Sheryl

You are correct -- my mistake.

1. Nobody is coming in through land borders these days (not since COVID) and entry requires a COE issued by the MFA and it is during that application process that this paperwork would be reviewed. 2 He needs a medical certificate that specifically states he had COVID, with dates, and has recovered as indicated by negative PCR test(s) (dates). Nobody is going to wade through hospital or other treatment records. He needs a straight, to-the-point medical certificate stating these key things. I am not sure re 3 vs 6 month interval being accepted, should check most recent guidance. One thing to be aware of in coming here having previously had COVID is that it occasionally happens that there is still a small amount of viral material in the body abd hence a small risk of a positive PCR at some point (even though othet PCRs have been negative). PCR does not distinguish between active infection and dead viral particles from an old infection. Might not happen (probably won't) but it could and consequences of a positive PCR after arrival are not good.

There are 2 approaches for him to get free treatment in Pattaya area. 1. Change his house registration (tabian ban) to anywhere in the province - for this he needs someone listed as house master in a registration book in the province who is willing to add his name. Renters can do this but getting landlord's cooperation is sometimes difficult (landlord would have to go with him in person to the ampur office). Or if he is friendly with anyone else in the area who is a homeowner they could add him to their regstration. Once listed in a tabian ban he is eligible for free care at the hospital which serves that location as well as any hospital to which they refer him (which in Chonburi would surely be the Chonburi Cancer hospital). Note however that once he changes his house registration he is no longer eligible for free care in his home province, so need to consider how sure he is of staying in Pattaya area etc. And whether that would hold true if he became seriously ill, unable to work etc. (2) Other approach is to get a letter from Chonburi Cancer hospital stating his diagnosis and that they are able to treat him if his "home hospital" issues a letter of referral. Ideally they should indicate expected duration of treatment so that the referral letter shows enough time (common issue with referral lettets is having too short an expiration). He then takes this to the hospital where he is registered for free care and asks them for a referral. They would have to refer him somewhere anyhow and might agree to refer him to Chonburi once referred care is free. Before pursing either of these options he should call the NHSO (call center 1330) as there was supposed to be a change whereby cancer patients could be treated at any government hospital without needing a letter of referrral. I am not sure of the status of implementation of this change but NHSO can tell him.

Even if he gets the meds free in UK shipping costs will likely exceed cost of buying locally made generic equivalent in Thailand. I suspect he has not priced local generics.

Importing through DHL will be prohibitively expensive and difficult -- if possible at all. Please see pinned topic on this. You will have to get an FDA import license and while a few (very, very few) people have managed to do this, all the cases I know of involved drugs not available in Thailand. It is questionable whether you could do this for a drug that is available here and even if you did, by the time the courier costs ,(inclusive of processing the license application etc) are factored in, cost would likely exceed buying the medication in Thailand. While it is technically illegal to bring in medication by mail without an FDA license, in practice customs usually (not always, but usually) will let through small quantities if sent by regular mail rather than a courier. (Using a courier guarantees problems, delays and demand for FDA license). There is certainly no reason at all to do this for Plavix since there are locally made generic equivalents that can be inexpensively bought at a pharmacy without a prescription. Apolets is one common brand name. For the rest of your medications, please list what they are and I will tell you if there are local brands. In thinking about moving to Thailand, please do not think of the cost of your current medications as the only consideration in terms of health care. Even if you retain a UK address and registration with a GP under NHS, you need to consider how you would pay for medical care in case of emergency hospitalization. With pre-existing heart condition you will not be able to get health insurance so unless you already have a policy that will cover you in Thailand, you will have to self pay. A major accident, stroke, heart attack etc can easily cost 3-5 million baht in a private hospital and 1 million in a government hospital (worst case scenarios i.e. prolonged ICU stay, specialized surgery etc-- but worst case is what you should plan for).

I use Dr. Donna at medconsult asia. Definitely the best price and she knows what she is doing. https://www.medconsultasia.com/ She tends to be conservative in amount, if you like more extensive effect will need to tell her. Also she has a range of brands including many from Korea. Your mileage may vary but for me, they did not work so I had to request actual Botox brand. (which she does have, though costs more than the Korean brands).

No discount for being Thai, but she may not be eligible for some of the policies that you are e.g. expat policies. I assume you know that as a Thai national your wife already has access to free health care through the government systam? Most This do not get private insurance for this reason. You can always pay insurance premiums annually and there is often a savings in doing this vs monthly. Some insurers offer a small premium discount for a second family member, typcially about 10%. Should go through a broker, I reccommed AA. www.aainsure.net

As the original question has been answered and this thread is now veering off into general discussion of COVID (for which we have a whole sub-forum), the thread is closed.

I would try it. You may still regurgitate stomach acide (which will be all the mroe acidiic for nto having food in it.). Also use the pillow when reclining for any reason (i.e. reading, watching videos etc). Regarding weight loss, you do not have to be overweight to benefit from it. Especially for someone with a hiatus hernia, weight loss is very helpful and the only situation where I would nto recommend it is where someone is already underweight. It is simple physics; the more mass you have in your abdominal area, the more upward pressure there is on the stomach.

