suzannegoh

21 minutes ago, phetphet said:

You would have to look at the specs for each model.

e.g. If you look at Apple's webpage for the iPhone 13 specs, they are not the same for all models. Some sold in the US and Chinese markets might have extra wavelengths that they can operate at. mm wave?

But to be honest, I don't think they will make a great deal of difference.

Apple sells a global model which is a phone set up for most markets. They don't need the hassle themselves of making too many difference models of the same phones.

I would imagine Samsung would be the same.

 

See this:

Sub-6 vs mmWave

You may have heard about two types of 5G signal: Sub-6GHz and mmWave. The good news is that for the most part you don't need to consider this too much.

Every 5G phone ships with Sub-6 support, and conveniently this is the most common standard worldwide, including the UK and Europe.

mmWave is a shorter wavelength standard that is capable of higher speeds, but with worse range. For the moment it's only widespread in the US, and as a result it tends to only be US phones that include mmWave chips - Apple supports mmWave in its US iPhone models, for example, but not elsewhere.

If you're in North America then it is worth checking if a phone supports mmWave or not, but even there you shouldn't consider it a dealbreaker. Outside the US, there's really no point considering it at all.

 

So, in other words, you don’t know but I should be able to figure it out with sufficient research.

5 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

No.  I will find out in about a month when I leave LOS.  I did have a Samsung A31(4G) that I bought in Thailand that did not work on the ATT network but did work on the T-Mobile network(the speed was very slow)..  ATT told me their entire network in 2022 will be upgraded to 5G and only 4G or higher phones will work on their networks(Based upon past experience I believe ATT is full of "Bull Droppings") .  I can't prove this but in the US cell phone carriers do not like it when one brings their own phone.  Some have posted that some US Carriers intentionally "throttle" these customers.  As far as I know a 5G phone should work across the spectrum of the 5G network.  I know my A32 is 5G compatible because in some parts of Chiang Mai I am getting 500+Mbps.  My average speed across the entire city is usually 100+Mbps.  My A31 never got speeds like that. 

For 4G (LTE) I’ve had good luck with compatibility between Thailand and the US when using a iPhone purchased directly from Apple’s slave labor camp in China.  With Samsung phones and tablets, not so much.

6 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

I recently purchased the Samsung A32 5G mainly because both Thai and US Cell providers offer this phone as a 5G Device.  So far no complaints.  Unlocked version was 9999 baht at a local phone store.  

Have you used in it both Thailand and the US?  The version of the A32 that Samsung sells in Thailand might not have the same specs as the one that they sell in the US.

There are dozens of different frequency bands that are part of the 5G standard, ranging from 600 MHz to 47 GHz.  Different bands are used In different countries and in many cases within the same country different ISPs will use different bands. 

If someone wanted to buy a phone, either in Thailand or elsewhere, that had maximum compatibility with the 5G frequency bands used in Thailand, the US, and the EU, which phone would be the best choice?
 

5 hours ago, LivingNThailand said:

I don't think there is such a thing as Anti-Aging Medicine.  Aging can't be stopped.  Maybe someone should tell the Cabinet.

Nonetheless, there are numerous private hospitals in Thailand that have Anti-Aging clinics.

17 hours ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

Which ailment would take one year to treat thus needing a one year visa ?

Any number of cancers.

1 minute ago, Vbrnow said:

I would like to recommend Mellow CBD Oil.  Mellow has been clinically tested.  It comes in two flavors: natural and orange.  It is easy to take with scales and numbers provided on the dropper.  The taste is pleasant and easy to handle with no bad after taste.  Plus, the bottle is child proof.  Mellow comes in 30ml at 1,250 Baht per bottle.  Feel free to contact me anytime if you have any question. 

Do you ship to Thailand?

On 10/11/2021 at 10:23 AM, Sheryl said:

It will be a little more than the full retail cost of the drug in Europe, whatever that is.  And it will be less than what you have been paying if getting it from a private hoispital, if that is what you have been doing.

 

I cannot give you an exact amount, but you can price it at pharmacies. I would start by emailing this place, which has an online service

[email protected]

 

Or just visit some large pharmacies in your area (actual pharmacies, not a Boots or Watsons).

 

You could also directly contact the distributor and ask (1) if you can buy say a 1 yerar supply directly from them; (2) if not, at least find out what pharmacies in your area they have supplied to.

