5 minutes ago, clivebaxter said:

100k baht a year at 63, better to keep it and nip back to the Leicester Royal Infirmary when the need arises. 

The flights there back and the staying in the country would surpass that 100K Baht easily, unless it was after a 5 year period of saving the premiums, but then anything can happen to someone at anytime, and even flying back for treatment might not be doable.

2 hours ago, itsari said:

I have only had one experience of both private and government .

The government hospital was by far the best treatment. 

Clear difference was that the private hospitals are well overpriced and more comfortable . 

why was the govt hospital better?

1 hour ago, Gottfrid said:

Ok, just give me the figures of price for uninsured foreigner for two things:

 

Lung cancer operation

Kidney transplantation

After that you are also free to write if you consider the prices cheap and it will be wise to be uninsured with a low income and no means to handle expensive treatment just because you use a government hospital. It sure sounds like you do. 

Take a look your self on the different prices between the two entities and then tell me i am wrong .

What financial situation i am in has nothing to do with what I am saying and quite frankly that has nothing to do with you either.

26 minutes ago, bbabythai said:

why was the govt hospital better?

In my case the surgeon was far more experienced than the private hospitals and a whole lot cheaper .

 

15 hours ago, Gottfrid said:

Do not stay in a country without insurance if you do not have the money to pay. If you can´t afford insurance. Stay home!

My insurance back home was $500/month with a $5,000 deductible, and they only paid 80% after that. Much cheaper here.

 

Staying home was not a good option.

13 hours ago, timendres said:

And how many people died today with insurance?

 

The real risk is not death.

The real risk is having a lifetime of savings wiped out by a serious illness.

that is exactly what happens in the usa and healthcare/insurance  over and over .. you are better off poor in this situation 

13 hours ago, timendres said:

And how many people died today with insurance?

 

The real risk is not death.

The real risk is having a lifetime of savings wiped out by a serious illness.

The answer to that is keep your savings in the bank of your home country and only enough for your living expenses here in Thailand. They can't take what you haven't got.

17 hours ago, bubblegum said:

That's what basically happened to a friend of mine. No money for ICU, no money for a transfer from Surin hospital to BKK. By, by die !

That's unfortunately how it is - no money, no honey - if you cannot accept that, you should stay home in you home country.

5 minutes ago, khunPer said:

That's unfortunately how it is - no money, no honey - if you cannot accept that, you should stay home in you home country.

There’s very little on forums that I find more annoying than when someone tells another person they should stay in their home country.  

Just now, Leveraged said:

There’s very little on forums that I find more annoying than when someone tells another person they should stay in their home country.  

It is usually the "I'm alright, Jack" type....????

5 hours ago, 4MyEgo said:

Agree 1000%.

 

Again agree 1000%, and for as little as 200-300 baht a day for cover of up to 40 million baht, I can't see why people don't insure, i.e. unless they can't due to age.

 

Even those that money should see insurance as a fundamental requirement in my opinion, as it not only provides you protection, it also protects the money you have, so it works two ways in my opinion.

 

I think if older folk cannot afford 200-300 baht per day or cannot get insurance here due to age, then they should self insure i.e. have at least 2-3 million baht as a fall back position, and if they haven't got the dosh to do so, they as you say, they take the gamble/choice, sadder if they don't have the money to self insure.

"Again agree 1000%, and for as little as 200-300 baht a day for cover of up to 40 million baht, I can't see why people don't insure, i.e. unless they can't due to age."

I would have been more than happy to pay that when I first came to Thailand 15 years ago, I did not have any existing health conditions then and still don't have.

I am damned if I am going to pay the money grabbing insurance companies and their hard to understand legal jargon for years, claims or not, and then my insurance cancelled because of age.

2 minutes ago, transam said:

It is usually the "I'm alright, Jack" type....????

