Tourists coming to Thailand - they must have enough funds to support themselves, says business leader

[TonBrow]

20 hours ago, Airalee said:

I’d be curious to know exactly how much the hospital bills have been for the Thais that have been hospitalized here for coronavirus, and if it even comes close to the US$100,000 coverage that they require foreigners to carry.

 

The ฿400,000-800,000 insurance requirement to extend my “retirement visa” now basically jumps to a ฿5,000,000 policy requirement (The ฿3,000,000 pacific prime policy won’t be sufficient according to my insurance agent) if I, as a retiree, ever want to leave and then reenter Thailand for any reason.

I read an article a while back in the Bangkok post about Thais complaining about being charged for Covid treatment at Private hospitals, since the government made a statement that no Thai citizen should be charged for Covid treatment.

The article stated that some were paying up to or a little more than 100,000 THB (in PRIVATE hospitals). That's not really a lot considering it was treatment in Private hospitals.

I was also perplexed by the US$100,000 insurance coverage requirement. You would have to be hospitalized for many months for a very serious illness to even make a dent in that amount here in Thailand.

[steven100]

21 hours ago, webfact said:

Both he and Chatthathan Kinchor na Ayudhya, a senior TAT marketer, stressed the need to choose participating countries carefully based on their coronavirus handling record.

 

And that tourists who get the much vaunted Special Tourist Visa (for stays of up to 270 days) must follow all the rules and quarantine for 14 days.

lol  ......  good luck with that one   !

[stouricks]

19 hours ago, Sheryl said:

health care costs here, which have risen enormously in recent years.

And that is partly because the private hospitals know the majority of falangs do have insurance and can fleece the insurance companies accordingly. eg Bht 1000 for some paracetomol tablets, unnecessary tests etc.

[overherebc]

I am always amazed by the number of 'drips' connected to arms of people in Thai hospitals.

It seems to be an essential.

Anyone know why it's so important?

[mogandave]

21 hours ago, petermik said:

I have posted this same comment many times..."as for all tourists entering the Kingdom it would be much more appreciated if you emptied your wallets and purses in the bins provided in Immigration and returned back by the same means you tried to enter by"....thank you for your understanding we do not want you just your money...

Maybe they learned from the French..,,

[ThailandRyan]

20 minutes ago, overherebc said:

I am always amazed by the number of 'drips' connected to arms of people in Thai hospitals.

It seems to be an essential.

Anyone know why it's so important?

It is because many of the people are dehydrated and they like for your hydration levels to be up in order to fight whatever bacterium you might have.  They also like to have things run its course instead of giving you medicines that clog you up.

[overherebc]

7 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

It is because many of the people are dehydrated and they like for your hydration levels to be up in order to fight whatever bacterium you might have.  They also like to have things run its course instead of giving you medicines that clog you up.

Ok, I haven't been in hospital in uk for a while but the only time I was on a drip was when I ended up in ICU for burns. The other times for various broken bits etc I was convinced ( uk Sisters and Matrons can be quite convincing ???? ) to drink the water etc supplied every day.

[kiwikeith]

21 hours ago, Poet said:

After half-a-century of Western tourists sponging off Thailand and sucking the economy dry, the Thais are about to discover the heights they can attain now that these leeches are finally off their backs!

 

The common Thai hard working peoples will be severely burdened financially if European tourists are strangled out of the country. 

Chinese tourists do nothing for these people, their money goes into rich pockets of wealthiest big Chinese Thai businesses it never reaches the streets or small venues that balance out tourist dollars. 

This is blatant stupidity.

On one hand economists say Los is in dire straights and needs to get tourists back. 

On the other hand stupid fools want to drive European people out, finish the Woohan express destroy their own people, and flood the country with Chinese gold shops money exchanges and Chinese owned hotels, 

Then they can turn beaches into ashtrays and employ previous street vendors to clean up the butt's after the Chinese storm through the big attractions. 

[Dazinoz]

22 hours ago, Airalee said:

The ฿400,000-800,000 insurance requirement to extend my “retirement visa” now basically jumps to a ฿5,000,000 policy requirement (The ฿3,000,000 pacific prime policy won’t be sufficient according to my insurance agent) if I, as a retiree, ever want to leave and then reenter Thailand for any reason.

You require insurance to renew retirement extension? 

 

Also are you saying if you leave Thailand for a short time you need insurance to come back?

[stouricks]

51 minutes ago, overherebc said:

I am always amazed by the number of 'drips' connected to arms of people in Thai hospitals.

