spinner2020

49 minutes ago, billd766 said:

Can you put in a link to where you say "they will still cost taxpayers GBP5m a year plus almost another million for security"?

 

 

One of many: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jan/18/the-duke-and-duchess-of-sussex-to-drop-hrh-titles:

“The Metropolitan police spends around £600,000 a year protecting the Sussex family.” Add to that the costs incurred by numerous other security agencies.

As you should have read almost everywhere, they will stop getting money direct from the Sovereign Grant but Charles will pay them 2.5m/yr each out of “his” pocket – but that's public money too, when you think about it - as several other posters have pointed out.

UK could save close to half a billion per year by doing away with the lot of them. I'm happy to suggest lots of ways to do that………..

1 hour ago, GeorgeCross said:

speaking as part of the "country" i wish Harry all the best

 

and my sympathies, i think we've all been taken by a self serving woman at some time or another.

 

 

No way sympathy. I bet you've never paid millions for being taken by a .....etc. Get rid of the lot of them. Even after allegedly going private, they will still cost taxpayers GBP5m a year plus almost another million for security. Waste of money, wastes of space.

If it really does have something to do with AMLO (as the picture suggests), it means they are scared in case you are using your bill (could be a thousand baht or more!) as a washing machine. Like the situation with the Rabbit card where in theory you must show ID to top up, although I never have to. You know: storing B100 on a train ticket marks you out as a mafia kingpin.

14 hours ago, Bullie said:

In the 11 years I lived in Thailand nobody ever asked me where our money came from. Best advice for Thailand: let sleeping dogs lie. Money was sent in installments, sometimes paid in large cash deposits into my wife's bank account, with never a question asked. When asked as to occupation: semi-retired, money coming in from rent overseas. Just put the 400,000 in an account, and leave it there if you want.

All problems solved.

Obviously TV members don't advocate breaking laws, but "sleeping dogs" really does describe this situation because there is no law here or elsewhere that really covers the situation. I've been here much longer than Bullie and have never been asked about anything to do with my income, work (I have never had a Thai job, by the way, or been paid in TH) or other aspects of this case. For IT nomads, the company-formation options are fine (especially since you are EU not UK), you don't ned the complexity of a TH rep office, and (again, as an EU citizen) e-banks such as N26 or Transferwise are perfect for your needs. Come in on a visa-exempt and go to (eg) Savannakhet for a non-O marriage; I've done that for more than ten years without problems.

4 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

Not sure if the OP is trolling for wind-ups here or what his true angle is.  Hopefully the OP is not racist.  The clear answer is that a person marries their partner for life regardless of race, color, creed or nationality...….all else is ridiculous to assume.  With any relationship there are always inherent risks.

OP is most likely confusing (deliberately, perhaps?) Thai women with Thai prostitutes. They are not the same thing, the problem is the outside world thinks they are (which is Thailand's fault). I came here 20-odd years with a valid job and married a local girl (not a bargirl) three years later. I don't think that's in any way remarkable.

On 1/4/2020 at 1:02 PM, Bruce Aussie Chiang Mai said:

Been doing that in South Australia for 10years. Forget your cloth bag buy degadable bags for 10cents each. I wouldn't pay 10cents when easy take your own.

Helpful in emergency.

Bottles and cans 10cents deposit and refundable, they hardly hit the ground before someone picks up.

 

Don't know about SA, but in NSW the 10c deposits are a complete rort. Nowhere gives the deposit back, you end up dumping tinnies or stubbies in the recycling bins, it's simply a blindside 10c price rise. If it's corrupt in AU, what would such a scheme be in LoS?

I use an IGA bag bought in NSW nearly two years ago. Yes, it's spunbond plastic not cloth. No, it hasn't shown any signs of falling apart. And locals have already got used to me using it. I just don't understand why Thai shoppers think the more they spend, the more wrapping they should get with it.

4 hours ago, lopburi3 said:

Many of the hospitals here are subject to the same reviews and operational standards as those elsewhere and suspect that insurance issue was to help prevent fraud (not taking customers word that medication required but asking it be provided by a local hospital which requires a doctors review).

 

Don't be so condescending: the insurer presumably requires to know the meds are genuine, otherwise they could be on the wrong end of a big lawsuit.

But regardless of 'standards', I'll bet the paperwork from the hospital in BKK will be useless in eg AU or UK.

22 hours ago, NancyL said:

The second reason is so that when we travel, we can put the replacement meds we buy from the cheaper, retail pharmacy in the packaging supplied by Bangkok Hospital and have appropriate labeling in case we're stopped at an airport.

Sure, but being new to getting sick, I just assume that a Thai hospital sticker doesn't cut any ice with medical people in developed countries, any more than the pages of op details.

BTW, I was told by my insurer they would pay for first 2 weeks medications, but only if I bought them from the hospital pharmacy (and reclaimed via insurer). I pointed out that they would be paying five times as much but they would not budge.

3 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Virtually no issue with fake or adulteted drugs in Thai pharmacies .  Sole exception being name brand ED drugs and benzos sometimes sold in pharmscies snd even street vendors in toyrist areas. These may be fake especially any benzis as they ate not legal for other than hospital or clinic.

 

No reason to get any medication at a hospital unless it is one of the small number of drugs not allowed over the counter sale. 

 

 

Not worried about fake meds – I use the same pharmacy that has helped us for 20-odd years with hangovers, flu and scraped kids' knees, and (though I know it's tempting fate) I don't think they would cheat us. And of course I would never go for OE rather than generics.

Apart from the eye-watering cost (compared to other countries), what worries me is the 'prescription-only' aspect abroad, because I travel a lot. I have pages of details in English from surgeon and hospital of what they did to me and what they prescribe, but I assume they would be useless overseas, not least because they originate in TH.

Otherwise, the savings on just these two pills per year would pay my fare to Oz to buy them…….

1 minute ago, Sheryl said:

What is the other medication? You mention only atorvastatin.

 

And can you ask your doctor if you can take simvastatin rather than atorvastatin? Older version of same thing and vastly cheaper. In most people will work just as well.

There's also 'clopidogrel', which costs B650 per pack here or AUD7.99 (B170). I'll try to ask about the alternative, thanks!

And small aspirins - cheap and easy enough here, actually - as opposed to AU where they are treated like some kind of major poison. There's just no sense to all this.

I too got some handwriting on my visa in July - turns out to be my wife's name. Certainly made no difference last time I arrived back at Swampy (4 weeks ago).

Maybe this has been raised before, but I couldn't find it, so apologies.

But I have recently been told I have to take a couple of pills once a day for the rest of my life. I'm not used to being ill, but I have already worked out that Thai hospitals are not good places to buy pills cos they are about five times the price of the local pharmacy. Others tell me Thailand is a cheap place for medicines. I also know via TV comments that importing pills is not an option.

Now, though, I find the pills - nothing very exotic - are waaaaay more expensive here than in (eg) Australia. Atorvastatin 40 (30s): B950 here, $5.99 (B125) via local Oz drugstore. Problem is, you need to go to the quack in Oz first to get a scrip...... Same with UK. The paperwork supplied by my surgeon here (in English) won't work overseas, I'm sure.

Can anyone advise whether I am looking in the wrong place? Like is there a cheap online store in Thailand too? What do others do - pay through the nose? Any advice welcome, as I'm looking at a difference of $750 a year in the case of AU just on these two pills...