Health insurance

[georgegeorgia]

I dont think i will bother with medical/health insurance when i retire to Asia .

I will take out "accident " type insurance and self fund the rest.

 

If i get something major i will head back to Australia and use the free hospital system,not that the Public Hospital system  is any better though .

There doesnt seem much they can do for you anyway once you get the big C.

 

Both my pparents died from Cancer and unfortanetely both over 80 so the Public system didnt prioritise them for chemo treatment ,i imagine if you pay privately  though they will do it even if there is no hope.

But even in your own country once you get elderly they seem hesitant to give you Chemo,whether thats for your quality of life sometimes or they just prioritise to someone younger ,i bet on the latter.

 

Im going to tell you something though ,i have seen cases personally of terminal ill patients getting radiotheraphy and they didnt even turn the machine on n the public system because the patient was too terminal so dont think because you pay expensive insurance that somehow they will CURE your condition

 

I watched a famous pattaya you tuber die last year so have no faith in the treatment in Thailand even though he seemed to be paying before he went back at the last minute to the UK.

 

Some of you are paying ludicrous prices for health insurance ,im not sure if you have a "excess" to pay as well,in the case i mentioned above and i mention no names as per the forum rules he in hindsight should of gone back to the UK ....but ...they probaly couldnt of done much more anyway but he would of saved money

 

Accident insurance yes ,but im hesitant to waste 120,000 baht a year on top cover i may never use,look i know some of you dont have free public hospital system in your own country eg I think the USA ,so i understand,but the rest of us have free health system in our own country even if its not the best, 

 

how many of you have had problems with the health insurance companies or hospitals? im even sick of paying health insurance here in Australia and probaly will just rely free on the public system soon,im paying over $200 every month for what ? im thinking the other nigh getting arm pain from this vaccine i call a ambulance they will take me to emergency section at a public hospital anyway as theres no emergency at private hospitals ,so this is the same in Asia ,how many private hospital have a "emergency" section?  Bangkok pattaya hospital doesnt as far as i know

 

As this is more a "Asia" forum now than just a thai focused forum i would be interested in you guys living in Laos,phillipines ,indonesia etc and if you have private health insurance and quality of hospital services where you live ,in fact there are farangs in Pattaya who talk highly of the Public Navy hospital all for free 

 

Who has used the public system in Thailand/Asia ?

[scubascuba3]

Axa personal accident insurance is 6,900 baht a year for 250,000 baht medical cover per accident, can get double that.

 

I kinda agree with health insurance but you need money as backup, in an emergency money will need to be transferred quickly if you want decent care

[2ndhomepattaya]

In principal I agree with you that "our" healthcare system in Europe can be used as a backup.

That is if you manage to get there in the first place.

There are situations where this is no longer possible.

And that don't necessarily mean accident but a simple TIA or stroke will do it. With that you wont go anywhere in a hurry.

and even that "minor although even TIA is not minor" treatment will set you back some serious dosh.

Sp, better have plenty of money in the safe.

2 years ago by brother-in-law fell over some mosquito netting in the bedroom during the night and fell on his A. and broke his hipbone. Luckily, he had insurance and it cost them 70k EURO to fly home back or treat him here for months. So, the doctor came here to fly him home.

 

[ezzra]

1 hour ago, georgegeorgia said:

If i get something major i will head back to Australia and use the free hospital system,not that the Public Hospital system  is any better though .

There doesnt seem much they can do for you anyway once you get the big C.

I'm insured in OZ with Mildura health fund, good people, good coverage at a very reasonable rates..

http://www.mildurahealthfund.com.au/

[Mike Teavee]

I used to think that way but reading all the "Go Fund Me Threads" about guys taken ill suddenly who couldn't get back home & reading about Kev In Thailand (Don't see why there's a problem mentioning his name) who left it too late to get insurance & had to go home, I changed my mind.

 

There are loads of things aside from the Big C that might require hospital treatment (obvious ones being heart attack, stroke etc...)  & it's all well and good saying that you'll keep a pot of money aside to cover this but how much is enough (1Million, 5Million, 10Million?) and what do you do when this is depleated by the 1st incident & you can no longer get insurance to cover a repeat of it happening (Pre-existing conditions).

 

Even if nothing happens to you & you live a charmed life, what will you do if they force Non-Imm O's to have Health Insurance like they did with Non-Imm OAs? - I know some guys go down the agent route to get around this but would you base your retirement on that still being an option in 10/15 years time when you might be too old to get Health Insurance (or certainly have to pay through the nose for it) & too old to resettle anywhere else?

