What happens if we cannot pay the hospital bill ?

[1FinickyOne]

6 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

This is an unusual case for a government hospital.

I went to hospital today, doctor + 2 months meds (175 pills) and the bill was 225bht.

Meds from GH are cheap as chips.

when i was in a private hospital they came for my cc every couple of days... 

 

i dont have any good answers for who should pay for this but i hope they can get this poor fellow back to canada

[brokenbone]

8 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

This is an unusual case for a government hospital.

I went to hospital today, doctor + 2 months meds (175 pills) and the bill was 225bht.

Meds from GH are cheap as chips.

i pay 500 for each anti inflammation injection,

i step down to twice a month cause its said it is toxic to the liver, and i can bear the pain with just twice monthly

[colinneil]

6 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

This is an unusual case for a government hospital.

I went to hospital today, doctor + 2 months meds (175 pills) and the bill was 225bht.

Meds from GH are cheap as chips.

Yes but that was out patient treatment, some meds are damned expensive even in government hospitals.

When i was in, in the 4th month i was given a drip with meds costing approx 5.000 baht per bottle, it was a 3 day course, 1 bottle every 6 hours, and i was told i was being given it only because my bill was covered with insurance, a person on the 30 baht scheme would not be given it, a doctor told me.

[Sheryl]

The private hospitals all wanted money in advance from me.
How did this guy get 600kbht credit?

He is in a GOVERNMENT hospital.

Sent from my SM-J701F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Sheryl]

This is an unusual case for a government hospital.
I went to hospital today, doctor + 2 months meds (175 pills) and the bill was 225bht.
Meds from GH are cheap as chips.

It is not at all unusual for a serious illness requiring prolonged ICU stay.

I have many, many times seen govt hospital bills reach or top 1 million baht. And there are many "go fund me" pages for people struggling to pay 6 or 7 figure govt hospital bills.

They are much less expensive than private hospitals but don't let the cost of routine things lull you into thinking costs will always be affordable. A really srrious illness or catastrophic accident and they will not be.

Sent from my SM-J701F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[bwpage3]

What everyone is overlooking is this is one bill. If he is that sick, what happens when he has to go again and again and again to the hospital?

 

Focusing on one bill is the immediate problem but not an answer to the situation.

 

Hospital visits are a fact of life the older you get. If you cannot pay the first bill, then maybe you shouldn't be here.

[blackcab]

Troll posts have been removed.

[geovalin]

5 hours ago, Sheryl said:

He (or you, on his behalf) needs to speak to the billing dept -- NOT cashier but someone higher up -- and, after paying what he can, negotiate a monthly payment plan for the balance.

 

 

Thank you Sheryl. The "someone higher" agreed the monthly payment, this afternoon. This is a new service in Ramathibodi and their first case of broke patient.

 

Well, when it comes the patient is very old and very sick, the hospital needs a lot of trust in its own doctors to allow such a credit payment (i.e. 50 K x 8 months or even 10 or 12 months)

[from the home of CC]

1 hour ago, Just Weird said:

How would it matter?

it would explain why his family has refused to help...

[ericthai]

My friend couldnt pay his compete bill. He made payment arrangement and he had to give them his passport.  This was awhile ago around 2000-2002

[scubascuba3]

Thank you Sheryl. The "someone higher" agreed the monthly payment, this afternoon. This is a new service in Ramathibodi and their first case of broke patient.
 
Well, when it comes the patient is very old and very sick, the hospital needs a lot of trust in its own doctors to allow such a credit payment (i.e. 50 K x 8 months or even 10 or 12 months)

This is the ideal time to use the 800k in the bank used for extensions. Sounds like he probably has another method

[oxysong]

1 hour ago, geovalin said:

Thank you Sheryl. The "someone higher" agreed the monthly payment, this afternoon. This is a new service in Ramathibodi and their first case of broke patient.

 

Well, when it comes the patient is very old and very sick, the hospital needs a lot of trust in its own doctors to allow such a credit payment (i.e. 50 K x 8 months or even 10 or 12 months)

'very old,'very sick'....too ill to fly then,  probably never will.  Pack him off to one of the care homes there in Chiang Mai ,reasonable enough with cost,maybe his govt. will pick up some of the cost, the clock will stop ticking as soon as he is out of hospital,sort out plan from there

[Sheryl]

1 hour ago, geovalin said:

Thank you Sheryl. The "someone higher" agreed the monthly payment, this afternoon. This is a new service in Ramathibodi and their first case of broke patient.