It seems to be an essential.

Anyone know why it's so important?

Stop calling the nurses 'drips'. They do a good job, usually.    PML   555    LOL

[actonion]

A business leader comes out with <deleted> like this , of course one has to have enough funds, does he think a tourist is going to reply on Thai government when they cant even pay their own old age pensioners their monthly salary......Im sure they think the whole world is waiting to holiday in Thailand

[Poet]

33 minutes ago, kiwikeith said:

The common Thai hard working peoples will be severely burdened financially if European tourists are strangled out of the country. 

Chinese tourists do nothing for these people, their money goes into rich pockets of wealthiest big Chinese Thai businesses it never reaches the streets or small venues that balance out tourist dollars. 

This is blatant stupidity.

It accurately reflects the tiny segment of society that the Army are working for.

If the Thai elites were smart (bear with me here), they would recognize that, in the absense of any support from them for the poor majority, Western money pumping into those poorer regions over the past half century was probably one of the main factors in preventing a violent overthrow of the elites.
 

 

33 minutes ago, kiwikeith said:

On one hand economists say Los is in dire straights and needs to get tourists back. 

On the other hand stupid fools want to drive European people out

One of my greatest hopes is that this crisis will finally, perhaps next year, rouse the Thai people to take their country back.

Previous governments, democratically elected, had no great love for Westerners but were smart enough to understand basic economics. Just five years ago, before the coup, it was relatively easy to stay here all year round, using 6 months tourist visas costing $50 that could be easily extended to 9 months. That now sounds ridiculous, but that was how Thailand developed its reputation as a welcoming, relaxed, easy-going destination.

For a brief time, Chiang Mai became a leading hub for remote workers / "digital nomads", and that is probably the only time that anywhere in Thailand has actually genuinely been a hub for anything, despite all the press releases and government schemes aspiring to make Thailand a hub for this or that.

The overthrow of democracy and the nationalistic, China-oriented prejudice of the Army junta put an end to all that. If they had simply left their visa system as it was before they would be in a far better situation now.
 

 

33 minutes ago, kiwikeith said:

flood the country with Chinese gold shops money exchanges and Chinese owned hotels, 

Then they can turn beaches into ashtrays and employ previous street vendors to clean up the butt's after the Chinese storm through the big attractions.

Well, the elites made their bet. They picked a side. They were highly offended in 2015 when the visiting US Secretary of State publicly mentioned that he looked forward to return of democracy in Thailand. The most prized quality of the Chinese, as the Thai generals and elites see it, is that they don't give a damn about what Thailand does politically.


 

Edited September 15, 2020 by Poet

[Poet]

1 hour ago, overherebc said:

I am always amazed by the number of 'drips' connected to arms of people in Thai hospitals.

It seems to be an essential.

Anyone know why it's so important?

Pure theatre.

Private hospitals encourage middle-class Thais to stay overnight for the most ridiculous reasons. The drips and other equipment makes the customer feel they are getting good value for their money.

 

Edited September 15, 2020 by Poet

[brianthainess]

Sorry i haven't read all posts yet but; as for hospital costs for covid, i would like to point out that the recovery time seems to be max 6 weeks, well I was in a govt hospital for 5 weeks in isolation with TB the total cost, with 'falang' food and 3 handfuls of meds per day +x-rays etc, came to about 120,000 baht or less than $4000 so Cambodia has got it right with there $3000 deposit.

 Incidentally a cremation here actually only costs about 6,000 baht max.+ EMS post 

[hotchilli]

23 hours ago, webfact said:

But Suphan Mongkhonsuthee, chief of the Federation of Thai Industries stressed that any visitors must comply with all the visa paperwork and prove they have plenty of funds so that they are not a burden on Thailand.

So nothing new then... 

a mountain of paperwork & an even bigger mountain of money !

[Airalee]

59 minutes ago, Dazinoz said:

You require insurance to renew retirement extension? 

 

Also are you saying if you leave Thailand for a short time you need insurance to come back?

My understanding is that there is now a requirement for all retirees (On Non-OA visas) here to show proof of a ฿400,000 inpatient/ ฿40,000 outpatient coverage in order to apply for the visa or to get their next yearly extension.  It went into effect as of October or November of last year if I remember correctly.  
 

Being that now, all people entering Thailand from abroad need to show proof of a US$100,000 COVID-19 policy would mean that the original base 400k/40k coverage required would be insufficient to meet these requirements.  

