US Alzheimer's patient: Goodbye Thailand - it was nice knowing you

[donnacha]

7 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

There is actually no direct relationship between the level visa financial requirements and the actual cost of living for a particular individual. The actual costs may be much lower or much higher.
So Thailand is like Monaco now?
Only the rich and famous may enter?

To live in Monaco, as a single person, you would need an income of at least $200K USD per annum.

Thailand requires a one-time bank deposit of $25K, for your own use if you have a medical or other emergency. Not quite the same.

I do not care how frugal you might be in your everyday life, a heart attack in Thailand will still end up costing you between $10K and $15K.

If you end up not needing to spend your $25K, you can withdraw it when you are leaving the country or, if you die, it can be used to ship your body back home, or pay for a funeral or whatever. If you leave a Thai wife behind she can use it to buy a moped for her new boyfriend.

The idea that $25K is an onerous amount to ask retirees to hold in reserve is a perfect example of the bubble of hysteria in which some expats marinate.

Would I prefer it if the government did not require me to do this?

Of course! I have far better uses for that money and I want governments to have as little control over me as possible.

Do I think it to be an unreasonable demand?

No, not when you consider the number of farangs who decided it was okay to freeload on the Thai public health system and not pay any bills. This whole thing is their fault. What else could the Thais have done to protect the resources meant for their own poor.

Any Westerner who seriously thinks that $25K is a lot of money should return to Europe and spend his evening drinking outside Lidl alongside all the other bums.

 

[Thaidream]

11 minutes ago, donnacha said:

Forcing other humans to render services to you without paying for them.

Again- completely  wrong and lacking an understanding of basic morality.  

The Medical Industry states they operate under the Hippocratic oath which means they take an Oath to save lives.

 

They cannot ethically withhold treatment if a person has no money or even if a person may evade  payment.  However, they have done it in the past and will do it in the future unless their is a mechanism to stop it.  Their withholding of treatment is immoral.

 

The moral issue comes in when a person who has the means to pay for a services- does not pay for it.  There is no moral issue if the person does not have the money to pay.

 

Basic morality never changes- it is immutable and has nothing to do with money per se.  Slavery is always wrong.  Premeditated Murder and rape are always wrong.  Withholding of medical care is always wrong.

 

I hope you take the time to study the for profit medical industry and the issues of morality.  You may learn a few things .

[donnacha]

18 minutes ago, Thaidream said:

They cannot ethically withhold treatment if a person has no money or even if a person may evade  payment. 

 

18 minutes ago, Thaidream said:

Slavery is always wrong.

So which is it?

You want some humans to spend their twenties working their asses off  and going hundreds of thousands of dollars into debt to become doctors, so that you can then force them to work for free.

That. Is. Slavery.

If you say "No, I didn't mean that, the doctors should be paid!", okay, who pays them?

Presumably your plans involve the confiscation of someone else's labor in the form of tax, with arrangements to have armed men in uniform seize and imprison anyone who refuses to hand over the fruit of their work.

I have spent my life listening to people like you pretend they are not fascists because they claim to be acting on behalf of "the people" and, yet, all your badly-drawn utopian dreams ever end up doing is enslaving humans.

Let me earn my own money, by the sweat of my brow, and let me use it to honorably pay my own way and pursue my own objectives. That is true morality.

Evil is no less evil for being incoherent. I hope we can all evolve beyond this sad phase in our moral development.

 

Edited May 29, 2019 by donnacha

[Thaidream]

13 minutes ago, donnacha said:

To live in Monaco, as a single person, you would need an income of at least $200K USD per annum.

Thailand requires a one-time bank deposit of $25K, for your own use if you have a medical or other emergency. Not quite the same.

I do not care how frugal you might be in your everyday life, a heart attack in Thailand will still end up costing you between $10K and $15K.

If you end up not needing to spend your $25K, you can withdraw it when you are leaving the country or, if you die, it can be used to ship your body back home, or pay for a funeral or whatever. If you leave a Thai wife behind she can use it to buy a moped for her new boyfriend.

The idea that $25K is an onerous amount to ask retirees to hold in reserve is a perfect example of the bubble of hysteria in which some expats marinate.

Would I prefer it if the government did not require me to do this?

Of course! I have far better uses for that money and I want governments to have as little control over me as possible.

Do I think it to be an unreasonable demand?