 

I decided to get Health Insurance this year at 54 (actually started the day before my 55th birthday) & it costs approx 28,000 THB for the Pacific Cross "Visa Friendly" policy which meets the Non-Imm OA Visa Requirements minus the 40K outpatients (which I can add back in any time) but with 3.5Million cover not the paultry 400K, I did this as I wanted to get into it early(ish) so my premiums as I get older won't be as high as if I suddenly decide to get it at 64.

 

 

 

[jerrymahoney]

1 hour ago, georgegeorgia said:

but the rest of us have free health system in our own country even if its not the best, 

Yes -- however, when you really need it, you may not be in a condition to travel to the airport in Bangkok let alone back to your home country.

[scubascuba3]

25 minutes ago, 2ndhomepattaya said:

In principal I agree with you that "our" healthcare system in Europe can be used as a backup.

That is if you manage to get there in the first place.

There are situations where this is no longer possible.

And that don't necessarily mean accident but a simple TIA or stroke will do it. With that you wont go anywhere in a hurry.

and even that "minor although even TIA is not minor" treatment will set you back some serious dosh.

Sp, better have plenty of money in the safe.

2 years ago by brother-in-law fell over some mosquito netting in the bedroom during the night and fell on his A. and broke his hipbone. Luckily, he had insurance and it cost them 70k EURO to fly home back or treat him here for months. So, the doctor came here to fly him home.

 

In the real world people would have got treated here, no need to travel all the way back home

[scubascuba3]

10 minutes ago, Mike Teavee said:

 

 

you can no longer get insurance to cover a repeat of it happening (Pre-existing conditions).

 

Pre existing conditions are usually excluded including claim conditions by thai insurers

[georgegeorgia]

1 hour ago, ezzra said:

I'm insured in OZ with Mildura health fund, good people, good coverage at a very reasonable rates..

http://www.mildurahealthfund.com.au/

i looked at that website,i cant understand why someone would pay 102 a month to be a private patient in a public hospital????  They would treat you the same as the public patients .....my apologies to non residents of Australia if we are talking about health funds in Australia,its just some expats still  keep health insurance in their own country just in case

[LoeiI]

6 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Pre existing conditions are usually excluded including claim conditions by thai insurers

A quick question if you have a heart attack / stroke / accident or some other immediate situation would that then be classed as a pre-existing condition for the remainder of the policy or only when you renewed the policy next time ? I'm just thinking if it was something serious you would want continuous coverage for later years.  

I'm just pricing up health insurance and awaiting the detailed quotes looks like approx 100.000 baht per year for 1 million USD total coverage with CIGNA 60 years old does that seem reasonable ? Thanks in advance for any replies 

[Pravda]

Nice plan that on reality will never work out.

 

I'd say can't wait to see you begging for money, but I'm sure soon you won't be allowed to stay without comprehensive health insurance anyway.

[scubascuba3]

1 minute ago, LoeiI said:

A quick question if you have a heart attack / stroke / accident or some other immediate situation would that then be classed as a pre-existing condition for the remainder of the policy or only when you renewed the policy next time ? I'm just thinking if it was something serious you would want continuous coverage for later years.  

I'm just pricing up health insurance and awaiting the detailed quotes looks like approx 100.000 baht per year for 1 million USD total coverage with CIGNA 60 years old does that seem reasonable ? Thanks in advance for any replies 

It depends on the policy, for farangland policies I don't think they are even allowed to exclude them. In Thailand it seems "community" type insurers are best as premiums don't go up with claims, check if they cover for conditions claimed on. The price and cover of your Cigna looks pretty good, you need to read the small print in detail. At 70 it will probably cost 200,000 baht, it's important to know how high the premiums will go because if too high you'll cancel when you need it most

[4MyEgo]

8 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

I dont think i will bother with medical/health insurance when i retire to Asia .

That will be your choice, if you are going to self insure as you say you are, make sure you have access to at least 2-3 million baht to fall back on. I see private health insurance as protection against my savings, albeit it, it would cost you 4% of the upper self retirement funds savings you have put aside, i.e. if you have a claim for 3 million baht, as opposed to you forking out 3 million baht, taking into consideration if you wanted to be transported back to where you came from, Australia, which is usually covered in your policy.

 

8 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

If i get something major i will head back to Australia and use the free hospital system,not that the Public Hospital system  is any better though .

I don't think you have done your research thoroughly as you lose Medicare once you are outside of Australia for a certain period of time and you will have to re-establish your residency status (6 months) to get Medicare again while living in Australia.

