Generally people ditch health insurance sooner or later when it becomes unaffordable, it will only go higher.

 

If you ditch it, in an emergency use the 800k for healthcare costs, instead use an agent extension, circ 15k a year for retirement extension.

 

The other thing is, it's been mentioned before, you don't have to get treated, at 75 that's a good life, also just use govt hospitals

40 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

 

 

Not true.

 

Emergency medical treatment is immediately available....for anything non-urgent you just advise them that you have returned to live in England. In all honesty I doubt that you want to go back.

 

Absolutely no offence but you came to Thailand with inadequate financial resources. Only now is that appearing to be the case and you have managed 20 years on those resources. It is situation that is fairly typical of British expats..... state pension, minimal occupational pension and a bit of cash savings from selling up in the UK. You have enough without the insurance premium costs.

 

I am sure that 20 years ago you thought that you were well set for the future......especially with the exchange rate then around the 70 mark. The rate dropping to 40 represented a 40% decrease and would take a 75% increase to back to previous levels - that ain't going to happen. 

 

You are OK, but need an act of faith where continuing good health is concerned.

 

Live your life and enjoy the years you have left,

 

Thanks for the information about the UK hospital medical treatment. Yes I arrived in Thailand a divorced man who had sold up every thing back in the UK , thinking to my self ( after a few past holidays in Pattaya ) that Thailand was a paradise where I wanted to live in for ever. 

I wish I could be more positive and find an act of faith that would enable me to stop worrying and getting stressed out about my financial situation and the Cigna thorn in my side.

23 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

Generally people ditch health insurance sooner or later when it becomes unaffordable, it will only go higher.

 

If you ditch it, in an emergency use the 800k for healthcare costs, instead use an agent extension, circ 15k a year for retirement extension.

 

The other thing is, it's been mentioned before, you don't have to get treated, at 75 that's a good life, also just use govt hospitals

 

Thanks, I never thought about the ‘’ you don't have to get treated, at 75 that's a good life ‘’ .. Yes I suppose in some way at 75 years of age , why would you want to financially spend what little money you have left , by paying for private health insurance in the hope that doing so , may possibly keep you alive for another year or Two. You hit on a good point that after receiving the recent Cigna monthly increase, but what about all the coming future years of the Cigna monthly increases , just thinking about what next years Cigna increase will be, only gets me more stressed out 

 

8 minutes ago, Canoodler said:

 

Thanks for the information about the UK hospital medical treatment. Yes I arrived in Thailand a divorced man who had sold up every thing back in the UK , thinking to my self ( after a few past holidays in Pattaya ) that Thailand was a paradise where I wanted to live in for ever. 

I wish I could be more positive and find an act of faith that would enable me to stop worrying and getting stressed out about my financial situation and the Cigna thorn in my side.

 

 

You were right and have add 20 good years of retirement. 

 

 

Some people would give their right arm for that.

 

As much as I would hate to give up existing insurance, you are being priced out. You have enjoyed that cover for many years but now might be the time to reassess your priorities.

 

Enjoying the the time that is left - including getting a good night's sleep  -  would be my priority.  Previous decisions were not wrong and if you can accept that earlier premiums were not a waste of money, you should be able to live with cancellation of the health cover.

 

It is a shame but, at that old exchange rate of 70, you would have 3m+ behind you.

 

11 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

 

 

You were right and have add 20 good years of retirement. 

 

 

Some people would give their right arm for that.

 

As much as I would hate to give up existing insurance, you are being priced out. You have enjoyed that cover for many years but now might be the time to reassess your priorities.

 

Enjoying the the time that is left - including getting a good night's sleep  -  would be my priority.  Previous decisions were not wrong and if you can accept that earlier premiums were not a waste of money, you should be able to live with cancellation of the health cover.

 

It is a shame but, at that old exchange rate of 70, you would have 3m+ behind you.

 

 

The being priced out is some thing that is going to happen , even with the latest Cigna monthly payment of 18,500 Baht a month being a stress inducing factor, just thinking about what the Cigna monthly payments will increase to over the coming years is a very frightening thought .

I have approached Cigna and asked them if they have another health insurance product that they can offer me , that cost less than I’m currently paying. Their answer was No. I have shown what my current Cigna private health police covers .

1 minute ago, Canoodler said:

 

The being priced out is some thing that is going to happen , even with the latest Cigna monthly payment of 18,500 Baht a month being a stress inducing factor, just thinking about what the Cigna monthly payments will increase to over the coming years is a very frightening thought .

I have approached Cigna and asked them if they have another health insurance product that they can offer me , that cost less than I’m currently paying. Their answer was No. I have shown what my current Cigna private health police covers .

