HEALTH INSURANCE

[Neocon]

On ‎8‎/‎23‎/‎2019 at 4:50 PM, Cucuy said:

Well Bangkok hospital where I live has accepted my OCONUS TRICARE for several years since I’ve been retired here I’ve never had a single problem with it at all. Would you like me to find the link for oconus TRICARE and send it to you? I can but I’d have to google it because I have not needed to login to my TRICARE for years man. But they always accept it every time no problem. I’m retired military im assuming that you are as well? Am I right? And yes they will direct bill TRICARE but you have to sign up for oconus TRICARE. Does that help?

 

On ‎8‎/‎23‎/‎2019 at 5:00 PM, Pib said:

No need for the link....I've been using Tricare for decades.  Yes, I'm retired military.  There is no list of Thailand hospitals which accept Tricare on the Tricare website.  The JUSMAGTHAI Tricare Office put out a list one time of hospitals that would accept Tricare but it was a limited list of 10 or so hospitals. 

 

Since Bangkok Hospital is in central Bangkok I expect it was on the list.   Do they direct bill "out-patient" care also?  Repeat, out-patient care?

 

 

 

The JUSMAG TRICARE office hasn’t published a local list since 2010.  They explain it on their webpage:  http://www.jusmagthai.com/medical.html#UpFront.

[Neocon]

On ‎8‎/‎23‎/‎2019 at 5:47 PM, Cucuy said:

Well I know for sure that at least my local Bangkok hospital does in fact accept my TRICARE because I’ve been using it here for years now but I don’t know about other American insurance companies. TRICARE is easily accepted because it’s for the military and those of us who are retired military so oconus TRICARE is accepted pretty much world wide in most countries including Thailand I’ve been using my oconus TRICARE for several years now here in Thailand and it’s never been a problem it was just a little bit of a hassle getting signed up for oconus TRICARE. Oconus means overseas it’s a military term.

When you say; “getting signed up for oconus TRICARE”, what exactly do you mean?

 

You also said, “I’ve been using my oconus TRICARE for several years now here in Thailand”.

 

Prior to CY2018, if a retiree wanted to retain TRICARE eligibility there was no DoD requirement for him/her to enroll in TRICARE Overseas Standard (renamed to Select), and there has never been a DoD requirement to enroll in TRICARE For Life.

[Neocon]

On ‎8‎/‎23‎/‎2019 at 7:13 PM, Pib said:

Here is what you are probably talking about....I listed the hospitals/providers below.  And obviously even the Tricare website list is not complete since Pararm 9 Hospital told me in May 2019 they will accept Tricare for in-patient service.  But the pickings are slim.

 

http://www.tricare-overseas.com/beneficiaries/resources/provider-search

 

Bumrungrad International Hospital

Bangkok Hospital Medical Center

Samitivej Sukhumvit Hospital

Chiangmai Ram Hospital

BNH Hospital

Piyachat Ruengvisesh

Samitivej Sukhumvit Hospital

 

And below is a quote from a 24 July 2019 JUSMAGTHAI Tricare Office Newsletter

 

 

 

 

 

That list is for active duty, not retirees.  There is no TRICARE provider list for retirees in Thailand.

[Neocon]

On ‎8‎/‎24‎/‎2019 at 1:09 AM, Sheryl said:

Tricare is an anomaly and indeed only the largest "international" hospitals do direct payment with them, presumably because their procedures/requirements are unusually complex or time consuming.

 

Private expat and travel insurance from US companies is widely accepted.

TRICARE Overseas claims filing policy for providers is straightforward.  The main sticking point is that DoD does not provide guarantee of payment for retirees using TRICARE (and neither does the VA for their Foreign Medical Program).  If you’d like to know more, I'd be happy to PM you (later).

[Neocon]

On ‎8‎/‎24‎/‎2019 at 2:11 AM, Cucuy said:

Yeah I think that was it. If you’re signed up for oconus TRICARE the hospital will accept it just talk to the hospital administrator or case worker. I have been using my TRICARE for years here because I’m signed up for oconus TRICARE. It was definitely a hassle getting signed up for oconus TRICARE though but it’s doable I did it years ago when I retired here for both my wife and I. But again I’ve only used it for inpatient care such as emergency room visits and procedures and surgeries, I’ve never actually used my oconus TRICARE for inpatient care only outpatient care. So I don’t know about the inpatient care sorry about that. When ever I do my little inpatient care things I just go to my local doctors clinic down the street from my house and I just pay for little things like that out of pocket because the clinics are decent and they are cheap anyway.

 

Oh and take what JUSMAG says with skepticism because they don’t seem like they know what’s going on anymore. I don’t think that JUSMAG office has very good leadership.

“Oh and take what JUSMAG says with skepticism because they don’t seem like they know what’s going on anymore. I don’t think that JUSMAG office has very good leadership.”

 

If you’re referring to the TRICARE office, I find your statement to be completely uninformed.

[Neocon]

On ‎8‎/‎24‎/‎2019 at 3:10 AM, Cucuy said:

My local Bangkok hospital is very well familiar with TRICARE as well because they have a lot of veterans living around here. Whenever I go to the hospital they know and my case worker actually asks me in English for my oconus TRICARE card and TRICARE covers a lot especially if it’s one of my rated disabilities. We’re covered pretty well by TRICARE for living abroad.

 

 

What exactly do you mean when you say “oconus TRICARE card”?  Is it a type of in-house registration card issued by Bangkok Hospital-Pattaya?

 

According to TRICARE:  “You won't get an enrollment or wallet card if you're using TRICARE Select, TRICARE For Life or TRICARE Select Overseas.” (https://www.tricare.mil/Resources/GoPaperless/NewTRICARECard)

 

What exactly do you mean when you say “rated disabilities”?

 

If you mean VA-rated service-connected disabilities then why are you using TRICARE for them instead of the VA Foreign Medical Program (FMP)?  Are you also using FMP?  Your choice of course.  (I use both.)

[Sheryl]

TRICARE Overseas claims filing policy for providers is straightforward.  The main sticking point is that DoD does not provide guarantee of payment for retirees using TRICARE (and neither does the VA for their Foreign Medical Program).  If you’d like to know more, I'd be happy to PM you (later).

If they do not provide GOP most hospitals will not accept as direct billing and one can't really blame them.

This is peculiar to Tricare. Private insurers who do direct billing (wjich is almost all except sone travel policies) issue GOP

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