 

I have an extension coming up shortly and have been dealing with an agent and was going to get a ฿3,000,000 policy (I feel that 400k is too little) but when I asked about the $100,000 Covid insurance requirement, she told me that to meet that I would have to raise my coverage limits to the next level up which is ฿5,000,000

 

Hope that answers your question.

[Olmate]

4 minutes ago, Airalee said:

My understanding is that there is now a requirement for all retirees (On Non-OA visas) here to show proof of a ฿400,000 inpatient/ ฿40,000 outpatient coverage in order to apply for the visa or to get their next yearly extension.  It went into effect as of October or November of last year if I remember correctly.  
 

Being that now, all people entering Thailand from abroad need to show proof of a US$100,000 COVID-19 policy would mean that the original base 400k/40k coverage required would be insufficient to meet these requirements.  

 

I have an extension coming up shortly and have been dealing with an agent and was going to get a ฿3,000,000 policy (I feel that 400k is too little) but when I asked about the $100,000 Covid insurance requirement, she told me that to meet that I would have to raise my coverage limits to the next level up which is ฿5,000,000

 

Hope that answers your question.

There is no extra covid insurance requirement for an AO extension

[Airalee]

Just now, Olmate said:

There is no extra covid insurance requirement for an AO extension

I know...but if I leave the country and then try to re-enter, immigration will require that I present a Covid policy that covers the length of my stay.  To add that on to the 400k requirement would actually cost more than just getting a ฿5,000,000 policy.

[sandyf]

23 hours ago, Airalee said:

I’d be curious to know exactly how much the hospital bills have been for the Thais that have been hospitalized here for coronavirus, and if it even comes close to the US$100,000 coverage that they require foreigners to carry.

You have to bear in mind that it is a 2 tier system for hospitals and the government people automatically assume foreigners will go into a private hospital.

Ambulance drivers will take the patient to what they deem an appropriate hospital, someone I know was taken to a private hospital and had a job getting the driver to change to a government hospital. Conversely when a friends father in law had a heart attack the ambulance drove past 2 private hospitals to get to a government hospital.

The costs in private hospitals are significantly higher than government hospitals. It also varies quite a bit for the Thais, being in a general ward can be a few thousand baht a night but moving into a room is something else. My wife's brother in law had insurance that allowed him a 4 bed room, he paid a further 10K/night for a 2 bed room.

On a long term basis the cost can be quite significant, a friend of my wife was hospitalised for 6 months before she passed away.

I have never been a great believer in insurance but can see where they are coming from, and it could be a significant problem for many as time goes by, myself included.

[Scouse123]

15 hours ago, Oldie said:

All this sounds nice. But as soon as your money is gone and others need to support you then you will be a burden - pretty much everywhere in the world. 

 

Good job it hasn't all gone then!????????????

[Airalee]

5 minutes ago, sandyf said:

You have to bear in mind that it is a 2 tier system for hospitals and the government people automatically assume foreigners will go into a private hospital.

Ambulance drivers will take the patient to what they deem an appropriate hospital, someone I know was taken to a private hospital and had a job getting the driver to change to a government hospital. Conversely when a friends father in law had a heart attack the ambulance drove past 2 private hospitals to get to a government hospital.

The costs in private hospitals are significantly higher than government hospitals. It also varies quite a bit for the Thais, being in a general ward can be a few thousand baht a night but moving into a room is something else. My wife's brother in law had insurance that allowed him a 4 bed room, he paid a further 10K/night for a 2 bed room.

On a long term basis the cost can be quite significant, a friend of my wife was hospitalised for 6 months before she passed away.

I have never been a great believer in insurance but can see where they are coming from, and it could be a significant problem for many as time goes by, myself included.

I paid ฿1,800 for a suite when I had shoulder surgery done at Rajavej (a private hospital in Chiang mai)

 

here are the current rates for Chiang Mai Ram Including the costs for an ICU room (one of the most expensive private hospitals in Chiang a Mai.   So...no...your wife’s brother in law absolutely did not pay “a further 10k/night“ to upgrade from a 4 bed shared room to a 2 bed shared room.  
 

https://www.chiangmairam.com/room

 

[think1st]

Actually I think it makes total sense. We have a lot of people in our country who come over to live or visit and expect the taxpayers to pay for their medical expenses and other expenses that they should be responsible for. So if I’m visiting Thailand or living there I think it’s my responsibility to have proper insurance and enough money to support myself. I wish my country enforced that more

Edited September 15, 2020 by think1st

[Enzian]

4 hours ago, scammed said:

how do i find these paperwork ?

this is what bothers me the most about death,

well that and autopsy, is there any paperwork for that too ?

