Health insurance over 75 years of age

[OzMan]

I asked a broker to give me a quote for health insurance. At age 71 (today) it was 34,000 baht, although the policy contained items I have no interest in, such as repatriating my body, loss of travel documents, public liability,... When I asked how much for an 80yo the agent said coverage only possible up to age 75. What do other members plan to do about insurance, if it becomes compulsory, when they are over 75?

[onebir]

4 minutes ago, OzMan said:

At age 71 (today) it was 34,000 baht, although the policy contained items I have no interest in, such as repatriating my body, loss of travel documents, public liability,... When I asked how much for an 80yo the agent said coverage only possible up to age 75. What do other members plan to do about insurance, if it becomes compulsory, when they are over 75?

34k baht/month & only up to 75?

The insurance ripoff seems to be defeating the point of offering at retirement visa...

[ID2020]

It can't be 34k a month surely

[Sheryl]

Probably annual. Though a bit low for that, must have been a low end policy.

 

A decent policy - defined as one that actually provides meaningful protection against catastrophic medical costs - will run more like 70k a year at that age.

 

OP - I would not assume that (1) insurance requirement will extend to non-O extensions and (2) if so that it would take the same form as the current O-A requirements, which are a mess and impossible for many to comply with.

 

That said, anyone who thinks they may ever want insurance should get it sooner rather than later, even with international policies it does get harder to obtain as you age (and more likley to exclude conditions).

 

I get about half a dozen PMS a year that in essence say:

 

"I never bothered with health insurance because I have always been healthy. Now I have developed a problem that requires treatment I can't afford. So how can I get health insurance that will pay for it?"

 

And the answer of course is you can't, because that is not how health insurance works. The time to get it is while still in good health.

 

 

 

[olfu]

Well, I am over 75 and simple solution is adjust to government regulations which in plain English 

means pay around 350$ a month for health insurance or go to boring places where nobody wanna go.

Well, have no other choice but staying alive till 100 and use credit card. 

[OzMan]

35,000 baht/year.

[OzMan]

Still does not answer my question. The broker said she could not get me health insurance over age 75. Even an existing plan could not be renewed when I turn 76. What do other members do who are over 75?

[Sheryl]

1 hour ago, OzMan said:

Still does not answer my question. The broker said she could not get me health insurance over age 75. Even an existing plan could not be renewed when I turn 76. What do other members do who are over 75?

 

You need a better broker as you were completely misinformed.

 

Thai companies will not issue a new policy after the age of 75. Most will, however, renew an already issued policy past that age, either for life or up to age 99.

 

International expat policies -- which will cover you in Thailand and are both generally better value and more reliable than Thai policies -- can be obtained over the age of 75 and all that I am familiar with will guarantee lifetime. (Although some can be newly obtained even up to the age of 100, it is always better ti start at a younger age as the longer you wait the more likely you are to have developed pre-exisitng conditions which will either make you uninsurable or, at minimum, lead to conditions being excluded).

 

I suggest you contact AA brokers for better information and explanation of options

 

www.aainsure.net

 

[Ken Kenobi]

I have been using the international health insurance company Cigna for about 5 years and have a health insurance policy for inpatient cover that is valid only in the country of my birth ( England ) or my current country of residence ( Thailand ) . I am 71 years old and my monthly health insurance premium has just this week gone up to around 11,000 Baht ( depending on the Thai Baht  / Pound sterling exchange rate ) . This inpatient health insurance policy is called ‘’ Close Care ‘’ has an annual benefit limit of GBP 325,000.00 . I have a GBP 500.00 deductible option on this policy .

 

I asked the Cigna sales representative at up to what age will Cigna accept my ongoing health insurance policy , and the Cigna sales representative said there was no age limit . He went on to say that Cigna would consider applications for health insurance from people over 70 years of age. 

 

I have never had to make a claim on my Cigna health insurance police so I can’t comment on that area . I did ask the Cigna sales representative if they had another form of health insurance policy that cost less as I thought the new health insurance monthly premium of 11,000 Baht was high .

 

My current Cigna policy monthly cost is based on me being 71 years old and not having any pre-exisitng conditions ( and never making a claim ) 

 

The Cigna sales representative said that my current ‘’ Close Care ‘’ policy was the cheapest option they have. 

 

 Does any one else think that 11,000 Baht a month for this type of health insurance policy and its cover  , does seem to be on the high side ?.