No, not when you consider the number of farangs who decided it was okay to freeload on the Thai public health system and not pay any bills. This whole thing is their fault. What else could the Thais have done to protect the resources meant for their own poor.

Any Westerner who seriously thinks that $25K is a lot of money should return to Europe and spend his evening drinking outside Lidl alongside all the other bums

First of all- 25K is not an insignificant amount of money based upon exchange rates and the fact that many people aged 65 and over worked in an era in which wages were low and their average retirement benefit is going to be much less than someone who retired today.  That is why there has been a 'grandfather clause' established when  income levels are  increased.

 

The majority of  expats/retirees are not opposed to the income levels required- they have not been changed.  What most people do not like is the methodology that is employed by Immigration to verify the  requirement is  met.

 

Unfortunately, the 3 Embassies (US/UK/AUS) have refused to work with Thai Imm to work an arrangement so the Embassy letters could be continued.  The other 80 or so Embassies provide it.

 

The 800K in the bank is now required to be there 5 months and then 400K after that permanently- so while the theory of these monies being used for a retiree's monthly expenses- the rules have been hardened and now the retiree who was easily meeting this requirement has to have added income for daily expenses.

 

Then there is the 65K income method- has to be sent via bank transfer to a Thai bank. More expense- more bureaucracy; when many of us just go to an atm and take out what we need.  So much easier to show the Immigration award letters proving the income exists.

 

Some Immigration offices are refusing the combination method or do not know ho to do it. Other Immigration offices have different policies and procures for the income method or money in the bank.

 

It is the inconsistency of the Immigration offices and their understanding of their own regulations that are causing the problems- not the fact that the vast majority have the income.

 

You are again confused on the medical issue.  The majority of losses to the Thai Government have nothing to do with long stayers/retirees. We have and can take care of ourselves. 

 

It is the 2 week tourists; the adventure crowd; those who rent motorcycles and can.t drive them safely or those who go on the bar circuit, can't hold their alcohol and drink drive or get into dangerous situations.

 

As far as Monaco- I have been there twice. A boring and expensive place and not much fun at all.  

 

Remember this- not everything is about you; your experiences or your view of what is happening. Others have a vast experience in living.

[Jingthing]

This has morphed into a weird political debate.

Sent from my Lenovo A7020a48 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Whyamiandwhatamidoinghere]

On 5/28/2019 at 5:10 PM, SheungWan said:

Since the stated care costs are 1/3 in Phillipines, the move seems a reasonable one irrespective of the immigration requirement. PS, is it really $3k a month in Thailand? Seems a lot.

Uh.. She's a farang, of course it is. 

[metisdead]

Some troll posts and replies have been removed. 

[Thaidream]

32 minutes ago, donnacha said:

have spent my life listening to people like you pretend they are not fascists because they claim to be acting on behalf of "the people" and, yet, all your badly-drawn utopian dreams ever end up doing is enslaving humans.

Let me earn my own money, by the sweat of my brow, and let me use it to honorably pay my own way and pursue my own objectives. That is true morality.

What you profess as freedom is only selfishness.  You want to live your life as you want but have no responsibility to the body politic.  Guess what- you will never survive with this attitude because at some point you will most likely have to join the real World.

 

I am rather amazed that you would personally attack me- I thought you might be different and base your argument solely on a professional and educated slant.  You have revealed yourself and what I see is a person who is completely immersed in the impossible selfish dream and all the arrogant, self importance that does with it.   Your morality is actually amoral and I truly feel sorry for you   

 

My message to you was not directed at you as an individual but merely trying to get you to see another side of life.  With your attitude- Hitler would be in power; Slavery would still be legal and women would have never been able to vote.  You would not fight for inequality- fight for any belief or fight for decency and a lack of discrimination.  It would be too much for you to exert yourself to do because it would interrupt you ability to do your own thing or make money. You should do well in Thailand as your attitude is common  here especially among the uneducated.

 

Of course , a doctor should be paid.  However, it is normal for people employed in either a corporate world; self employed or otherwise to pay taxes.  While i do not like how my tax money is spent- especially on ridiculous military adventures- I at least can vote for a change. Apparently this is too much to grasp.

 

I have not asked you to change your life- you can continue to work under the radar- refuse to pay taxes and be as selfish as you want.  It's your life but unfortunately you just blew any credibility you have. 

 

Differences of opinion among adults is common in this life.  However- people of good faith understand how to listen and speak to each other.  I'll leave it at that.  