 

8 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

Who has used the public system in Thailand/Asia ?

I have used public hospital's here a few times, in my opinion they are good for X-rays, drips, removing basil carcinoma's, stiches and the like, but as for diagnosing what you have, well from my experience, and only my experience, private hospitals are far better, many might disagree, and that's ok, I am going off of my experience and I haven't been around to all the public hospitals around Thailand.

 

At the end of the day, I pay that 4% of the upper self retirement savings quoted above, or 120,000 baht a year for those a little slow on the math, knowing that I am covered for up to 40 million baht, and I go to a private hospital of my choice, no long waiting periods, no long surgery waiting periods, better overseas trained English speaking doctors, advanced machinery/technology, pretty nurses, coffee/tea and biscuits while waiting 10 minutes to see the Dr. Do I care what the bill ends up being if I am admitted, no, I am paying for the policy so expect 5 star treatment, compliments of the insurer for whatever amount and no excess/waiver.

 

The above said for 330 baht a day, it's piece of mind for me and if I can't afford that kind of money per day for the best care when and if I need it, then I might as well not be here. I also get 90 days emergency cover in my home country when returning on holidays and 4 neighbouring countries here. I'm worth it and I can afford it, it all boils down to choice and personally when it comes to my health, I don't want some trainee diagnosing or treating me, call me a snob, if you have money, money give you choices, simple. 

 

[4MyEgo]

54 minutes ago, LoeiI said:

A quick question if you have a heart attack / stroke / accident or some other immediate situation would that then be classed as a pre-existing condition for the remainder of the policy or only when you renewed the policy next time ? I'm just thinking if it was something serious you would want continuous coverage for later years.  

I'm just pricing up health insurance and awaiting the detailed quotes looks like approx 100.000 baht per year for 1 million USD total coverage with CIGNA 60 years old does that seem reasonable ? Thanks in advance for any replies 

I had a heart attack in 2008, not sure what the policy would be of an insurer if you had a heart attack and then tried to renew the policy at a later date, e.g. would they cover you, if they did, would you pay a higher premium ?

 

I have insurance and am covered for a pre-existing condition, remember the old heart attack in 2008 above, well I had two insurers knock me back, then I found AA Insurance brokers here in Thailand, Wim found me an insurer who would cover me, subject to sighting documentation, follow ups etc etc from my Cardiologist and I pay $60 USD a month on top of the policy premium to cover my pre-existing condition.

 

I am just over 60 and am covered for 1.2 mil USD and the cost is 120,000 baht per year or 330 baht per day. 90 days emergency cover when returning to my home country and also covered in 4 neighbouring countries. 

 

Would never insure with a Thai company, too many bad stories that I have read.

 

If you would like AA Insurances details here PM me. Also the insurer covers you for life, they don't dump you down the line, although premiums will rise with age, it's a given. 

[BritManToo]

9 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

I dont think i will bother with medical/health insurance when i retire to Asia .

I will take out "accident " type insurance and self fund the rest.

 

Both my pparents died from Cancer and unfortanetely both over 80 so the Public system didnt prioritise them for chemo treatment ,i imagine if you pay privately  though they will do it even if there is no hope.

But even in your own country once you get elderly they seem hesitant to give you Chemo,whether thats for your quality of life sometimes or they just prioritise to someone younger ,i bet on the latter.

I thought the same about insurance.

Had Thai accident insurance (one of the big banks), had an accident, they refused to pay (apparently a broken jaw is cosmetic so not covered). Now I don't have any insurance.

 

Cancer, same with my parents but in their mid 60s, they had all the NHS treatment anyone could want, none of it worked and they still died in agony after being whittled away, irradiated and poisoned. I won't go that way, better to die from the cancer IMHO.

[BritManToo]

8 hours ago, Mike Teavee said:

Even if nothing happens to you & you live a charmed life, what will you do if they force Non-Imm O's to have Health Insurance like they did with Non-Imm OAs? - I know some guys go down the agent route to get around this but would you base your retirement on that still being an option in 10/15 years time when you might be too old to get Health Insurance (or certainly have to pay through the nose for it) & too old to resettle anywhere else?

Not a problem as I don't have 10-15 years left, more like 2-3, I'll accept death when it comes.

[BritManToo]

1 hour ago, 4MyEgo said:

I have used public hospital's here a few times, in my opinion they are good for X-rays, drips, removing basil carcinoma's, stiches and the like, but as for diagnosing what you have, well from my experience, and only my experience, private hospitals are far better, many might disagree, and that's ok, I am going off of my experience and I haven't been around to all the public hospitals around Thailand.

