US expats plead for vaccine help in viral Thailand

[Bangkok Basha]

2 hours ago, atpeace said:

It was an odd question, sorry if it upset you.  I was asking a question unrelated to Covid. Just wondering if I make it to 65 and get cancer for example. Could I fly home and get treatment covered through Medicare?  Just ignore my tangents ????

If you are signed up for Medicare, of course you can. If you're not signed up for it because you've never paid into the system, you won't. Unfortunately a lot of expats have never paid in, and thus are not eligible. Medicare will pay for my Modern or Pfizer vaccination when I go back in August. 

 

[placnx]

37 minutes ago, Bangkok Basha said:

A much more effective action would be to write to your Members of Congress (Senators and Representatives) that you vote for in state elections. Whoops. I wonder how many people who live here are eligible for absentee ballots by having a bona fide home in the U.S. (I do, and vote). We not Blinken's constituents, and while we are Biden's, I wonder what the actual voting rate is for presidential elections from Democrats and Republicans Abroad. Anyway, I am wasting my time and your reading pleasure, because it's never going to happen. As soon as I renew my upcoming visa extension, I'm outta here to get vaccinated in the States- an option that is open to any of us.  

I don't have a US residence, but I vote in the precinct of the county election board of the county where I last resided in the US. When I'm gone, my estate (outside of Thailand) will be handled in that state as well. The Americans I know here are probably all voting. I don't see writing to representatives as efficacious.

Edited June 1, 2021 by placnx
misspellings

[Bangkok Basha]

14 minutes ago, placnx said:

I don't have a US residence, but I vote in the precinct of the county election board of the county where I last resided in the US. When I'm gone, my estate (outside of Thailand) will be handled in that state as well. The Americans I know here are probably all voting. I don't see writing to representatives as efficacious.

Well, I know what happens if one's congressional representative is pro-active. Their staff forward a "Congressional" (as it's called) to an office at the State Department that deals with Congressional affairs. The office is *required* to respond to the Congressperson after clearing it several levels above them, but "Congressionals" are known to make people at State very nervous and they react quickly. A pro forma reply would be drafted to respond to the message, and the congressperson's office should send it back to the corresponding constituent. That's where it usually ends, but at least someone has paid attention.

[TigerandDog]

On 5/31/2021 at 7:54 PM, John Drake said:

 

Your anger over this topic is misplaced. Nobody is asking for priority service. The American embassy providing American citizens with a vaccine does not push you back any further in the line for treatment in Thailand. In fact, it frees up space and advances you farther and faster, if you're relying entirely upon Thai authorities to vaccinate you.  You don't seem to be angry that the Chinese were, in fact, given priority or that it is the stated policy of the Thai government to give all Thais priority. Your anger is only reserved for Americans asking their embassy to provide them with American made and paid for vaccines. BTW, I am not angry that China managed to protect its citizens; that is what great powers do. Nor am I angry that "Thais go first:" I always expected it. I am just angry the US embassy doesn't do the same for its citizens as China does. Otherwise, this entire topic should not effect you other than favorably advancing you up the line should the US embassy help its own. 

No anger just a lifetime of experiencing yanks who think they are superior to everyone else and expect priority treatment for everything. That aside you have not read my replies correctly and understood them at all.

#1. How many embassies apart from China are vaccinating their expats in Thailand?  NONE

#2. How many nationalities are complaining on TV about not being vaccinated by their embassies? 2. yanks and poms.

 

The rest of us are experiencing exactly the same lack of service from our embassies but you don't see us on here complaining. I went so far as to email my home country govt and asked what the chances of being vaccinated at our embassy and consulates was. They replied that expats were not the their responsibility. So PLEASE stop your whining and accept that your govt will do NOTHING for you and that you will have to wait your turn just like the rest of us.

[Lingba]

Lets not forget..is the embassies prepared to store these vaccines at the required freezing temps they need to be in??/.

Edited June 1, 2021 by Lingba

[phills2k1]

1 hour ago, TigerandDog said:

No anger just a lifetime of experiencing yanks who think they are superior to everyone else and expect priority treatment for everything. That aside you have not read my replies correctly and understood them at all.

#1. How many embassies apart from China are vaccinating their expats in Thailand?  NONE

#2. How many nationalities are complaining on TV about not being vaccinated by their embassies? 2. yanks and poms.

 

The rest of us are experiencing exactly the same lack of service from our embassies but you don't see us on here complaining. I went so far as to email my home country govt and asked what the chances of being vaccinated at our embassy and consulates was. They replied that expats were not the their responsibility. So PLEASE stop your whining and accept that your govt will do NOTHING for you and that you will have to wait your turn just like the rest of us.