That's the ticket.  Top post of the day

Regarding public versus private hospitals:
There's something to be said for both.
About a dozen years ago it was recommended to me by the ophthalmologist in a private hospital that I undergo an operation to remove what was described as a "para-retinal membrane".  It involved drilling two holes, one on either side of the eye-ball, to give access to the instruments to be used.  The cost was quoted as about 80K baht, plus the cost to purchase the instruments.  I said that was too much.  So he suggested I go to a public hospital attached to a medical university.  

The public hospital was packed.  The waiting to be interviewed took many hours.  But when I finally got to see the ophthalmologist it was the same person as before, and the cost was half that quoted before.  I arranged for the operation.

But then by chance, I met on a bus journey a Thai woman whose mother had an operation to improve her sight and it had blinded her in that eye.  I also discovered that 3% of eye operations - in the U.S. - result in blindness.  I cancelled the operation.  And do not regret it.

5 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

OP, its the same all over the world, there isn't really any such thing as free healthcare, its either tax funded, insurance funded or personally funded. 

I don't think any insurance is going to pay for a transfer from Surin to bangkok.

Of course not, they use legal jargon and small print to try and avoid paying out claims. If Thailand and other countries without "free" healthcare could arrange a fair insurance only using public hospitals which lasts until you die, that would be the way to go.

6 hours ago, itsari said:

What about stay away from private hospitals? Big savings to be had there .

But some posters here like them 'coz you get a 'free' coffee. 

5 hours ago, 4MyEgo said:

if you have ever had any experience here in public hospitals,

Yep had 5 weeks in one and couldn't fault them at all. 

Just get travel insurance which will cover preexistings the only drawback being cover stops when you are capable of being repatriated which they pay for. Cover possible 75 plus.

6 hours ago, 4MyEgo said:

doctors/specialists/professors are trained, either here in Thailand or abroad, and whether they speak English. 

I have never found a doctor that does not speak English and all the specialists i have met, work for private hospitals, but do one day a week in the govt. ones.

As one who had major cancer surgery scheduled at a government hospital but had to have at a major private hospital can give an example of cost several years ago:

Government 80,000 plus medications and room if available.

Private 1,000,000 all included.

 

Government hospital team was recommended by private hospital doctor but was unable to operate due no ICU available - wait for new queue would have been months (and cancer was advancing so not an option).

 

So yes both government and private fill needs.  And you do not always have a good choice.  Insurance is highly desirable for that reason alone.

4 hours ago, bubblegum said:

Mine does

 

If required for the treatment they all will.

14 minutes ago, chilly07 said:

Just get travel insurance which will cover preexistings the only drawback being cover stops when you are capable of being repatriated which they pay for. Cover possible 75 plus.

Not much use if you're living away from your home country.

5 hours ago, 4MyEgo said:

For starters, they really shouldn't be here.

 

The problem with most expats that I know is that insurance is readily available to them for a couple of hundred baht per day, however they choose to look the other way for the price of a couple of bottles of Chang per day, they enjoy that more than an insurance policy, will never happen to them, but when it does, it won't be pretty.

 

But as Antonymous said in his above post, it's all about choice, but I will also add education to that.

What annoys me is that you among others always think that saying go back home is the answer.

 

It isn't.

 

What to do about my Thai family plus all the assets here in Thailand.

 

Where to live in the UK? I gave up the house I was living in to my first wife so where would I/we live?

 

If I could get my Thai wife and son into the UK on a settlement visa and I were to die  (I am 77) before they had lived there for 5 years, she would be deported back to Thailand and possibly my son also though he has a UK passport.

 

I have a son, DIL and 2 grandchildren in the UK. Do you suggest that we live with them. Perhaps I should register with the council where I live and demand instant accommodation plus a car to get around in. We would probably end up in some grotty bed and breakfast place until I die and my wife and son get kicked out of the UK.

 

Before suggesting to people that they should go back to the country they came from, think about what happens IF they go back.