 

I am just over 60 and am covered for 1.2 mil USD and the cost is 120,000 baht per year or 330 baht per day. 90 days emergency cover when returning to my home country and also covered in 4 neighbouring countries. 

As far as my experiences go, the government and private hospitals are equally competent (as in not much). The government hospitals just charge a lot less for the same treatment, in lower quality surroundings.

 

I've paid about 20Kbht for assorted treatments in the past 12 years (broken jaw, gallstones, slashed leg, ongoing prostate treatments), so using your 120kbht/year as an estimate I saved myself 1.4Mbht so far ....... enough to pay off the mortgage on my house and buy everyone a new Honda Click (if I were daft enough to throw money around). 

 

I've nothing much to do, I can read my Kindle as easily sitting in the hospital as I can at home. Longest I've ever waited (non-emergency) is about 6 hours, if I were bleeding, it was treated immediately.

[4MyEgo]

41 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

(if I were daft enough to throw money around). 

It;s not about being daft, it's like why would I prefer to drive a BMW which I don't (used too), as opposed to a Fortuna, preference for one, or affordability for two, whilst I used to get a tax ride off for the BMW, today I wouldn't, so it might as well be a Fortuna, albeit it I don't drive that much so if I am not going to enjoy it as much as I used to, best left out of the equasion.

 

Your fortunate to not have had a serious emergency in that time, that is what this private health insurance is for more me, in case of an emergency, suffice to say, I would feel more confident in a private than in a public hospital personally and while I can afford to be daft, as you put it, it makes me feel securer.

 

While I can keep earning a crust from my investments and not draw down on my life savings, I am not paying for it, i.e. I am not paying to live here, the returns are paying for my retirement holiday so to speak.

 

The same scenario would apply to the occasional 5 star hotel that I might stay at, but that is rare because a 3 star is good enough for me, i.e. I don't want to over indulge, that said, my health and the care I receive is far more important to me that being treated in a public hospital here from my experience, besides I like the nicer surroundings, the prettier nurses and if I came down with Covid tomorrow, Buddha forbid it, I would rather be in a private than a public during my 2 weeks holiday with pretty nurses to observe giving me a hard on, just in case I don't survive it, if you follow my drift ????

 

 

 

[OneeyedJohn]

A 'hard on' and Covid, not a good mix.  You'll choke to death.

 

[Jeff Olssson]

I have followed this thread with interest since I was thinking of having a similar setup in a near future when I plan to spend about 6 months a year in Thailand.

 

I am not sure if travel insurance and accident insurance are the same but I am planning to get travel insurance from my home country which is a member of EU.  As far as I understand, if one has a travel insurance and needs emergency hospitalization, then the insurance will cover all costs until the person is in a condition that can be flown back home (if the insurance company decides that).  I am aware that the travel insurance will not cover planned health care but for such cases I was thinking I would go back home.

 

So I wonder what is the main problem with this setup?  Is it that in an emergency situation you need to have access to a substantial amount of money anyway to provide to the hospital even if you will get reimbursed from your insurance company later on? Would not hospitals in Thailand accept a valid certificate from the insurance company back home guaranteeing that the emergency costs will be covered?

 

[chakatee]

On 10/12/2021 at 6:07 AM, georgegeorgia said:

I watched a famous pattaya you tuber die last year so have no faith in the treatment in Thailand

right, you should only trust treatments in countries where nobody dies from cancer

[scubascuba3]

5 hours ago, Jeff Olssson said:

I have followed this thread with interest since I was thinking of having a similar setup in a near future when I plan to spend about 6 months a year in Thailand.

 

 

 

I am not sure if travel insurance and accident insurance are the same but I am planning to get travel insurance from my home country which is a member of EU.  As far as I understand, if one has a travel insurance and needs emergency hospitalization, then the insurance will cover all costs until the person is in a condition that can be flown back home (if the insurance company decides that).  I am aware that the travel insurance will not cover planned health care but for such cases I was thinking I would go back home.

 

 

 

So I wonder what is the main problem with this setup?  Is it that in an emergency situation you need to have access to a substantial amount of money anyway to provide to the hospital even if you will get reimbursed from your insurance company later on? Would not hospitals in Thailand accept a valid certificate from the insurance company back home guaranteeing that the emergency costs will be covered?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Travel insurance is the best and cheapest option if you spend under 6 months in Thailand. It seems common with this insurance that you pay and then make a claim. Some hospitals only deal with specific health insurers

[LoeiI]

8 hours ago, Jeff Olssson said:

I have followed this thread with interest since I was thinking of having a similar setup in a near future when I plan to spend about 6 months a year in Thailand.