 

GlaxoSmithKline (Thailand) Limited
12^th Floor, Wave Place
55 Wireless Road
Lumpini
Patumwan
Bangkok
10330

Tel. + 66 (0) 2659 3000

 

With psychiatrists as with any type of specialist in Thailand you need to choose the doctor  carefully. There are some good, Western-trained ones to be found but they are not the majority and have to be specifically requested by name.  

 

For mood disorders (depression, panic etc) I highly recommend this US-trained doctor

https://www.bumrungrad.com/en/doctors/Suttiporn-Janenawasin

She is worth travelling for, if you are not in Bangkok

Besides being very good, she is extremely nice and kind

Bring all records with you. It is especially important that she know what drugs have been tried in the past.

 

 

 

 

 

It looks like the price at independent pharmacies in Thailand is about 1900 Baht for 30 20mg pills.  That compares to $41 (1365 baht) that I last paid in the US for 90 10mg pills.  That works out to roughly 2X the price per mg, and keeps alive my streak of every medicine that I've ever been prescribed being more in expensive in Thailand than in the US despite pharmaceutical prices in the US supposedly being the highest in the world.

There’s no need for alcohol and girls to be on offer in Thailand, as most farang come here for the culture and the temples.

6 hours ago, Sheryl said:

It is available and sold without pre4scription. However it is going to be extremely costly as the only form available in imported brand name Seroxat. It may also be hard to find, since other drugs in the same class are much more widely used here e.g. sertraline and escitalopram, both of which have locally made generic equivalents.

 

I suggest you contact your doctor and ask if a switch to sertraline or escitalopram is feasible for you.

 

Do yiou know the general magnitude of how costly the Seroxat would be?  Paying a Shrink to experiment with cheaper alternatives could be expensive too.  I've been down that road before at a private hospital in Thailand.  It seem like all the Thai shrink was doing was trying drugs at random (none of them worked; some made me worse) and, between the doctor's fee and the hospital's inflated prices for drugs, that was also very costly. 

Is Paxil (or the generic version, Paroxetine) sold in Thailand?  And if so, is it classified as a controlled medicine (only hence only available from hospital pharmacies) or would I be able to walk into any pharmacy and buy it?

8 hours ago, smedly said:

exactly but it fits the agenda

 

I would rather know the full extent of virus spread in my locality but that is impossible to know because of very limited targeted testing, if Thailand had a testing program like the UK (1 Million per day) I wonder how that would look - they have no interest in knowing

Exactly, what they should be doing is testing people who don't know that they are sick and filling hospital beds with asymptomatic people who test positive. 

58 minutes ago, Henryford said:

I have no choice. We are denied Ivermectin from any reliable source.

Yes and no.  There is also the option of buying the human-approved version from a Thai pharmacy for 1250 baht for twelve 6mg pills.  More than likely that would really be Ivermectin.

11 hours ago, tonray said:

Doubtful it will. They'll be onto the next great super cure that the 'vaccine companies' don't want us to know about...oh brother...maybe Vegemite ?

Future president DeSantis is now pushing Regeneron as being the clear alternative to vaccines and masks.

1 hour ago, fearless1 said:

I bought the cheap Chinese pet Ivermectin off of Lazada. It comes in 5 mg tablets of 100% Ivermectin. 100 tablets for 73 baht. I've been taking it for months with zero side effects. There are no other ingredients or fillers. I would guess it comes off the same assembly line as the human form.

 

Make sure you also take vitamin D and Zinc.

That's good feedback.  How much Vit D and Zinc should be taken in addition Ivermectin, and how many of the 5mg Ivermectin pills do you take per day?

Also, you say no side effects, which is great, but I was wondering if it's safe to drink alcohol when taking it.  I'm sure that it's not recommended to do that, but have you?

8 minutes ago, 1FinickyOne said:

That is not true for everything... I would assume that anything that had to be imported here is surely going to be more expensive...

 

For me: [and many years ago] Omeprazole - Prilosec - $20 for 2 week supply in USA

                                                                              Generic Omeprazole was $2 in a Thai pharmacy... 

I don’t know if my experience is typical or not.   I expect not, because otherwise it would be a often cited downside of retiring in Thailand, and it wouldn't make sense that drug prices are a big political issue in the US.  Perhaps the prices that I paid in Florida were an anomaly, but as I said above, if those drugs were being subsidized by anyone I can't figure out who.