 

I haven't said anything about the NHS because though it applies to me I know that my Thai wife will have to pay, and probably my son also, as he has never lived in the UK (he is 17) and has no NI number.

 

 So would fare as a family If I had to go back to the UK? Of course I could always walk away and leave my wife of 21 years and my 17 year old son for the Thais to take care of.

i have a heart problem ,was not well my family took me to a private hospital ,1 night in a nice room ,couple of tests 52k, then offto Chonburi govt  heart hospital nice ward  loads of tests ,medications etc etc , about 9k for 3 nights ,had much better testing etc in govt hospital ,by the way our son booked me in with my pink card. private hospital 1 baby asprin 27 bht ,govt hospital 3 months supply of 6 different meds 1590 bht .

3 hours ago, clivebaxter said:

100k baht a year at 63, better to keep it and nip back to the Leicester Royal Infirmary when the need arises. 

You think the NHS will save you? I worked for the NHS and had 2 friends get cancer in their 50s. Both were dead within a year.

The problem with private hospitals vs government hospitals argument is assuming that you will have a choice. If you have a medical emergency and end up at a private hospital, you’re assuming that you’ll be in a stable condition with time on your side to “hospital shop” for the best rates for your care. 
 

It’s why insurance is important. Sure you can pay for scheduled surgeries and shop around for operations at the best rates because you’re paying cash, but that logic doesn’t work if you’re in a medical emergency and need care immediately and at the closest facility. 

2 hours ago, itsari said:

In my case the surgeon was far more experienced than the private hospitals and a whole lot cheaper .

 

In your case, the surgeon, in 99% of cases, works at both private and government hospitals at the same time. 

3 hours ago, fredscats said:

Why the hell anyone would stay in Thailand for that lot,  yes number one  a punter I knew  100 quid a week,utterly useless went back home quick quick,another same thing    did a Go fund me    still went back quick quick,wasted more bucks than soft Joe on insurance   There are many things not included in insurance,unlimited aftercare for one,specified time only

 

Just had peek at kidney transplant price  nearby country     8000 quid   think Ill pay out of own pocket thanks  then a plane to back 'ome

The big problem here is that you never understood or bothered to read my initial post in this thread. I that post I wrote following:
 

17 hours ago, Gottfrid said:

Do not stay in a country without insurance if you do not have the money to pay. If you can´t afford insurance. Stay home!

If you did not understand what you read, I will make it simple. What I mean is that you should not be uninsured if you can not pay. That also means if you can not even pay for and insurance you should stay home. What in the world is wrong with that? That @itsari do not get that a person who can´t pay 2-4k for an insurance depending one the age factor is not my problem. Anyway, thank for checking up the 8k price. Maybe itsari will get it now. ????

2 hours ago, itsari said:

Take a look your self on the different prices between the two entities and then tell me i am wrong .

What financial situation i am in has nothing to do with what I am saying and quite frankly that has nothing to do with you either.

As everything you try to say to me, has nothing to do with my first post you mean. Never said that you can´t pay if you have the money.

15 minutes ago, Leveraged said:

In your case, the surgeon, in 99% of cases, works at both private and government hospitals at the same time. 

That maybe the situation . Obviously for a different rate . 

22 minutes ago, Leveraged said:

The problem with private hospitals vs government hospitals argument is assuming that you will have a choice. If you have a medical emergency and end up at a private hospital, you’re assuming that you’ll be in a stable condition with time on your side to “hospital shop” for the best rates for your care. 
 

It’s why insurance is important. Sure you can pay for scheduled surgeries and shop around for operations at the best rates because you’re paying cash, but that logic doesn’t work if you’re in a medical emergency and need care immediately and at the closest facility. 

If you are conscious after a accident make sure the ambulance driver takes you to the hospital you want . Often the driver will take you to a private hospital where he will get money for his troubles when you are a foreigner . 

The law says they are meant to take you to the nearest government hospital .