 

Well, when it comes the patient is very old and very sick, the hospital needs a lot of trust in its own doctors to allow such a credit payment (i.e. 50 K x 8 months or even 10 or 12 months)

 

Well done.

 

He's lucky in his friends if not in other choices.

 

[wisperone]

10 hours ago, geovalin said:

Even with a good pension, he's broke due to bad investments and wrong affective choices.

Too many bar girls? Too much beer? House in wife's name?

 

10 hours ago, geovalin said:

The family will not give any penny.

That says a lot.

[wisperone]

Perhaps he should have invested in some insurance with his nice pension. Now he expects his friends to GoFundHim.

[Olmate]

Interesting to note the hospitals first case of a broke patient! Makes one wonder at the need for insurance based on farangs decamping?

[Letseng]

8 hours ago, Olmate said:

Already explained in the OP, he blew it. Agree no point in part paying, just negotiate a payment plan on his release with his pension money as the means.

He may have blown it but more must be coming in every month.

Since when is Ramathibodi a private hospital?

On the side, folks like this are the reason why we all may need insurance sooner or later or leave.

[Wake Up]

8 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Yeah i agree. I wouldn't be fan of financially supporting someone who pissed it up the wall.

 

 

 

Family not giving money speaks volumes. Also i doubt he has a good pension. Many guys lie about money. Ever met anyone who admits to not having much?

 

“Family not giving money speaks volumes”. Is this personal attack really necessary?

 

Today the internet fools a lot of us with authoritative power —-we sit behind a keyboard and don’t actually talk in person and don’t know the people we are talking about. Easy to be critical and judgmental —just not helpful or considerate. ????

[elektrified]

3 hours ago, BritManToo said:

The private hospitals all wanted money in advance from me.

How did this guy get 600kbht credit?

When my friend had a heart attack on the airplane at Suvarnabhumi Airport while waiting for take off and was taken by ambulance to the closest hospital, they demanded a deposit of 175,000 Baht before they would even take him to the E.R., let alone the CCU. They did provide oxygen and an IV and were monitoring his cardiac functions but that was it. He was able to find someone in America in the middle of the night there who authorized the deposit on their credit card over the telephone. When he was discharged about 4-5 days later after a number of cardiac procedures and 4 days in the CCU, he had a balance due of about 185,000 Baht. He told me he was certain the cashier tripped a silent alarm as soon as he told them he did not have the balance. He said within 90 seconds two guys appeared in the back and the cashier made eye contact with them. Those two guys escorted my friend back to his house in Bangkok in a luxury mini-van, and proceeded to park in front of his house for the next 4 days. My friend said they were very calm, spoke excellent English, and told him not to worry about a thing - just to get rest and take his medicine and take care of himself. Whenever he had the money lined up, for his wife to let them know and they would take him anywhere he needed to go to get it. They told him they would also take him to the follow up appointment with the cardiologist in two days which they did. After about the 4th day my friend had the money lined up and they drove him around to get it. The hospital did not ask for his passport.

[Destiny1990]

I doubt that he will be tortured.

[oxysong]

26 minutes ago, elektrified said:

When my friend had a heart attack on the airplane at Suvarnabhumi Airport while waiting for take off and was taken by ambulance to the closest hospital, they demanded a deposit of 175,000 Baht before they would even take him to the E.R., let alone the CCU. They did provide oxygen and an IV and were monitoring his cardiac functions but that was it. He was able to find someone in America in the middle of the night there who authorized the deposit on their credit card over the telephone. When he was discharged about 4-5 days later after a number of cardiac procedures and 4 days in the CCU, he had a balance due of about 185,000 Baht. He told me he was certain the cashier tripped a silent alarm as soon as he told them he did not have the balance. He said within 90 seconds two guys appeared in the back and the cashier made eye contact with them. Those two guys escorted my friend back to his house in Bangkok in a luxury mini-van, and proceeded to park in front of his house for the next 4 days. My friend said they were very calm, spoke excellent English, and told him not to worry about a thing - just to get rest and take his medicine and take care of himself. Whenever he had the money lined up, for his wife to let them know and they would take him anywhere he needed to go to get it. They told him they would also take him to the follow up appointment with the cardiologist in two days which they did. After about the 4th day my friend had the money lined up and they drove him around to get it. The hospital did not ask for his passport.

A private ,for profit hospital I should think.Some good govt. hospitals close by too ,wonder why a for profit hospital would be first choice?