[chainarong]

On 5/28/2019 at 6:13 PM, RandolphGB said:

They can't / don't want to submit the required deposit for the visa. The logical step then is to leave. Am I missing something?

Equal fairness hasn't been applied and neither has retrospective in the case of the changes in the immigration law, in both cases of fairness and retrospective the junta should have applied the new rules as from the ist of Jan 19 and those in retrospective can use their existing arrangements , people who came out to Thailand in good faith have not received the same good faith in return, their was no consultations with stake holders, a lot of people herein will start to realize that Thailand, isn't such a great place after all, an administration that gives no recourse to a fairer out come, isn't worth supporting.    

[garyk]

Anyone who thinks the 800K rule is to insure medical coverage for emergencies are ignorant.

It is strictly a money grab, been going on over here for decades. The government and the banks, now insurance company's just want part of the pie. Sounds like their new business model is going over fine. 

Same in all countries.

Edited May 29, 2019 by garyk

[Jingthing]

6 minutes ago, garyk said:

Anyone who thinks the 800K rule is to insure medical coverage for emergencies are ignorant.

It is strictly a money grab, been going on over here for decades. The government and the banks, now insurance company's just want part of the pie. Sounds like their new business model is going over fine with the ignorant. 

Same in all countries.

I agree it has never been about medical coverage.

 

2 hours ago, donnacha said:

To live in Monaco, as a single person, you would need an income of at least $200K USD per annum.

Thailand requires a one-time bank deposit of $25K, for your own use if you have a medical or other emergency. Not quite the same.

I do not care how frugal you might be in your everyday life, a heart attack in Thailand will still end up costing you between $10K and $15K.

If you end up not needing to spend your $25K, you can withdraw it when you are leaving the country or, if you die, it can be used to ship your body back home, or pay for a funeral or whatever. If you leave a Thai wife behind she can use it to buy a moped for her new boyfriend.

The idea that $25K is an onerous amount to ask retirees to hold in reserve is a perfect example of the bubble of hysteria in which some expats marinate.

Would I prefer it if the government did not require me to do this?

Of course! I have far better uses for that money and I want governments to have as little control over me as possible.

Do I think it to be an unreasonable demand?

No, not when you consider the number of farangs who decided it was okay to freeload on the Thai public health system and not pay any bills. This whole thing is their fault. What else could the Thais have done to protect the resources meant for their own poor.

Any Westerner who seriously thinks that $25K is a lot of money should return to Europe and spend his evening drinking outside Lidl alongside all the other bums.

 

You are making stuff up. The financial requirements are the financial requirements. You're pushing an agenda that is not based on any evidence -- that the reason there were ever (and still are) financial requirements for O-A visas and retirement extensions was based solely on medical costs and potential medical costs.

[rexall]

8 hours ago, donnacha said:

"Force" was her choice of word. It figures prominently in her statements. The impression is clearly intended. The whole thrust of her publicity drive is that the entire family is being compelled, against their wishes, to leave Thailand due to unreasonable retirement requirements.

She was clearly aware that the expat community in Thailand would be highly receptive to this characterization. She is quite clever but, apart from expressing her anger, I do not see that she have much to gain from this. If anything, her anger endangers her and her husband's own retirement visas.
 

I suppose we would have to ask her what she meant by "forced." However, I can't imagine anyone being so rigid in their thinking that they would take it literally when--as you yourself point out--it is obviously not the case. It is a common figure of speech that people use all the time as shorthand to avoid the lengthier: We ran out of options. There were no easy solutions. We didn't have any good choices, etc.

[rexall]

8 hours ago, donnacha said:

Do you seriously not understand, after all these posts, that they were paying for special residential care for Alzheimer's?

That does not cover you for ANY of the hundreds of other things that can go wrong in a septuagenarian body. If you have a heart attack, the hospital does not give you a free surgeon on the basis that you are already paying for bed and board somewhere else.

<snip>

 

So, in the event of a medical emergency, the family stops paying the care facility and starts paying the hospital the B85K monthly. What's the big woof???   

However, you are partially correct, and it is a sad irony, even B800K is probably not going to be enough to pay for a catastrophic incident that requires lengthy treatment.  And any of the health plans you can get in Thailand will be insufficient unless you opt for a gov hospital.

