingo (SDQ), and Santiago (STI) give us solid operational flexibility.
What if my loved one isn’t stable enough to fly yet?
Our Medical Director reviews every case before transport is confirmed. If stabilization milestones need to be met first, we tell you honestly and help you understand what to expect. The timeline is always driven by what’s safest for the patient.
Will insurance cover this?
Coverage depends on your specific policy. Travel Care Air provides full clinical documentation to support insurance claims. We recommend contacting your insurer as early as possible after the emergency occurs.
Can a family member travel with the patient?
In many cases, yes — depending on the aircraft configuration and the patient’s medical needs. This is confirmed during the planning phase.
We Answer the Phone. Every Time.
Travel Care Air has been coordinating international medical repatriations for over 44 years. If someone you love is hospitalized in the Dominican Republic, you don’t need to have all the answers before you call us. That is exactly what we’re here for.
Contact Travel Care Air today for a free consultation. We will walk you through every step.
U.S./Canada: 1-800-524-7633 | International: +1-715-479-8881
Travel Care Air is a fully FAA-licensed air ambulance and medical transport provider, authorized by the Department of Health with special permissions to conduct international air ambulance operations.