Well then I guess all Americans are the same, whiny and entitled. Nothing the rest of us can do, to change everyone's opinion, despite the fact that most people who travel to the other side of the world are literally the exact opposite of the "American" stereotype that our country has been saddled with for so long. Or perhaps how the "me first" mentality with a complete lack of empathy from half of the country is why we left.  Nope, you've got your stereotype of us, so that's it.  No matter what we do, we'll fit that narrow mind frame that you have

 

Just curious, where are you from originally?  I'd love to know which negative stereotype with which to view your posts through

[phills2k1]

And I know it's been mentioned and casually casually ignored countless times in this thread already, but was this even an issue with ANYONE here prior to an article being written about it?  Had us "whiny and entitled" Americans so much as even complained once about it?  Any of your American friends or associates show the same amount of emotion about this as the article implies we ALL have?

 

That article doesn't mention how many people they're representing. It gives zero indication how many people have reached out to or had reached out to the embassy. For all we know, it was an article a journalist wrote because they knew it would garner this discussion / clicks.

 

And in this thread, nobody is saying "they MUST vaccinate us." We were responding to being attacked by everyone (who of course wouldn't turn down a jab from their embassy) for an article that had nothing to do with us, which then turned into a hypothetical convo about what duty an embassy has to their citizens overseas. Nobody is saying they have to do something, just that it would be nice if they did.

 

Again, by all means, let stereotypes run your lives. Hate all of us who moved here, for whatever reason, solely because we're Americans. If it lets you sleep better up in your tower, then more power to you 

 

[Taboo2]

On 6/1/2021 at 9:41 AM, phills2k1 said:

Anyone else laughing at the absurdity of this post coming from someone that goes by the name of Taboo2? 

 

Would love to know how bummed he was when he discovered that Taboo1 was already taken. I bet the bar girls really caught an ear full that day...

 

  Some of us Americans, believe it or not, are not whiners, do not fee entitled, work hard, and find a way to survive without depending on the Embassy.  If those Americans in Thailand who are crying for special treatment would do some homework, they would know that the US Embassy's role is not to facilitate the distribution of vaccines in another country, other than for its embassy workers!

 

 

Edited June 2, 2021 by onthedarkside
trolling comment removed

[Jingthing]

Of course any nationality may comment here but at the end of the day this topic concerns only Americans. We know other nationalities have requested similar help from their embassies but except for perhaps the EU, this issue is nationality dependent.

 

A few reasons why I think that probably most Americans expats think our embassy should help include:

 

the USA now has a massive surplus of doses and is set to send them abroad.

 

So our own citizens abroad can't get a piece of that?

 

That the US is very unusual in requiring its expats to file and pay taxes and report foreign accounts.

 

So they really haven't forgotten about us when it comes to our obligations. They still have us by the short hairs.

 

So a little help in a hundred year pandemic doesn't really seem an unreasonable ask.

Edited June 1, 2021 by Jingthing

[oslooskar]

3 hours ago, TigerandDog said:

No anger just a lifetime of experiencing yanks who think they are superior to everyone else and expect priority treatment for everything.

If you didn't have such a king-sized inferiority complex you wouldn't be the least bit concerned about what Americans think, nor would you be trying to find fault with everything they do.

[frantick]

Not to turn this political, but notice that letter came from expat 'Democrats'. Gimme, gimme, gimme.

 

How anyone could move to a foreign place, especially like Thailand, and expect to be nannied by their home country is beyond me.

 

And to the poster asking about Medicare; outpatient services will NOT be covered unless you're paying the monthly premium. Inpatient is mostly covered and there is no premium you have to pay.

 

Just barricade yourself in your condo and come out when vaccines are available to expats if you're that worried. Or wait it out like the rest of us.

[oslooskar]

29 minutes ago, frantick said:

How anyone could move to a foreign place, especially like Thailand, and expect to be nannied by their home country is beyond me.

How does wanting access to vaccines equate to expecting to be nannied?

[Jingthing]

13 hours ago, frantick said:

Not to turn this political, but notice that letter came from expat 'Democrats'. Gimme, gimme, gimme.

 

How anyone could move to a foreign place, especially like Thailand, and expect to be nannied by their home country is beyond me.

 

And to the poster asking about Medicare; outpatient services will NOT be covered unless you're paying the monthly premium. Inpatient is mostly covered and there is no premium you have to pay.