DISPOSAL OF REMAINS form.docx

[scammed]

21 minutes ago, Enzian said:

DISPOSAL OF REMAINS form.docx 12.56 kB · 13 downloads

thanks, you just saved me a lot of a headache

[vandeventer]

15 hours ago, Morty T said:

Try having a preexisting medical condition. I have diabetes. I have to carry a Thai policy (B36,000) to meet the requirements that won't cover any preexisting conditions and another policy that does, Aetna (B66,000). 

Maybe more people would be on the Elite visa if it included free health insurance for all?

[ThomasThBKK]

37 minutes ago, vandeventer said:

Maybe more people would be on the Elite visa if it included free health insurance for all?

 

There are fb groups about people desperately buying elite  visas to come back.

 

The biggest complain people have there is that 1) the government gave only  few ASQ slots to elite owners and 2) Thai elite doesn't bother replying to goddamn emails

 

 

No surprise, after all its run by the government...

 

There IS demand, lots of demand but they are struggling to meat the requirments of what people want, as always... 

 

Instead of selling them something useful they throw stones in potential customers ways...

[Dazinoz]

2 hours ago, Airalee said:

My understanding is that there is now a requirement for all retirees (On Non-OA visas) here to show proof of a ฿400,000 inpatient/ ฿40,000 outpatient coverage in order to apply for the visa or to get their next yearly extension.  It went into effect as of October or November of last year if I remember correctly.  
 

Being that now, all people entering Thailand from abroad need to show proof of a US$100,000 COVID-19 policy would mean that the original base 400k/40k coverage required would be insufficient to meet these requirements.  

 

I have an extension coming up shortly and have been dealing with an agent and was going to get a ฿3,000,000 policy (I feel that 400k is too little) but when I asked about the $100,000 Covid insurance requirement, she told me that to meet that I would have to raise my coverage limits to the next level up which is ฿5,000,000

 

Hope that answers your question.

I forgot about the OA as I am on O and do not require insurance as yet. Just talking to a Brit guy at immigration and his agent offers cheap insurance but has a 200,000 excess so cheap but ok for major stuff.

 

If I visit Oz and need the big insurance to come back then i will stay until I can leave and never come back.

[Hanuman2547]

On 9/13/2020 at 8:50 PM, BritManToo said:

Can't imagine any tourists coming to Thailand under the current entry conditions.

Despite all the talk, I guess they don't really want foreign tourists any more.

I have to agree with this.  Don't forget the 14 day quarantine either which you get to pay for at inflated prices.  Even if the country were to open up to tourists and no quarantine I'm still not so sure about being cooped up on a plane for 16+ hours while transiting in another airport before reaching Swampy.  Maybe November or December 2021 will see an increase in tourist arrivals.

[Sheryl]

6 hours ago, TonBrow said:

I was also perplexed by the US$100,000 insurance coverage requirement. You would have to be hospitalized for many months for a very serious illness to even make a dent in that amount here in Thailand.

Oh you can reach that amount in well under a month, seen it happen several times - but those were with major specialized surgeries (cardiac, thoracic, neuro etc) with prolonged ICU care.

 

True that COVID would very rarely reach that much, even though severe cases can be in ICU a  month or more.

 

The 100,000 is I think meant to be a total limit not per illness limit, though this is not specified. With that, becomes more reasonable  since not just for COVID costs. USD 100k (3.1 million baht) is in fact  the minimum I would advise anyone to have for general health insurance in Thailand. r

[Sheryl]

3 hours ago, Airalee said:

I paid ฿1,800 for a suite when I had shoulder surgery done at Rajavej (a private hospital in Chiang mai)

 

here are the current rates for Chiang Mai Ram Including the costs for an ICU room (one of the most expensive private hospitals in Chiang a Mai.   So...no...your wife’s brother in law absolutely did not pay “a further 10k/night“ to upgrade from a 4 bed shared room to a 2 bed shared room.  
 

https://www.chiangmairam.com/room

 

 

Perhaps he was not in CM. Costs are much higher in Bangkok.  Inclusive of meals and nursing charge this would be about right for Bumrungrad and for a private room there , ranges are 13 - 25k not including the luxury suites.

 

in any case, room rates are a minimal part of a hospital bill and not a good basis for estimating cost.