 

 

 

I am not sure if travel insurance and accident insurance are the same but I am planning to get travel insurance from my home country which is a member of EU.  As far as I understand, if one has a travel insurance and needs emergency hospitalization, then the insurance will cover all costs until the person is in a condition that can be flown back home (if the insurance company decides that).  I am aware that the travel insurance will not cover planned health care but for such cases I was thinking I would go back home.

 

 

 

So I wonder what is the main problem with this setup?  Is it that in an emergency situation you need to have access to a substantial amount of money anyway to provide to the hospital even if you will get reimbursed from your insurance company later on? Would not hospitals in Thailand accept a valid certificate from the insurance company back home guaranteeing that the emergency costs will be covered?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the UK the maximum length of time i could find for travel insurance was 60 Days out of the country 

[scubascuba3]

8 minutes ago, LoeiI said:

In the UK the maximum length of time i could find for travel insurance was 60 Days out of the country 

In UK can get 90 days with travel insurance check travelsupermarket.com and other search engines. You can also get backpacker insurance, it's just a name, i got 9 months, again search engines will give options, think you can get more than a year but last time i looked had a max age

[Jeff Olssson]

Quote

54 minutes ago, LoeiI said:

In the UK the maximum length of time i could find for travel insurance was 60 Days out of the country 

I can buy up to one year but it is not cheap. For 6 months it costs about 55 000 THB.

[Jeff Olssson]

4 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Travel insurance is the best and cheapest option if you spend under 6 months in Thailand. It seems common with this insurance that you pay and then make a claim. Some hospitals only deal with specific health insurers

Thanks for your reply. As I mentioned in reply to another post, it is not that cheap for me but the advantage is that there is no age limit and the insurance is issued in Europe where the consumer protection is fairly strong.

 

I guess one could make arrangements with a few hospitals in advance to make sure that they accept the insurer.

[lopburi3]

OP seems to be misinformed regarding hospitals in Thailand.  I have never seen any better private hospital here without emergency room service - most have a fleet of ambulances and cardiac care units.  And it is sure good to have insurance if/when such care is needed.  

 

Public hospitals are not free for foreigners - much cheaper than private normally but there can be more trade offs than just physical settings.  In my case a cancer operation 5 years ago would have only been about 100k at a public hospital rather than the 1 million I paid at a private facility.  The deciding issue was wait time - I would likely not be here without the private option that insurance allowed.  

 

I understand many of us older folks do not have many options for insurance if not already have when younger - but for anyone at a reasonable age highly urge you to have and keep current (foreign sourced insurance that will cover living in other countries).  You can never depend on being able to medevac and most of us with families would not want to do it even if we could.  

 

 

[scubascuba3]

46 minutes ago, Jeff Olssson said:

 

I guess one could make arrangements with a few hospitals in advance to make sure that they accept the insurer.

Yes can email them, never know may get a decent reply. As i said before often you pay hospital and claim back with your travel insurance

[Mike Teavee]

12 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

In UK can get 90 days with travel insurance check travelsupermarket.com and other search engines. You can also get backpacker insurance, it's just a name, i got 9 months, again search engines will give options, think you can get more than a year but last time i looked had a max age

My father (in his 70's & has a couple of pre-existing conditions like diabetes & high blood pressure) seems to be unable to get anymore than 30 days travel insurance so I was interested to check out travelsupermarket.com to see if there was anything on there for a longer trip for him.

 

I don't know if it's just because of the Covid times we're in,  but I checked as a 60 year old with no pre-existing medical conditions traveling to Thailand for 6 months (1st March 2022 - 31 August 2023) & there were zero policies available. 

 

Long term Travel Insurance is not really a valid option as you get to retirement age. 

 

 

[scubascuba3]

1 hour ago, Mike Teavee said:

My father (in his 70's & has a couple of pre-existing conditions like diabetes & high blood pressure) seems to be unable to get anymore than 30 days travel insurance so I was interested to check out travelsupermarket.com to see if there was anything on there for a longer trip for him.

 

I don't know if it's just because of the Covid times we're in,  but I checked as a 60 year old with no pre-existing medical conditions traveling to Thailand for 6 months (1st March 2022 - 31 August 2023) & there were zero policies available. 

 

Long term Travel Insurance is not really a valid option as you get to retirement age. 

 

 

i just tried comparethemarket.com and got a quote for you easy, also check gocompare.com moneysupermarket.com try long term stay\backpacker insurance as well as travel insurance