But if you assume its prevalence means your travel insurance policy will definitely include it, and you won't be charged more for the privilege, you're wrong.
Financial comparison website Canstar recently reviewed 106 travel insurance policies and found 18 per cent of them didn't offer coverage for COVID.
Of the 87 policies that did include COVID, only 70 offered cover for both overseas medical and cancellation costs. Policies that did include COVID were on average $103 more expensive than those without it.
A survey conducted by comparison site Finder in November showed 56 per cent of Australians - equivalent to almost 12 million people - .
Forty per cent of respondents said their reason for not taking out travel insurance was that it was too expensive.
Canstar's travel insurance expert Steve Mickenbecker said that given COVID-19 still poses a serious health risk, paying the extra money was worth it for "peace of mind".
"You shouldn't leave home without good overseas medical cover, and that goes for COVID," he said.
"In the scheme of what you're paying for your flights, your accommodation, your tours, all the spending, $100 more isn't a lot."
What about reciprocal healthcare agreements?
If you get sick overseas, you may be able to get subsidised or free medical treatment through a reciprocal health care agreement.
Australia has agreements with 11 countries:
The federal government's Smartraveller website warns the agreements typically only apply for emergency medical care through the respective nation's public health system, and what is covered by one country may not be covered by another.
If there are any out-of-pocket costs, they will have to be paid by you, or if you have travel insurance, your provider.
If you travel to a country Australia doesn't have a reciprocal healthcare agreement with, none of your medical costs will be covered and a hospital may not even treat you unless you pay upfront.
Mickenbecker said even if you're only planning on visiting a country that Australia has an agreement with, it's not worth taking the risk.
"Never skimp on the overseas medical cover because the cost can be so high that it will leave us financially scarred, as well as unwell," he said.
As for how to make sure you've got the right travel insurance for your circumstances, Mickenbecker advises carefully checking what each policy will and won't cover, and what any excess may be should you need to lodge a claim.
"There are some standard exclusions, but there are also some that apply to some policies and not others so you really have to look at all those things," he said.