There is no "word" to be kept as the government never made a definitive commitment to do this. It was announced only as a tentative plan, contingent on things like progress with vaccination, case count etc. Also please note that the details were never announced and it was certainly never suggested (and probably never intended) that there would be no conditionalities and people could just fly into Bangkok and then go on to other parts of the country. indeed the discussion was specific to Bangkok and referred to the existing Sandboxes, so very likely that there will be as required pre-paid Bangkok hotel booking, COVID tests after arrival, etc etc.

I assume you have already tried entering just your ID number and no phone number? Do you know what the incorrect phone numer they provided was? As if so, try registering with that.

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Scotland? Really?

I had similar problems recently despite having previously done it online with no problem. Got to the site, entered the data, but could nto save it, kept get non-specific error message. And I too could nto find a TM30 app to download (did nto realize it might be same as "Section38"). Gave up and did it in person.

You fill out a form. Some imm offices want a photocopy of your passport with it. Some imm offices will take just the passport and no form and do it right into the computer, others insist on the form. It can be done online by computer at this site https://extranet.immigration.go.th/fn90online/online/tm47/TM47Action.do Can also be done by mail The reporting per se is not hard, it is the hassle of keeping track of every 90 day interval, especially for those of us here for years and years.

Not correct, varies with the vaccine. There are several vaccines that need to be given at birth, including: oral polio, BCG and Hepatitis B. The BCG efficacy is not the best and could arguably be dispensed with but the other two are important, most especially Hepatitis B, which is endemic in Thailand. If given promptly at birth (preferrably within 2 hours of delivery) Hep B vaccine can reduce the likeliihood of transmission if them other was a carrier (many Thais are asymptomatic carriers of Hep B). It is the vaccines for diptheria, pertussis and tetanus that do nto start until 6 weeks of age.

No, 0.2% is the percent of fully vaccinated people (in US, so mRNA vaccine) that develop breakthrough infections. Likely just symptomatic breakthrough infections that get diagnosed as asymptomatic infections would usually nto be diagnosed, also some very mild symptomatic cases might slip by. As a percentage of all COVID deaths, fully vaccinated people account from anywhere between 0.5% (UK, June - July 2021) and 8% (US, April - June 2021). https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/articles/deathsinvolvingcovid19byvaccinationstatusengland/deathsoccurringbetween2januaryand2july2021 https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7037e1.htm?s_cid=mm7037e1_w

Correct. And the hospital cannot refuse to issue it if the baby wasn't vaccinated. Parents might chose to vaccinate elsewhere than the hospital, for one thing - they are not obligated to do it at the hospital.

Couldn't agree more, but for some reason people on this forum are often unwilling to use a broker. And then some use poor quality brokers, of which there seem to be many around, and end up getting no after-service once they purchase a policy. I have to differ with your assessment that it is rare for an insurer not to follow the T&C of health insurance policies. Over my years on this board I have seen innumerable cases, from simply not paying a claim and giving no reason, to refusing to pay for ridiculous reasons. The lack of medical knowledge and evident unwillingness to refer cases to a medical professional lead to some truly absurd leaps of logic as to whether a claim reflects a pre-existing condition. This sort of thing seems far from uncommon among certain Thai insurers here. Unfortunately in addition to not wanting to use a broker, many people shy away from appealing to the OIC.

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Having worked in countries with low levels of immunization, no I would not. i was however surprised by how quickly mortality rates dropped once immunization programs reached a majority of children. The science behind immunization is quite extensive and solid. No "fairy tales". Quite a lot of fiction being propounded on antivax websites, though.

posts with blatant misinformation have been removed along with replies quoting them

Vaccination does not cause people to shed the virus. Pure myth. COVID vaccines contain either inactivated virus or substances that prompt the body to produce spike proteins (not the virus! just the spikes!) which in turn provokes an immune response.

Breast milk is certainly beneficial but it will not protect a child from vaccine preventable diseases. This supposedly idyllic situation of no immunization and prolonged breastfeeding was the norm in many developing countries and rates of Hepatitis B, measles etc were sky high - along with infant mortality rates - until immunization programs were effected and reached good levels of coverage. Passive immunity (which is what is obtained from the mother before birth & via breast milk) only lasts 3 - 12 months (varies with the disease) even when breast feeding continues. in addition, it is limited to diseases for which the mother has antibodies. Quite likely a mother will lack antibodies to one or more of the vaccine preventable diseases. Hepatitis B vaccination at birth is especially important a sit is endemic in Thailand and easily contacted by children through play etc. And measles immunization is vital as measles can lead to serious complications and even death in a minority of cases.

They have not yet announced the details for the "opening" of Bangkok 1 November (and it is not sure to happen Nov 1, will depend on vaccination levels etc) but it will likely be similar to the Phuket Sandbox scheme i.e. require pre-paid accommodations for 7 days at approved hotels in Bangkok (bit without confinefment to the room, free movement outside), COVID tests, proof of COVID insurance etc. There is no indication the COE will be abolished and indeed it cannot be until the entry requirements dwindle considerably. You are certainly right that this will be a deterrent to tourism but it looks like they will have to find that out for themselves. Also, they may be satisfied to have tourism restart in just small numbers, gradually, at first.