 

 

It seems to me that you can manage comfortably enough without the insurance premiums.

 

If you stop that cover just notionally allocate, say, 500k of your funds held for extension purposes for any medical emergency. 

1 hour ago, Lacessit said:

What is your BMI and pulse rate?

 

I recommend an EKG at least once, BP testing does not show up other heart conditions.

 Thanks, I am at hospital for a blood test in a few weeks so I will ask the doctor about having an EKG test.

Contact WR Life for an insurance quote.  I am 66 years old and pay 5,700 baht/month for $500,000 annual cover, including $10,000 death benefit (for a decent wake etc).  My premiums never increase because I never have claimed...

 

WR Life have some good and bad reviews.  I have no idea if they would pay out if I made a claim 🙂

2 hours ago, NoDisplayName said:

I believe not possible to use combined monthly pension income + bank deposit for your extension financials. 

Is this true for extensions based on retirement?

29 minutes ago, simon43 said:

Contact WR Life for an insurance quote.  I am 66 years old and pay 5,700 baht/month for $500,000 annual cover, including $10,000 death benefit (for a decent wake etc).  My premiums never increase because I never have claimed...

 

WR Life have some good and bad reviews.  I have no idea if they would pay out if I made a claim 🙂

The OP is 75 yo.

 

As I understand it, age 70 or 75 is the trigger point for steep premium increases. Some even refuse to renew.

 

Over 80, forget it. Actuaries would regard me as not worth the risk.

 

Why would I care whether I had a decent wake or not?

 

 

33 minutes ago, Peabody said:

Is this true for extensions based on retirement?

 

Retirement IS possible to combine, although may depend on office.  Some may be problematic.

3 hours ago, Canoodler said:

 

With my Cigna policy I have a deductible amount that I have to pay upfront of 1,000 GBP ( around 42,000.00 Baht )  . The Cigna policy covers me for up to 14 million Baht in any 1 year  .
 

 

As deductibles go, that's fairly low. But it all depends on your ability to absorb the deductible if you have a claim. Perhaps you could ask Cigna to quote you options with higher deductibles and see if they make sense for you. 

 

As others have said, you may also wish to consider self-insuring and rely upon government hospitals. Perhaps not ideal, but it is an option.

1 hour ago, Canoodler said:

 Thanks, I am at hospital for a blood test in a few weeks so I will ask the doctor about having an EKG test.

If you want to save money, get the tests done by a pathology lab. You are paying for the middleman doctor.

 

Almost every test gives the result, then a range of what is considered normal.

 

You are just as capable as any doctor of reading a document. The time to call in a medico is when you are outside normal levels, so medication can be prescribed to address the condition.

 

Sometimes, drugs are unnecessary - just changes in diet and exercise level.

3 hours ago, Canoodler said:

 

From what I understand if I return back to the UK and seek medical attention using the British NHS , to comply to access medical treatment , I may have to reside in the UK for a previous 6 months. The other thorn in my side would be locating accommodation in the UK ( all my family have passed away ) and paying for accommodation could be expensive 
 

You can register with a Dr on day one of your return, they may ask you if you intend to remain in the UK but that’s all. This should then entitle you to NHS treatment.

4 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

Have you tried shopping for a suitable but less expensive policy here?

At 75?

1 minute ago, Peter Crow said:

At 75?

Realized that, knowing it's not easy.

9 minutes ago, fredwiggy said:

Realized that, knowing it's not easy.

Insurers aren't stupid, any cover would be worthless

1 hour ago, Lacessit said:

The OP is 75 yo.

 

As I understand it, age 70 or 75 is the trigger point for steep premium increases. Some even refuse to renew.

 

Over 80, forget it. Actuaries would regard me as not worth the risk.

 

Why would I care whether I had a decent wake or not?

 

 

From what I recall, the company that I mentioned will consider new insurees up to 100 years old....

With Cigna, you can lower premium by accepting a deductible (excess) and/or copay option.  Of course, need to be sure you have enough savings to cover these out of pocket amounts.

 

I believe there is also a saving if you pay annually instead of monthly.

 

These measures will help, but it will still be a significant expense. My own health insurance (age 72) is my single largest exoenditure.

 

Premiums rise sharply as you reach older ages but so does the likelihood of a major claim.

 

How healthy you've been until now/whether you've had past claims, isn't what matters. It is what may lie ahead and at 75, very high odds of needing things like cataract surgery, prostate surgery, joint replacements. Abd much increased risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer. 