 

Just barricade yourself in your condo and come out when vaccines are available to expats if you're that worried. Or wait it out like the rest of us.

 

You did turn it political.

Edited June 2, 2021 by onthedarkside
trolling comment removed

[Jingthing]

1 minute ago, oslooskar said:

How does wanting access to vaccines equate to expecting to be nannied?

Wanting access to vaccines is a very responsible thing.

[waders123]

19 hours ago, sqwakvfr said:

Waders123:

 

I never said that:" you are NOT entitled to Catastrophic assistance from the US government?  "

 

So Thailand is currently in a Catastrophic State???

Your words; not mine.  Please go back and read carefully what was written.   Stop twisting what is stated into a drama statement for entertainment.

[phills2k1]

1 hour ago, oslooskar said:

How does wanting access to vaccines equate to expecting to be nannied?

What's even more astounding is that people in here are acting like Americans are saying we should be moved to the front of whatever any line there is. Now if people in this article were saying Americans should jump to the front of the line once American vaccines enter the fray, I'd be the first one to say how messed up that is.

 

But that's not the case here. It was people saying "it would be nice if the US embassy took care of their citizens overseas. Just like the Brits said in the aforementioned article.  And just like I'm sure most other citizens would like as well.

 

It's an incredibly simple point that's lost and being ridiculously misconstrued by so many here (although I would assume it's done so intentionally by many), solely because they get to feed whatever anti-American sentiments they've been harboring for so long

[sqwakvfr]

I don't do Drama and I am not an Entertainer.  

[JohnFlory]

I checked the Channel News Asia article again this morning regarding US vaccines given for South Korean military. The following passage that was included last night has been edited out.

 

"Authorities designated the vaccine for military-related personnel, including reserve forces and the civil defence corps, as well as people planning overseas business trips or diplomatic missions."

 

No mention of why.  https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/south-korea-covid-19-vaccination-johnson-and-johnson-vaccine-14925606

[Presnock]

On 5/31/2021 at 9:41 PM, Liverpool Lou said:

So, presumably, you think that every country should be making arrangements to vaccinate all it's citizens wherever they may be?  A logistical nightmare.   

 

Or do you think that is it just Americans, worldwide, that should be looked after in that special way?

China has already asked the Thai govt to assist them in vaccinating all the Chinese in Thailand.  If a Communist country can do it with more overseas people than the US (in my opinion) then yes, if a country has the money and vaccines, they should take care of their people, especially if those people help fund the development of the vaccines through their annual TAXES!

[Presnock]

21 hours ago, oslooskar said:

Truly Amazing! I was just discussing that very same idea with my son last night at dinner. However, in all fairness I think some of us American expatriates living here in Thailand should first draft a letter to our president and representatives requesting Covid-19 vaccines and then send it to them. In that way they will not be able to say they were not informed of our situation. 

Several organizations that represent Americans living overseas have already petitioned the govt through official channels but so far nothing in response!

 

[Presnock]

18 hours ago, bkkcanuck8 said:

No, It is not...  The reasons for all the precautions have to do with PPE / hand washing etc... is to keep it from becoming one with regards to overwhelming the health care system to the point where the mortality rate of 1% or so becomes 3%.   COVID is another risk factor for a future pandemic that is more deadly and virulent (but not in the short term - maybe 20 or 30 years).    Even with this 'deadly' pandemic, the population of the world managed to go up again last year...  Deadly pandemics (I mean real deadly) actually significantly reduce the world population during it's 'rein of terror'.   It can be devastating to one person, one family etc... and of course impact the economy.... but it still does not rise to being catastrophic.   In effect this is a normal health crisis.  If you were riding a motorcycle and were hospitalized with injuries that are life threatening, it is not the responsibility of the US government to come to your rescue... You have moved to Thailand and accepted as part of that a health / administration that may not be on par with the one you left.  You are expected to get your own insurance, hospitalization in the local hospital system... if you need a medical evacuation - the government expects you were responsible for your own insurance etc.  That goes with pretty much all heath emergencies, you accepted the risks of moving to another jurisdiction and that jurisdictions health system is what you accepted by doing so.   The rollout of the immunization for the public is what you are covered by (signups for non-thai id people starting June 7th).  If you want the choice of the vaccine instead of having it chosen for you... you will likely have to wait til Sept./Oct.  (I expect pressure to possible pull it back in time a little since there are many well connected Thais that would prefer vaccination by Moderna).   