Maybe in Thailand they do less price gouging on more common medicines and or in cases where the expect the patient to be less desperate to get the medication.  But the price differences in the drugs that I mentioned above seem far too large to be explained by import taxes alone.


 

4 hours ago, Airalee said:

I find the exact opposite to what you say and always compare my prescription prices here to Goodrx.com prices.

It seems like someone must have done an organized study of this at some point but I’ve never seen it. 

I’m not sure that the GoodRx prices represent but here are some of my data points, comparing the prices of drugs that I’ve purchased for cash in both Florida and in Thailand and for which I have receipts.  One thing that makes comparisons between the countries difficult is a bit is that in the US healthcare seems to be designed such that no two people ever pay the same amount for the same product or service, and insurance companies often get invoiced a much higher price than what the provider ultimately gets paid.  But these are what a man off the street seems to pay when it’s a straight cash deal.

Keppra:  500mg pills
  2800 Baht for 60 pills from an independent pharmacy in Thailand

  $9.94 for 60 pills at a Publix (Supermarket) pharmacy in Florida
 
Pantoprazole: 40mg pills
  700 Baht for 14 pills from an independent pharmacy in Thailand

  $58.54 for 180 pills at a Publix (Supermarket) pharmacy in Florida

Temozolomide:  180mg pills
  104,000 Baht for 10 pills from a private hospital in Thailand
  $348.46 for 10 pills from a private hospital in Florida

The US is supposedly more expensive than anywhere else, and I never hear farangs complaining about drug prices in Thailand, so I’m not sure how to explain these price differences.  As far as I can tell, the drugs in Florida were not being subsidized by anyone (i.e., I didn’t get them through a charity organization, and neither Medicare nor Medicaid were involved).
 

1 minute ago, gamb00ler said:

My wife takes thyroid hormone that costs $10 for 3 months at Walmart.  Here it's about 260฿ for 100.  The downside is that Thailand only authorizes a few dosages with rather large gaps between them.  For best results she should take 80µ grams daily.  Only 50's and 100's are available here.  We're becoming very competent pill cutters.

I'm not sure how to interpret that because you switched units of measure.  Is "3 months" the same number of pills as "100"?

I wondering if my experience with this is typical.  Over the past few years I’ve been prescribed quite a few medicines and when I’ve compared prices of Thai pharmacies to prices in the US, in every case the Thai prices have been higher, sometimes by a lot.  The most egregious example was a chemo drug that cost about $500 per month in the US but was about 90K Baht per month at a private hospital here.  More commonly, the price for the generic version of the drug will cost about the same at an independent pharmacy as what the name brand version of the drug.  

And if this is the norm is Thailand,  is it the Pharmacies or the drug companies who are reaping the windfall? 

2 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

Just logged in and opened the app on Android.

The problem could be the connection to the internet you are using. A VPN will not work. Some IP's for certain service providers do not work with it. Try turning off wifi and use data.

I finally got the app running on an iPhone and was able to register.  What it’s telling me is that my current status is “Overstay: 119 days”.  That must mean that my last 90-day report (which was submitted in person at the Immigration Office) was not entered into the system.

I’m planning to leave Thailand 3 days after the current 90-day report comes due anyway, so I’m thinking that maybe the way to solve the problem is just to skip submitting the 90-day report.

1 hour ago, ubonjoe said:

Just logged in and opened the app on Android.

The problem could be the connection to the internet you are using. A VPN will not work. Some IP's for certain service providers do not work with it. Try turning off wifi and use data.

Thanks, but there's nothing wrong with my internet connection.

12 minutes ago, Harry Om said:

I asked at a Pharmacy and was quoted the same price, and I've seen the same price mentioned elsewhere. They were out of stock but had it on order.

 

If there's a markup I don't think it's from the Pharmacies. My understanding is that it's only made in Thailand by one small company who makes limited amounts.

Maybe that the price then. 

As for who is marking it up, maybe it's not the pharmacies.  It seems like there is a problem with price rigging of pharmaceuticals in Thailand in general.  The US is known for it's high drug prices but yet I can't think of a single prescription drug that I've ever checked on that is cheaper in Thailand than in the US.