5 hours ago, Canoodler said:

Thanks, My health has always been very good, no real health problems or having to be an inpatient in a hospital, and my blood pressure has always been in the normal range. As for searching for a less expensive health insurance provider, at my age it was sorry , no or the premium cost was far higher than I'm currently paying 

 

Monitoring your health and realizing your condition is good means you may have fairly good expectations for the near and even mid term future. The one thing I worry about is some accident where you're clobbered in the middle of a crosswalk, have part of an overpass fall on you, or have your taxi run into an accident. 

5 hours ago, Canoodler said:

any thoughts or constructive advice on my above situation would be very welcome

Forget the health insurance it's a waste of money, and they probably would cancel or not pay out if you made a claim.

 

I've made it to 70 without health insurance, the government hospitals are fine, but there is a lot of waiting around, take a book and waiting problem solved.

 

Don't bother with tests, at 75 you're gonna die soon, and there's no putting it off. Doubt I've got much time left either.

17 minutes ago, John Drake said:

 

Monitoring your health and realizing your condition is good means you may have fairly good expectations for the near and even mid term future. The one thing I worry about is some accident where you're clobbered in the middle of a crosswalk, have part of an overpass fall on you, or have your taxi run into an accident. 

That's what personal accident insurance is for but in most cases you need to apply before 65, but then it continues into 70s like mine

I’d self insure—how much have you spent on insurance in 20y? Perhaps set aside what you’re currently spending on it for future potential issues and bookmark a good local gov hospital. Regards visa, don’t condone it but you could always go agent route and free up the 800…

1 hour ago, simon43 said:

From what I recall, the company that I mentioned will consider new insurees up to 100 years old....

You did say you had no idea if they would pay out on claims.

 

How many terms and conditions do you think they would "consider" for an 80 yo? What do you think the premiums would be?

The harsh reality is that with a frozen pension and rising costs, you're facing the financial squeeze many long-term expats encounter. Self-insuring may indeed be your most viable option, but explore alternatives first.

1 hour ago, Sheryl said:

I believe there is also a saving if you pay annually instead of monthly.

Cigna gave me a 10% discount for paying one time, in full.  Last year, I took the 4% discount for quarterly payments. They bill in dollars so depending on what currency you pay in,  the exchange rate also can be a factor.

51 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

You did say you had no idea if they would pay out on claims.

 

How many terms and conditions do you think they would "consider" for an 80 yo? What do you think the premiums would be?

As people get older their brain shrivels and get much more gullible even believing these insurers will pay a claim

5 hours ago, Lacessit said:

As I said in another post, government hospitals are surprisingly inexpensive.

 

Examples: 14 days in quarantine with COVID, did not pay a single baht.

 

Two nights in the Chiang Rai government hospital with bacterial pneumonia.

 

Intravenous IV. X'ray and ECG. 4 bedside consults with doctors who spoke very good English. 4-hourly nursing checks. Take home meds.

 

7000 baht, which I thought was a screaming bargain.

 

I have found the same re our local public hospital. Over the last 16 years since I retired here I have self-funded, and always used a private hospital for out- and in-patient treatment. However, earlier this year a chest infection developed into pneumonia and I once again was taken to the private hospital where I spent 2 days and nights in their ICU. Realising I would need a longer period of recovery I was taken to our local public hospital, where I spent 7 nights, 5 in a very comfortable private room with its own bathroom. It seemed to me that the medical care I received there was much the same as I would have expected in the private hospital, but for personal nursing care, without someone to fetch and carry for me I might have waited a long time for a nurse to wipe my bum. 

Relative costs:- 2 days/nights in ICU 120k baht, 7 nights at the public hospital 30k baht.

So my advice to the OP is, as most have suggested, stop paying the insurance and save as much as possible. Check out your local public hospital, maybe register with them, and when (not if) you have a health crisis make sure that the bloody ambulance takes you there and not to a private hospital where you can lose control of the costs very quickly.

59 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

As people get older their brain shrivels and get much more gullible even believing these insurers will pay a claim

The brain is like a glass, getting filled with memories, experience, and knowledge.

 

If I knew at age 20 what I know now, I would most probably be a billionaire.

2 hours ago, daveAustin said:

I’d self insure—how much have you spent on insurance in 20y? Perhaps set aside what you’re currently spending on it for future potential issues and bookmark a good local gov hospital. Regards visa, don’t condone it but you could always go agent route and free up the 800…

 

 

That is pretty much what I did. I didn't actually put money away every month but I knew that I would have a decent surplus so I eventually  'allocated' funds as a medical reserve. I have capped that one at 1.5m Baht (actually held in Premium Savings Bonds) although I could add to it if absolutely necessary. 

 

I also have credit cards with limits of 3m Baht+