 

Link to Cigna ''  ‘’ Close Care ‘’ information 

 

http://www.individualhealth.com/pdf/cigna/Close_Care_Customer_Guide.pdf

 

[Sheryl]

The cover is adequate. The premium  is about average for your age.

 

Increasing the deductible and/or adding a cost share  will lower your premium (but of course make sure to keep the potential out of pocket costs within what you can readily afford. I would recommend setting that amount aside in the bank to be sure).

 

 

[Ken Kenobi]

9 hours ago, Sheryl said:

The cover is adequate. The premium  is about average for your age.

 

Increasing the deductible and/or adding a cost share  will lower your premium (but of course make sure to keep the potential out of pocket costs within what you can readily afford. I would recommend setting that amount aside in the bank to be sure).

 

 

 

Thanks for the comment. I have stopped talking to my expat friends about my Cigna health insurance and how I feel about the latest monthly premium increase as many of their comments are on the lines of how stupid or dumb I am to be paying out that much every month for private health insurance when like many of them I should be putting money aside every month in anticipation of any possible future medical issues or return back to the UK for any long term medical treatment. In some ways I do feel a little dumb as I have been paying for private health insurance for many past years while residing in Thailand and never had to make a claim on the private health insurance policy. Those past private health insurance monthly payments must now amount to hundreds of thousands of Baht .

 

 

 

[Neeranam]

If you are 50/60 and planning on staying here for the rest of your life, it's a good idea to get a job for 1 year. Just go to the local school and teach the kids English. After 1 year paying into the social security, you can get continued insurance for the rest of you life for 432 baht a month.

[Speedo1968]

1 hour ago, Neeranam said:

If you are 50/60 and planning on staying here for the rest of your life, it's a good idea to get a job for 1 year. Just go to the local school and teach the kids English. After 1 year paying into the social security, you can get continued insurance for the rest of you life for 432 baht a month.

I spent 10 years working here with much of that as a company employee rather than an "external consultant".
I have continued to live here after retiring for most of the past 10 years.
Does what you say above mean I am allowed to get continued health insurance here for 432 baht a month ?

[Neeranam]

14 minutes ago, Speedo1968 said:

I spent 10 years working here with much of that as a company employee rather than an "external consultant".
I have continued to live here after retiring for most of the past 10 years.
Does what you say above mean I am allowed to get continued health insurance here for 432 baht a month ?

Depends on your age and if you paid into the Social Security scheme. 

If you were in the SS, I think you would have cashed out already.

 

[Sheryl]

2 hours ago, Speedo1968 said:

I spent 10 years working here with much of that as a company employee rather than an "external consultant".
I have continued to live here after retiring for most of the past 10 years.
Does what you say above mean I am allowed to get continued health insurance here for 432 baht a month ?

 

If you were covered by Social Security while employed you could have continued that cover after retirement but this had to have been done within 6 months of retiring.

 

Pay no attention to your friends comments re insurance. Putting money aside each month will not provide sufficient savings to cover a catastrophic illness unless you  are able to do so for many, many years before having any expenses, which of course cannot be guaranteed. If one is wealthy enough to put aside a single lump sum of at least 3 million baht, that is another matter - but even then have the problem of what you would do once it is depleted. (And I am willing to bet your friends are not, in fact, putting much money aside).

 

As for returning to the UK - not possible if you are critically ill (not to mention the issues that arose with international travel during COVID) and having been living outside the UK may affect your eligibility under the NHS.

 

That you have had no claims thus far does not mean you never will. 

 

By the way ask if paying premiums annually rather than monthly will reduce them, it often does.

 

 

[OzMan]

When I moved to Thailand I assumed that either I paid cash for treatment, or I returned to Australia where it is free. There is a problem with this logic, so I found out. A couple of years ago I donated a kidney and now need 6-monthly check-ups at a hospital in Melbourne. Travel restrictions with COVID put paid to that plan. Also, while in Melbourne mid last year, I discussed having minor surgery, but first needed a scan. Several months later the hospital wrote with an appointment a couple weeks later. It would have cost me an arm and  a leg to return to Melbourne for a 15-minute scan. Returning to Australia is not practical. Also, where would I live while I waited between appointments?

[scubascuba3]

Health insurance will only get more expensive as you get older, looking at a summary of premiums from AAInsure, at age 80, Pacific Cross quotes 225,000 baht a year, most other companies don't even show a quote so I guess they would be higher. 