[patrick1968]

Good luck wish you well 

[rexall]

5 hours ago, SheungWan said:

Probably because the money didn't come in as monthly 65,000 baht equivalent from abroad. That's a general ruling, yes?

Then where did the money come from, the tooth faerie? ????

[rexall]

4 hours ago, Thaidream said:

 <snip>

As you can see- my idea is everyone can buy into insurance after they arrive in Thailand.  I am not an actuary and not privy to exact numbers in Thailand but simple Math shows there would be a huge pool of money and probably enough to put the Thai Government Health System in the black as opposed to its current deficit.

 

 <snip>

 

 

They could even charge the greasy infidels a predatory surcharge to join national health care.  That wouldn't be fair, but I would not be opposed to it. In fact, I would be happy to pay. Depending on your age, it would be better than paying BOOOPA B70k-B80K per year for almost useless coverage. 

[gk10002000]

15 hours ago, cardinalblue said:

Kasane

 

Do you wish to support your claim that usa doesn’t want to care for her? if she did the proper paper work and qualifies, why wouldn’t she be in the system?

 

my friends who complain about many things but one thing they don’t complain about is US Medicare coverage, As long as you follow their rules and willing to fork out the small amount of money for supplemental part B.....

 

most complainers are due to being non compliant with the regulations...

The USA Medicare will cover illness, injury, etc.  However long term care for Alzheimer's patients is in general NOT covered by Medicare. 

[gk10002000]

They were able to and were paying monthly well in excess of the 65,000 baht that would be needed to qualify for extension by the income method.  Why they keep saying they had to do the cash 800,000 deposit method seems strange.  Why couldn't they just switch to the income method as was suggested on some other posts?  Even if the money went into the daughter's name/account, couldn't the daughter then claim her Mom as a dependent?  

 

  It is interesting that the Philippines is allegedly significantly cheaper for long term care.  Here in the USA, there are many many Filipinas that work as live in support/ care givers in many senior citizens.  I have known several, and my buddy's Filipina wife worked as a day care giver for peanuts here in California

[4MyEgo]

23 hours ago, donnacha said:

According to her own words in the main thread on this story, she is merely flying over to put her mum into a Manila care home that costs a third of what the Chiang Mai one did, and then flying back to Thailand.

She and her husband will continue to live in Thailand:
 

So, saying they have been "forced out" but actually staying in Thailand for now, with a vague threat that they may leave at some point in the future.

This is a tragic situation for any family, but I am not sure that dumping mum in the cheapest care home in the world and then jetting back to Thailand really qualifies her for a Daughter of the Year award.

Certainly, it is ungracious to blame Thailand for finally enforcing a fairly reasonable law - designed to prevent Thailand getting stuck with medical care and end-of-life costs of the elderly from rich countries - that they were previously circumventing (with embassy letters as proof of income instead of a bank deposit).

They could actually continue circumventing the bank deposit requirement by paying an agent $600 per year to pay off the right people, not a huge amount in return for keeping your mother in the same country as you, but this clearly has more to do with saving nearly $2,000 per month on care costs.

That is a tough decision for any family, and the sudden enforcing of the income rules has caused problems for many who were circumventing them. That has no doubt contributed to the hysteria around this story, but let's stop pretending that their mother has been "forced out" by the Thais.

 

You hit the nail on the head.

 

The best scenario would have been paying an agent to pay off the right people, it's alive and thriving once again now that Big Joke has been removed, so I am told by a few mates who had their backs against the wall.

 

No doubt her mums needs special care, leaving her in the Philippines is heartless in my opinion, unless she has other family members there to visit and attend to things she may require from time to time and of course to keep an eye on the facility & staff from time to time. I say this as I my mum (84) is in an aged care facility back in Aus, my adult daughter visits her when she can/Monthly, I speak to her once a week/fortnight as she has Dementia, Diabetes requiring 3 injections per day, is blind in one eye and 90% deaf, I also visit her once a year and take her out, sometimes plans don't work out, e.g. we built her flat her in Thailand attached to our house 10 years ago, but as the Dr's said 4 years ago when we were moving here, forget it, your heart's in the right place, but with her Dementia advancing, it will get worse and the last thing you want is her going walkabouts at night when everybody is asleep in a place that is remote and she doesn't speak the lingo, she needs special care and then found and placed her into the facility, she's happy, were not, but life is a bitch at times, although she says she's happy and has company, that's the main thing. 

