What Does It Cost

[darrenr]

Does anyone know ball park figures of what it costs to have hospital treatment for some of the major illness or injuries such heart complaints, kidneys, knee reconstruction, hip replacement, general surgery etc

Just trying to figure out if the costs of the premiums are worth it as opposed to paying yourself?

[ThaivisaInsurance]

The cost depends on where you are in Thailand and what type of hospitals you wish to use.

The easiest way is to go to the hospital you want to use and ask their International department for a list.

[richardt1808]

Hi,

Totally agree with the advice above. If you are admitted to a government hospital, the costs are extremely low. But, they often dont have the most modern equipment such as scanners etc and of course the staff generally dont speak english. Also, because of the often very long waiting lists, you will be in a long line for all appointments, and surgeries and specialist treatments are often scheduled weeks or months in advance.

There are middle-of-the road hospitals which will be a little better in terms of equipment and facilities but there will often still be language problems. Language is not to be underestimated... imagine being asked in formal Thai whether you need to go to the bathroom and not being able to understand. I have been living here for 10 years and speak Thai fluently, but had never had occasion to use the more formal sentence so I didnt know what the nurse was trying to say.

If you go to any of the large private hospitals, you will have truly first-world treatment and all of the staff speak English and several other languages, but the costs are also commensurately higher. If you are not covered by medical aid or some kind of personal accident insurance, you would need to have 100,000 Baht handy in the event of even a small surgery.

I'd strongly suggest that you get some kind of cover

[FM505]

My experience at the Bumrangrad hospital emergency room yielded rather incomplete information and even more evasive responses to direct queries... cost of an IV, various tests they were advocating, others escape my memory (18 months ago).

[ThaivisaInsurance]

My experience at the Bumrangrad hospital emergency room yielded rather incomplete information and even more evasive responses to direct queries... cost of an IV, various tests they were advocating, others escape my memory (18 months ago).

"Bumrangrad hospital emergency room" ? - may we suggest the International department as the best for information ?

[jazzbo]

Surgical Packages at Bangkok Hospital -- mainly for Coronary:

http://www.bangkokhospital.com/eng/SurgicalPackages.aspx

Also, Ramkhamhaeng Hospital Group gives some orthopedic (Hip and knee replacement) pricing: http://www.ramhospital.com/

I'd strongly suggest that you get some kind of cover . Concur. ... you would need to have 100,000 Baht handy in the event of even a small surgery. And then they would hound you unmercifully for more.

Edited January 2, 2010 by jazzbo

[darrenr]

thanks everyone for the information. looked at BUPA platinum cover states it does not cover your for pre existing conditions ?? I have high blood pressure and cholesterol ( no heart disease etc)

[thaiericsweden]

There are many Thai insurance companies (Life ins. and Non-life ins.) offering some form of health insurance.

The choice all depends on your budget.

The range is from a few thousand a year to over 100,000 Baht a year for comprehensive cover.

You can spend time contacting various insurance companies for comparative quotes or you can let a broker do this for you.

It costs nothing extra.

In addition to saving time, the broker is able to prequalify a variety of insurance companies from their experience.......less time wasted contacting companies that have little or nothing to offer in terms of health insurance.

Pre-existing Conditions are normally not covered:

(exceptions only if agreed by underwriters of certain insurance companies)

Items 1. to 6. describing pre-existing conditions are all linked together as if they are in one sentence...

1. Any medical condition or related condition for which you have received treatment.

2. Or medical condition that you had symptoms of.

3. Or to the best of your knowledge knew this condition existed.

4. Or sought advice for this condition.

5. Or taken (prescription or non-prescription) medication for treatment.

6. Prior to the start date of the insurance policy.

[hereforgood]

I was quoted 500K per hip for replacement at Bumrungrad