mania

This is a really tough nut I think for most above the age of 65.

For the OP it is almost surprising at 72 a Thai company is even talking to you.

Also tough for many is that even if they don't drink or smoke & are a good weight & exercise that is no guarantee 

of passing any physical required especially a coronary calcium scan. Because even though as I said a person may be a healthy adult many were raised thru the 50's & 60's when diets like the American diet were in reality quite terrible.

I know many including myself who went for the scan just out of curiosity & was surprised at the results.

Not that the scan is really definitive as it does not say really if the calcium is inside or out etc etc (aka: need more testing angiogram etc)

Then that shows a number & suddenly what was an ok cholesterol level is now deemed too high

example 99 LDL oh no we need that under 70 now as your at risk due to recent cac score.....Statins or PSK9 Inhibitor etc etc needed.

Its a really tangled web for retired folks & really I think only nation provided insurance like Medicare or UK NHS etc is there for the retired

Because as many now see getting insured after 65 or remaining insured in a foreign country after 65 is a crap shoot. If they don't purposely price you out of the policy they may find a reason to deny coverage

Yep tough nut

3 hours ago, WDSmart said:

It's as if he is saying, "Fight! Our opponents are evil and need to be conquered. They need to be crushed. Fight! Physically fight them like you did on Jan 6!"

And yet who is it that is actually perpetrating this violence? Which side?

Jan 6th? That was a storm in a teacup compared to what happened in the streets when Trump was elected.

Who was that committing all those crimes on private property? 

Yeah this narrative of being divided is getting really old. This is the same types pulling the SOS when things aren't going their way. Then cry about democratic process yada yada yada 

On 7/13/2024 at 12:25 AM, Jingthing said:

I want to amplify on a point I made before.

 

The problem of Thailand having no path to permanent residence for expats on retirement status.

 

In my opinion, this is a super big deal.

 

If you're moving here with the plan of having some fun for a few years before moving on to somewhere else or back home, not a problem.

 

But if you're looking for a new home, a place to live in for the rest of your life -- BIG PROBLEM.

 

There's something called time and the human condition.

 

People get older and older and inevitably there are health issues.

 

If you've lived in a place for decades as an older person moving country becomes more momentous.

 

So you're settled. You don't want to move at all. 

 

Yet as you get older and older in Thailand, fully settled with no desire to ever leave, you STILL must always be on top of both real and potential visa changes that could potentially uproot with devastating effect.

 

For the rest of your life.

 

If you had chosen a country offering permanent residence or citizenship in the first place, you wouldn't have that burden.

 

People in earlier stages of retirement probably can't imagine the significance of this.

 

But it's very real. 

 

This is why I don't recommend retiring in Thailand or to any other country where you can't get permanent residence.

 

Of course there are strong pros and cons to retiring to any country.

 

But I'm suggesting the lack of a path to residence security SHOULD be a deal killer for many more people than it is (because they lack the imagination of what that really means over time). 

 

IMHO this is the best post in the thread because it is the voice of reason about something that is inescapable for 99.9% of the folks here

Back when my wife & I lived in Chiang Mai I remember being at Immigration doing my yearly renewal & a van pulled up & unloaded 4-5 foreign retirees in wheelchairs. I remember thinking I was not sure I wanted that for my future. Also that in fact these guys were lucky they had someone some retirement home to take them or remind them of these tasks that you will need to do forever just to be allowed to stay.

As JT said it is real & the potential is unlimited for change etc. Most do not think that far ahead.

Look at this video of Secret Service shooting the sniper.

The two of them seem to see the sniper even before he fires (turn on sound)

But once he does fire he seems to also see them as they duck for cover too so I would guess they had a few wizzers

In any case a 148yd shot in both directions

8 hours ago, kingofallasians said:

I'm going for four months, is the price usually $1000 usd?

Well I do not know your age but a mid 60's person who chose not to insure flight would be $270 for four months/123 days of $100k medical coverage & 500k Evac thru their iTravelInsured Travel Lite plan  

If you wanted say $250k medical coverage it would be roughly $600 on their iTravelInsured Travel SE plan

This is to insure US citizen but not while in US & using Thailand as main destination

I always use https://www.imglobal.com/

Good prices & coverage plus you can opt out of trip reimburse which lowers the medical price a lot.

I have never had to make a claim so cannot speak to that but IMG is well known

6 minutes ago, Prubangboy said:

I tossed you the red heart out of sympathy.

Thank you it was really sad to see my wife's mother suffering so badly in the end. I kept asking isn't there anything they can give her & they said no. That was 10 years ago...But last year when our BIL was in final stages as I said he was treated so much better with morphine injections at the local village hospital then allowed to go home.

9 hours ago, Prubangboy said:

I know someone who gets a morphine shot daily here in Chiang Mai.

 

A bit dubious: he's been in the clear for bowel cancer for 7 years -and he has a medical visa.

