Repatriated to the US after seven years in LOS on OA.

[GinBoy2]

5 hours ago, Yellowtail said:

 

No. He means the top 53% of wage-earners are paying $1,500 a month for him.

 

I paid Baht38.00 for my medical insurance this month...

฿38/Month!

 

Now that must be one helluva policy

[Yellowtail]

6 hours ago, GinBoy2 said:

฿38/Month!

 

Now that must be one helluva policy

 

Thai social security. It was (I think) B278 a month but with covid we're getting a discount. 

[Yellowtail]

7 hours ago, moontang said:

I used to pay about 120 pm with a 5000 dollar deductible, with Blue Ross, but those policies were made almost illegal...

 

Yeah, they had to be made illegal to get more people to go for socialized medicine. 

[moontang]

2 hours ago, Yellowtail said:

 

Yeah, they had to be made illegal to get more people to go for socialized medicine. 

Some truth to that.  

[JimGant]

On 5/26/2021 at 3:09 AM, GinBoy2 said:

The older I get, the idea of getting sick or worse still infirm in Thailand would not be a prospect I would want.

In that circumstance being home in the US would be a must, which is why I always advise folks never to burn bridges, have an exit plan.

Interesting. The health care in Thailand certainly beats -- or is at least as good as -- what I got in Alexandria VA -- at least at Bumrungrad and Bangkok Hospital (why is Thailand at the head of the medical vacation destination....). And while expensive, by Thai standards -- their charges have come in well below Medicare allowed charges, and I've never had anything denied or reduced; thus my military (Tricare) health policy works as well, if not better, than in the States.

 

But a large factor in our (Thai wife of 42 years) decision to move full time to our vacation home in the Chiang Mai countryside -- was Long Term Care. If you didn't buy a US LTC policy at a younger age, the out of pocket cost to live in a LTC facility is pretty darn steep in the US. And if we had kids, which we don't, putting the life style crunching burden on them to change our diapers would be unthinkable. Now, in Thailand, hiring a couple of bed pan nurses, to live in one of our many extra bedrooms, would be easy to afford. Or, for a more serious situation, there are more and more LTC facilities popping up in Thailand -- and we have one just down the road. Anyway, Thailand certainly is a better fit for us when it comes to health care and Long Term Care. And, even if the wife goes first, I've no parents, siblings, kids, or close nieces and nephews to go back to. The wife's family here has now become the relatives of choice.

 

Obviously, different situation than for some others. But what is sad is my observation of expats here in Thailand (and probably everywhere) -- many are terribly cynical, about the home country they left, and now about living in Thailand. These are folks with the 'grass is greener' syndrome, who will apparently never be happy with their latest decision. The glass is perpetually half empty. Fortunately, with my many military moves, I've always appreciated the positives of wherever I ended up. And Thailand has been the easiest to appreciate, with a glass 90% full.

 

 

[GinBoy2]

1 hour ago, JimGant said:

Interesting. The health care in Thailand certainly beats -- or is at least as good as -- what I got in Alexandria VA -- at least at Bumrungrad and Bangkok Hospital (why is Thailand at the head of the medical vacation destination....). And while expensive, by Thai standards -- their charges have come in well below Medicare allowed charges, and I've never had anything denied or reduced; thus my military (Tricare) health policy works as well, if not better, than in the States.

 

But a large factor in our (Thai wife of 42 years) decision to move full time to our vacation home in the Chiang Mai countryside -- was Long Term Care. If you didn't buy a US LTC policy at a younger age, the out of pocket cost to live in a LTC facility is pretty darn steep in the US. And if we had kids, which we don't, putting the life style crunching burden on them to change our diapers would be unthinkable. Now, in Thailand, hiring a couple of bed pan nurses, to live in one of our many extra bedrooms, would be easy to afford. Or, for a more serious situation, there are more and more LTC facilities popping up in Thailand -- and we have one just down the road. Anyway, Thailand certainly is a better fit for us when it comes to health care and Long Term Care. And, even if the wife goes first, I've no parents, siblings, kids, or close nieces and nephews to go back to. The wife's family here has now become the relatives of choice.

 

Obviously, different situation than for some others. But what is sad is my observation of expats here in Thailand (and probably everywhere) -- many are terribly cynical, about the home country they left, and now about living in Thailand. These are folks with the 'grass is greener' syndrome, who will apparently never be happy with their latest decision. The glass is perpetually half empty. Fortunately, with my many military moves, I've always appreciated the positives of wherever I ended up. And Thailand has been the easiest to appreciate, with a glass 90% full.

 

 

Tricare is that trump card which most of us don't have.

Not denying that health 'can' be as good as anywhere in the West, but it comes at a price.

 

For most of us without that tricare safety net, medical insurance premiums spiral out of control after 60, and by 70 for many you just can't get it.

 

That's when the getting old and sick thing really gets real

[Yellowtail]

Since I retired I "self insure" in that I just pay for smaller stuff at bummer out of pocket as it's nice and easy. 

 

I go to Chula for my liver every six months which is pretty cheap and I have Thai social medical I can use in the event it's something huge or ongoing. 

 

 

[moontang]

Snow birding in Mexico....711 beer promos today.  Beer prices are about half what they are in LOS.  Heineken, 1.65 USD per liter bottle yesterday...

[EVENKEEL]

3 minutes ago, moontang said:

Snow birding in Mexico....711 beer promos today.  Beer prices are about half what they are in LOS.  Heineken, 1.65 USD per liter bottle yesterday...

Which cartel do you swear allegiance to? 

[transam]

2 minutes ago, moontang said:

Snow birding in Mexico....711 beer promos today.  Beer prices are about half what they are in LOS.  Heineken, 1.65 USD per liter bottle yesterday...

But you have to keep looking over your shoulder.....????

PS. Heineken is 'orrible....????

[Yellowtail]

19 minutes ago, moontang said:

Snow birding in Mexico....711 beer promos today.  Beer prices are about half what they are in LOS.  Heineken, 1.65 USD per liter bottle yesterday...

 

Wow, and look at that spotless tile!

[moontang]

9 hours ago, Yellowtail said:

 

Wow, and look at that spotless tile!

480 years old.

[moontang]

Heineken?  I suppose there is a better Thai brewed beer?  Had a good XX amber, and a few Coronas, too...excellent...I didn't realize it was different than us Corona..1 Dollar at a decent cantina.

[Yellowtail]

6 hours ago, moontang said:

480 years old.

One would think in all that time someone would have hosed it off. Oh well, maybe mañana....

 

 

Edited February 3, 2022 by Yellowtail
sp

[Yellowtail]

6 hours ago, moontang said:

Heineken?  I suppose there is a better Thai brewed beer?  Had a good XX amber, and a few Coronas, too...excellent...I didn't realize it was different than us Corona..1 Dollar at a decent cantina.

When I was a kid in SoCal the Mexican beer was considered worse than Brew 102, and the only reason anyone drank it was because the Mexican stores didn't card you....

 

Amazing what good marketing will do. 

[moontang]

4 hours ago, Yellowtail said:

When I was a kid in SoCal the Mexican beer was considered worse than Brew 102, and the only reason anyone drank it was because the Mexican stores didn't card you....

 

Amazing what good marketing will do. 

The Mexican beer has quite a bit of German influence.  Pacifico beats Tiger.

[Yellowtail]

33 minutes ago, moontang said:

The Mexican beer has quite a bit of German influence.  Pacifico beats Tiger.

That's like saying American vodka has a bit of Russian influence...

 

It's been my experience that Budweiser/Pacifico/Corona drinkers prefer Chang, and Coors/Miller/Dos Equis drinkers prefer Singha.