[timewilltell]

On 5/29/2019 at 6:51 AM, donnacha said:

According to her own words in the main thread on this story, she is merely flying over to put her mum into a Manila care home that costs a third of what the Chiang Mai one did, and then flying back to Thailand.

She and her husband will continue to live in Thailand:
 

So, saying they have been "forced out" but actually staying in Thailand for now, with a vague threat that they may leave at some point in the future.

This is a tragic situation for any family, but I am not sure that dumping mum in the cheapest care home in the world and then jetting back to Thailand really qualifies her for a Daughter of the Year award.

Certainly, it is ungracious to blame Thailand for finally enforcing a fairly reasonable law - designed to prevent Thailand getting stuck with medical care and end-of-life costs of the elderly from rich countries - that they were previously circumventing (with embassy letters as proof of income instead of a bank deposit).

They could actually continue circumventing the bank deposit requirement by paying an agent $600 per year to pay off the right people, not a huge amount in return for keeping your mother in the same country as you, but this clearly has more to do with saving nearly $2,000 per month on care costs.

That is a tough decision for any family, and the sudden enforcing of the income rules has caused problems for many who were circumventing them. That has no doubt contributed to the hysteria around this story, but let's stop pretending that their mother has been "forced out" by the Thais.

 

Maybe you should stop promulgating the lie that the new immigration requirements were designed to prevent Thailand getting stuck with medical care and end-of-life costs of the elderly from rich countries. Thailand gives foreigners little more than the opportunity to look at what nature provided the country and certainly does not fork out for medical care for years at the end of the lives of people from rich countries. It is taking society not a giving one.

 

I am fine with you agreeing with the new laws to dump out the old and the sick who are paying for themselves to live here and who have made the terrible life choice of upping sticks to spend their money here. I am fine that you are happy to revel in the misfortune of others and expose yourself for your true colors. But you really should not make allegations as to the fact that they have been circumventing anything unless you know for sure. You should take off your white hood, put down the rope and disassociate yourself from the clan of holier than thou ignorants that relish the difficulties of others and stick to facts you know - which in this case is not very much by the looks of it. 

[fleur3]

On 5/28/2019 at 11:22 AM, Kasane said:

The patient needs to be on Medicaid. She paid all her life for Medicare, now that she is ill US don't want to care for its citizen who is now terminally ill. Reminds me of unscrupulous insurance companies who drop coverage when the patient really needs them. 

not quite right. medicare would  pay if she is living in the us. Same in many countries. Out of the country is out of the medical insurance. And no payment more for the medical insurance .

[suzannegoh]

not quite right. medicare would  pay if she is living in the us. Same in many countries. Out of the country is out of the medical insurance. And no payment more for the medical insurance .

If Medicare pays for longterm care in nursing homes in the US that's a new development. Do you have a source for that info? AFAIK only Medicaid would pay for it, and only then if you have no savings to pay for it yourself.

[thaibeachlovers]

On ‎5‎/‎30‎/‎2019 at 1:02 PM, timewilltell said:

It is taking society not a giving one.

 

I am fine with you agreeing with the new laws to dump out the old and the sick who are paying for themselves to live here and who have made the terrible life choice of upping sticks to spend their money here.

Everyone that CHOOSES ( and that's every farang ) to live in Thailand knows exactly what the society is there, so that's not significant in the OP's case.

 

Did the Thai authorities decide "to dump out the old and the sick who are paying for themselves to live here"? None of us can say.

IMO that wasn't a consideration when making the changes.

Most of us live in Thailand as visitors on a yearly extension, not as residents with rights to anything, other than to pay for everything we want.

 

Besides, who thinks everything will stay the same, forever?

[simon43]

I'm amazed at how many posters suggest paying a visa agent to circumvent the financial requirements.  'Circumvent' mean break the law, and some of us were brought up not to break the law, regardless of the circumstances. 

 

For some of us, breaking the law to achieve the goal is not an option.

[Jingthing]

On ‎5‎/‎30‎/‎2019 at 3:21 PM, suzannegoh said:

On ‎5‎/‎30‎/‎2019 at 2:56 PM, fleur3 said:

not quite right. medicare would  pay if she is living in the us. Same in many countries. Out of the country is out of the medical insurance. And no payment more for the medical insurance .

If Medicare pays for longterm care in nursing homes in the US that's a new development. Do you have a source for that info? AFAIK only Medicaid would pay for it, and only then if you have no savings to pay for it yourself.