 

 

Yes my BIL also got morphine in a village hospital in his final stages of liver cancer. He was the cancer victims I saw die with pain killers. It was not as bad for him as my MIL who did not have anything in those years

8 hours ago, CharlieH said:

as long as I am not in pain,

That is kind of a big one isn't it?

I have seen folks die with cancer treated (pain killers etc) & untreated

I would not wish the untreated pain on anyone

So as long as things like morphine are purchasable then yes staying is likely option

If not I can imagine why some joined the flying clubs

1 minute ago, Mike Lister said:

Ouch! I've run into a similar but smaller scale problem several times. The issue seems to be, is what is found, medically relevant and not, is what is found the cause of the patients problems. Conducting a test and finding something, isn't always grounds to take drastic action and doesn't always mean the problem has been found. Similarly, running a test and not finding anything, doesn't mean there isn't a problem.

 

I gave a second opinion doctor a CD containing a very recent MRI to evaluate, despite the CD, he insisted on also doing an xray of the same area and charging far more for it than an X-ray should cost. When I challenged the hospital, they said the x-ray was, "medically necessary".

 

In a hospital bed after my thyroid was removed, I was in pain because of a back problem. The ever so helpful surgeon called a "friend" who specialised in back issues and an MRI was done. An hour later I got the diagnosis, back surgery required, 300k, it could be done the next day, no mention of risk, alternatives etc. Meanwhile the thyroid surgeon hovered and asked several times over two days, was I going to proceed. (I didn't). three weeks later the back problem resolved and has been good ever since.

 

It seems to be loss of face if something isn't found and a diagnosis given, regardless of whether it's the right one or not. If the wrong thing is treated and the original problem persists, it can always be claimed it was, "medically necessary", regardless.

 

It's a mine field out there.

 

Good night! That back operation was a scary thought I bet!

Your right it is a minefield out there. I will also admit that I am sure it often happens elsewhere in the world too.

But yes at the end of the day it is good if we are conscious & have a choice as you & I both did. But that scenario of "what if" that I wondered about always haunts me a bit. Especially now that I am older (67) & would likely have to self insure in Thailand

2 hours ago, susanlea said:

How ignorant can you be? Full time jobs fell by 2.4m over 12 months. Stockmarket goes up and down based on entrepreneurs running companies well and making money. Nothing to do with sleeping politicians.

Excuse the Dem-mentia it is a contagious thing among some diehards even when their country is at the brink. They remain blinkered 

On 6/26/2024 at 9:51 PM, Mike Lister said:

I said I would respond as soon as UOB Bangkok replied to my query:

 

The simple answer is, as long as you have an FET (or equivalent) in your name, dated any time and from any Thai bank, they will transfer the funds overseas once again. All they want to see is proof that the funds originated from overseas in the first place.

Yes that has always been true & I did i fact have enough FET's to support what I was withdrawing but, again it seemed to prove what others told me that if transfer out of Thailand was  kept under 50k USD nothing was not asked for except reason "to put on transfer"

But that aside I always thought it a good idea to get them when transferring in a good amount by any means. After transferred in & within the next month I would go to Bangkok Bank & ask for a copy of that Trans /FET & they never questioned it or charged for the paper.

On 6/24/2024 at 2:43 PM, Mike Lister said:

I've long believed however that a mandatory requirement for health insurance will be imposed at some point, the only questions are when and whether or not existing visa holders will be grandfathered.

I have also thought so for a long time.

It does not even seem outrageous at all for a country the size of Thailand to not be willing to support all who retire there should a medical crisis occur & thus would eventually require medical coverage for anyone getting a long term visa extension

But the problem is many are retirees & many with preexisting conditions so insurance may or may not even be available. I guess one thing they could do is put a full time freeze on your 800k & have you sign an agreement that in an emergency your 800k would be used by the hospital for emergency treatment should you be unable to leave Thailand for treatment in your home country.

About grandfathering in this case of medical insurance I do not think so. They would be shooting themselves in the foot but..... If for instance they raise the visa funds requirement from 800k to 1 million etc then yes that I could see being grandfathered as it has in the past

On 6/18/2024 at 9:13 PM, 4MyEgo said:

Why don't we all rush out and get TIN's

Actually I did years ago

But in my case it made me a profit as I used it to reclaim interest banks were taking out of my savings when interest exceeded 30k a year

They gave it all back which was nice of them 😉 

But I will say it was not easy to initially get the TIN...First I was sent to wrong office where they worked on it for an hour before realizing I needed to go elsewhere 😅 Once there it took another 30minutes or so

16 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

According to him, he was on his way home in his Mitsubishi Pajero when he saw the motorbike rider fall. He attempted to avoid hitting the man but was unable to do so due to the darkness as there were no street lights in the area.

That is really the most insane sentence in the story

He saw him fall but couldn't see him so ran him over? 🙄

I know this is about beer for our Thai homes but........

Just went to Portland Oregon which has a killer Craft beer scene

My goodness they had a beer from Epic Brewery called Big Bad Baptist

It was an incredibly delicious Stout ! There were others but that one really took the cake.

Close 2nd would be Fort George Brewery MATRYOSHKA 2024