 

Of course you can get poor cover insurance for much lower premiums but why bother, ignorance is bliss often

[Sheryl]

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

Health insurance will only get more expensive as you get older, looking at a summary of premiums from AAInsure, at age 80, Pacific Cross quotes 225,000 baht a year, most other companies don't even show a quote so I guess they would be higher. 

 

Of course you can get poor cover insurance for much lower premiums but why bother, ignorance is bliss often

The Thai based companies are particularly extreme in the premiums they charge at higher ages. International companies soemwhat less so, though of course premiums do rise.

[Ken Kenobi]

8 hours ago, Sheryl said:

 

If you were covered by Social Security while employed you could have continued that cover after retirement but this had to have been done within 6 months of retiring.

 

Pay no attention to your friends comments re insurance. Putting money aside each month will not provide sufficient savings to cover a catastrophic illness unless you  are able to do so for many, many years before having any expenses, which of course cannot be guaranteed. If one is wealthy enough to put aside a single lump sum of at least 3 million baht, that is another matter - but even then have the problem of what you would do once it is depleted. (And I am willing to bet your friends are not, in fact, putting much money aside).

 

As for returning to the UK - not possible if you are critically ill (not to mention the issues that arose with international travel during COVID) and having been living outside the UK may affect your eligibility under the NHS.

 

That you have had no claims thus far does not mean you never will. 

 

By the way ask if paying premiums annually rather than monthly will reduce them, it often does.

 

 

Thanks Sheryl 

The asking to pay premiums annually instead of monthly is not some thing that I had thought of so I’m now going to ask the Cigna sales representative about that option and I will post back the results.

 

Its funny but I have never asked any of my friends who regularly mock me for paying what they consider un necessary private health monthly premiums just how much they put away each month to provide cover for any future possible medical treatment costs. The majority of my expat friends are over 65 years of age and retired and are long term permanent residents in Thailand and as far as I know none of these expat friends have ever had any private health insurance subscriptions .

Several of those expat friends who have experienced past low risk health issues while living in Thailand managed to obtain treatment by using Thai government / university hospital facilities and often comment on how they will head straight back to those same Thai government / university hospital facilities should they ever require further medical care in the future. The favorite phrase that many of my expat friends like to use when we are talking about my private health insurance , is ‘’  more money than sense ‘’ .

 

I don’t want to sound malicious in any way but hearing that one of my mocking expat friend needs urgent medical attention and aftercare , but is personally struggling to finance the necessary medical treatment , would sadly bring a smile to my face . 
 

 

 

 

 

[Speedo1968]

20 hours ago, Sheryl said:

 

If you were covered by Social Security while employed you could have continued that cover after retirement but this had to have been done within 6 months of retiring.

 

Pay no attention to your friends comments re insurance. Putting money aside each month will not provide sufficient savings to cover a catastrophic illness unless you  are able to do so for many, many years before having any expenses, which of course cannot be guaranteed. If one is wealthy enough to put aside a single lump sum of at least 3 million baht, that is another matter - but even then have the problem of what you would do once it is depleted. (And I am willing to bet your friends are not, in fact, putting much money aside).

 

As for returning to the UK - not possible if you are critically ill (not to mention the issues that arose with international travel during COVID) and having been living outside the UK may affect your eligibility under the NHS.

 

That you have had no claims thus far does not mean you never will. 

 

By the way ask if paying premiums annually rather than monthly will reduce them, it often does.

 

 

Thanks Sheryl for your comments.
As far as I understand as I am classed as non-resident in the UK for govt. pension ( meaning I get no annual increase in my pension ) I assume I will need to wait 3 months for free NHS treatment should I return to the UK.      I have a daughter there who waited 18 months to see if she had a serious and life threatening condition - that was before COVID.      Some years ago I spent 6 months there during which time I suffered a very bad TIA, the property I lived in had an emergency pull cord, I was contacted within a few minutes by a local warden but it took over an hour for the ambulance arrive as any form of local hospital had been closed due to lack of funds.   Once at a very large district hospital I had to wait on a guerny in a corridor for some hours, once in a ward bed I was moved everyday for the next five days to different wards due to shortage of space.
At least here in my area I feel more assured of life saving intervention being available having already experienced live saving treatment by a local govt hospital before transfer to Khon Kaen.