They do not. 

[sherwood]

Good luck to the dear old girl and family, all the best luv and I hope you remember the good times.

[BadSpottedDog]

On 5/28/2019 at 4:22 PM, Kasane said:

The patient needs to be on Medicaid. She paid all her life for Medicare, now that she is ill US don't want to care for its citizen who is now terminally ill. Reminds me of unscrupulous insurance companies who drop coverage when the patient really needs them. 

Medicare does not pay for long term care, and unless you earn less than $600 per month through social security, you don't qualify for medicaid. 
Even if she did qualify for medicaid paid long term care, I wouldn't put my worst enemy in those places. Horrid.

[BadSpottedDog]

On 5/28/2019 at 5:10 PM, SheungWan said:

Since the stated care costs are 1/3 in Phillipines, the move seems a reasonable one irrespective of the immigration requirement. PS, is it really $3k a month in Thailand? Seems a lot.

Yes. $3000 is the cost in Chiang Mai, which is expensive, but doable. However, along with the 800k (400k must be kept in the bank year round now, in order to eliminate agents loaning money), or the 65k per month from a foreign source ... it's over the top difficult and impossible.

[BadSpottedDog]

On 5/28/2019 at 5:30 PM, DogNo1 said:

Good on you Deanna!  I hope that my daughter will be as caring as you if I develop Alzheimer’s.  BTW, decent care for stroke or Alzheimer’s patients is really not available under Medicaid in the USA.  You must pay more than Medicaid will reimburse a nursing home to get really decent care.  I imagine that Deanna checked that out as an option early on in her mother’s Alzheimer’s and rejected it.  I hope that she will keep us posted.  Knowing how the PI care works out will be of interest to me.

 

 

 

 

 

While Mom didn't qualify for medicaid coverage in the states, but even if she did, we checked out medicaid facilities, and I wouldn't put my worst enemy in any of them. ????

[BadSpottedDog]

On 5/29/2019 at 6:51 AM, donnacha said:

According to her own words in the main thread on this story, she is merely flying over to put her mum into a Manila care home that costs a third of what the Chiang Mai one did, and then flying back to Thailand.

She and her husband will continue to live in Thailand:
 

So, saying they have been "forced out" but actually staying in Thailand for now, with a vague threat that they may leave at some point in the future.

This is a tragic situation for any family, but I am not sure that dumping mum in the cheapest care home in the world and then jetting back to Thailand really qualifies her for a Daughter of the Year award.

Certainly, it is ungracious to blame Thailand for finally enforcing a fairly reasonable law - designed to prevent Thailand getting stuck with medical care and end-of-life costs of the elderly from rich countries - that they were previously circumventing (with embassy letters as proof of income instead of a bank deposit).

They could actually continue circumventing the bank deposit requirement by paying an agent $600 per year to pay off the right people, not a huge amount in return for keeping your mother in the same country as you, but this clearly has more to do with saving nearly $2,000 per month on care costs.

That is a tough decision for any family, and the sudden enforcing of the income rules has caused problems for many who were circumventing them. That has no doubt contributed to the hysteria around this story, but let's stop pretending that their mother has been "forced out" by the Thais.

 

FYI: The facility that Mom is in actually provides a better trained staff than the one in Thailand. We did NOT pick the cheapest one at all. We picked based on her needs.
A serious issue with this whole situation, is that the govt would NOT count the 85,000 baht we were paying as her income! We weren't paying an agent to "fix" anything, because it's just not how we roll and we discovered that the new rules are designed to eliminate the use of agents anyway. Immigration now wants that 800k for 3 months prior to renewal PLUS 400k year round in the bank, OR 65k per month from a FOREIGN source into HER account. Not ours. All these changes on top of what we were paying! 

Just so you know .. the flight to where Mom is, takes the SAME amount of time it took for me to get to Chiang Mai from where we live. Mom does not even remember me, so my visits are more for MY peace of mind than hers. 

Our deepest concern is the instability with the rule changes. All Alzheimer's patients decline. As they decline, it becomes increasingly difficult to change their environment or move them.
It was best all the way round that she was moved now before it becomes even more difficult.
as this article was reported by a third party, I don't think all of the details were explained thoroughly.
She is happy and well cared for ... that's all that matters. I just feel sorry for the people who can afford care, but don't have family to help them navigate these changes.

Edited June 5, 2019 by BadSpottedDog