Well, in my opinion when a country shuts schools, malls, hotels, just about everything except food and drug stores especially like Thailand that depends on tourism for a chunk of their monies earned then I would say yes Thailand like so many other countries is in a catastrophic state.

 

[Presnock]

16 hours ago, sqwakvfr said:

Definition of catastrophe

 

1: a momentous tragic event ranging from extreme misfortune to utter overthrow or ruinDeforestation and erosion can lead to an ecological catastrophe.

2: utter failure : FIASCOthe party was a catastrophe

3a: a violent and sudden change in a feature of the earth

b: a violent usually destructive natural event (such as a supernova)

4: the final event of the dramatic action especially of a tragedy

 

The Utter Failure and Fiasco can describe certain aspects of the Vaccine rollout??? I do not think we have reach 4 yet> 

 having gone through volcano eruptions, 9.0 earthquakes, tsunami, govt overthrows, etc in foreign countries around the world and none ever had to shut down the entire country and keep it shut down for many months!  My opinion anyway BASED on exeperience

[Liverpool Lou]

1 hour ago, Presnock said:

China has already asked the Thai govt to assist them in vaccinating all the Chinese in Thailand.  If a Communist country can do it with more overseas people than the US (in my opinion) then yes, if a country has the money and vaccines, they should take care of their people, especially if those people help fund the development of the vaccines through their annual TAXES!

I agree with you.  My point, though, was if the US is forced to concede to demands and provide vaccinations to it's expat citizens, shouldn't every country be compelled to do the same?   As things stand now, no country has that obligation.

[Berkshire]

6 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

I agree with you.  My point, though, was if the US is forced to concede to demands and provide vaccinations to it's expat citizens, shouldn't every country be compelled to do the same?   As things stand now, no country has that obligation.

Come on, this is about the USA only, not every other country.  And we're not talking about an "obligation."  The US GOV wasn't "obligated" to send me $1,400...on top of the $1,800 they sent previously for COVID relief.  It's more like a goodwill gesture.  The amount of money the US GOV has spent on COVID boggles the mind.  Their goal right now is to get everyone vaccinated.  Well, we agree and are happy to comply.  Just need a little assistance...:-)

[frantick]

8 hours ago, phills2k1 said:

As for the "we're so tough we don't need our Embassy to help us" Americans that are posting about this, it's easy to be tough when you've already caught so many diseases that covid stays away from you to begin with

There was a benefit from playing in the dirt as a child.

[placnx]

58 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

I agree with you.  My point, though, was if the US is forced to concede to demands and provide vaccinations to it's expat citizens, shouldn't every country be compelled to do the same?   As things stand now, no country has that obligation.

Very few countries have excess vaccines and the facilities in Thailand to be able to do the same. Thailand is not compelling any country to vaccinate its citizens on Thailand, and why would that change if the US were able to do so?

[Liverpool Lou]

48 minutes ago, Berkshire said:

Come on, this is about the USA only, not every other country.  And we're not talking about an "obligation."  The US GOV wasn't "obligated" to send me $1,400...on top of the $1,800 they sent previously for COVID relief.  It's more like a goodwill gesture.  The amount of money the US GOV has spent on COVID boggles the mind.  Their goal right now is to get everyone vaccinated.  Well, we agree and are happy to comply.  Just need a little assistance...:-)

Come on, this isn't about Covid relief funding  (but, as you brought it up, once the government announced that  Covid relief would be provided, it sure was obligated to send it to you).

 

I agree with your compatriots' case but my point was that if Americans force their government's hand, every other nations' expats will be pushing for the same thing and don't think that governments haven't been having that conversation with each other.

 

 

[Liverpool Lou]

9 minutes ago, placnx said:

Very few countries have excess vaccines and the facilities in Thailand to be able to do the same. Thailand is not compelling any country to vaccinate its citizens on Thailand, and why would that change if the US were able to do so?

"Very few countries have excess vaccines and the facilities in Thailand to be able to do the same".

No country needs "excess vaccine" in order to vaccinate all it's nationals, it just needs to procure enough vaccine and has an obligation to do so. Finding the facilities to provide the vaccinations in Thailand would not be a big problem if they wanted to do it.

 

"Thailand is not compelling any country to vaccinate its citizens on Thailand..".

I know, I didn't say that it was.

[onthedarkside]

Several off-topic post straying away from discussion of vaccines have been removed.

 

[oslooskar]

38 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

if the US is forced to concede to demands and provide vaccinations to it's expat citizens, shouldn't every country be compelled to do the same?

That's for the citizens of each country to decide and really no concern of mine.