[elektrified]

5 minutes ago, oxysong said:

A private ,for profit hospital I should think.Some good govt. hospitals close by too ,wonder why a for profit hospital would be first choice?

My friend asked. The Suvarnabhumi Airport has/had a contract with that hospital. Can't recall the name of it. All emergency cases were at the time (about 5 years ago) taken to that hospital due to liability issues.

[oxysong]

10 minutes ago, elektrified said:

My friend asked. The Suvarnabhumi Airport has/had a contract with that hospital. Can't recall the name of it. All emergency cases were at the time (about 5 years ago) taken to that hospital due to liability issues.

Yes, all bases covered,all want their noses in the trough

[chicowoodduck]

And folks wonder why the new law coming in about having health insurance.....pay now or pay later.....lol....????

[Ctkong]

5 hours ago, BritManToo said:

The private hospitals all wanted money in advance from me.

How did this guy get 600kbht credit?

I wondered too. My mum was in ICU at a private hospital for 12 days and after a few days, the hospital accounts department personnel update me nightly upon the costs for the following day and I had to top up the payment before they venture further.  

[Suradit69]

8 hours ago, vinniekintana said:

If he passes away ,stiff them!

If not...cook up some deal

Not to worry, those of us who actually pay our bills and/or have insurance will pick up the difference as hospitals raise charges for all patients  to cover the losses generated by (hopefully) the few.

 

This sort of thing should help to ensure that mandatory health insurance for all will begin sooner rather than later.

 

Of course since it's a farang and he's ill  we're supposed to be sympathetic  and if any Thai suggests there's a need for mandatory health insurance we're all supposed to bash away... but seriously is it any wonder they want people to put Baht 800,000 in the bank so someone is less likely  to "stiff them."

 

And yes you can pull the money out of the bank ... it only means your extension might be cancelled or not renewed and then you'll be free to be

 

13 hours ago, utalkin2me said:

sent back to [Canada] his country which has top notch health care for free.

... assuming you have the airfare and the airline allows you to board while clinging to life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 10, 2019 by Suradit69

[uhuh]

4 hours ago, oxysong said:

A private ,for profit hospital I should think.Some good govt. hospitals close by too ,wonder why a for profit hospital would be first choice?

There is NO good government hospital near Suvannabhumi.

All patients are brought to Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital which also runs a clinic in the airport after hours,  when the AOT clinic is closed. 

Samitivej Srinakarin is good,  but very expensive. 

I knew a guy who refused to go there because he didn't want to get ripped off by one of the most expensive hospitals in Thailand. So he ended up in the nearest government hospital (Ladkrabang Hospital).  This decision cost him his life. 

[oxysong]

5 hours ago, uhuh said:

There is NO good government hospital near Suvannabhumi.

All patients are brought to Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital which also runs a clinic in the airport after hours,  when the AOT clinic is closed. 

Samitivej Srinakarin is good,  but very expensive. 

I knew a guy who refused to go there because he didn't want to get ripped off by one of the most expensive hospitals in Thailand. So he ended up in the nearest government hospital (Ladkrabang Hospital).  This decision cost him his life. 

There was no guarantee whichever hospital he ended up in would have saved his life,an extended stay in the above mentioned would have been sure to have given him another heart attack

 

Ill say its very expensive...42500 baht quote from them,500 baht elsewhere.  Id take my chances actually.   So in essence the guy earlier after 4 days of goons sat outside his house,best part of 400,000,nice chat to cardiologist,and a swig or two from medicine bottle,on his way ,happy and content...yes think Id take my chances ,thanks very much

 

This story fits in well with another for profit hospital. friend visits most famous one  ,told to stay right there,after the inevitable op given a bill of 1 million and a quarter baht.  He knows he was taken,made a mug of,does not say much now,too damned painful by a half

Edited June 10, 2019 by oxysong

[Tomahawk21]

20 hours ago, utalkin2me said:

Why pay any unless you pay it all? 

 

If he had no friends he may get kicked out with no bill and sent back to his country which has top notch health care for free. 

i knew a man the same position but no friend or family here to pay the bill he was dead within 24 hours of the hospital knowing that

[colinneil]

4 minutes ago, Tomahawk21 said:

i knew a man the same position but no friend or family here to pay the bill he was dead within 24 hours of the hospital knowing that

So are you claiming the hospital allowed him to die by stopping treatment, or that they killed him?

I have spent months in hospitals here, had first class treatment, and  think your comment is terrible.