What If You Are Sick?

[bronze]

If you are retired expats and get sick (more than minor injuries), do you return to your home countries?

I am wondering whether Thailand has a universal health care system. If they do, are foreigners eligible for it? If not, how expensive is it such as doctoor's visit, surgery etc compared to your home countries?

[udon]

Just to give you an idea..... broken leg, 3 hr op, 2 nights inside : 120,000 THB + outpatient fees and taxis to & from hospital +drugs.

Cheap, innit!

[opothai]

i've been to the hospitals for minor ailments, and even had oral work done and found it cheap so never claimed on the insurance but this is a bit of a shocker.

just re-read the post, oral work = the bonifide dentistry type oral work

Edited January 15, 2006 by opothai

[ding]

I try to tell Americans how good Thai medical services are. They flat don't beleive it!

Enter Bumrungrad.

Met by nicely uniformed staff.

Given choice of going directly to specialist -saving GP time and fees- or see a GP for diagnosis and recommendation.

Went right to EENT Dr.

Intake was very fast, registration card for hospital was fast.

4 min. wait and nurse took blood pressure and temp.

wait 6 min. and saw EENT Dr.

Back to EENT desk and given invoice and directions to cashier and pharmacy.

3 min wait cashier, paid $45 which included 4 prescriptions, hospital and Dr fee.

Waited 6-8 minutes and got meds just around the counter from cashier.

$45 and about 45 minutes.

In USA

Phone 12 places for basic travel vaccinations

Most had one shot, maybe 2. Some would have all shots but we would have to wait sveral weeks.

One place that had all 3 of them was $876

So, more shopping and found a travel boutique clinis that had them $465

Time on phone -on hold, pressing 3 now... 3.5+ hours.

And we were treated rudely as a matter of course. (except by the $876 place )

Knee reconstruction..., maybe motrgage the house and head to the states

[udon]

Worth a quick read, whether you are an Aussie or a Mongolian.....see the Case Studies.

http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/travel_insurance.html

[think_too_mut]

opothai, ding,

You are talking elective things. The original post is, as I read it, about circumstances when a situation is difficult. A complex surgery or serious treatment that may make you question thai health system, it's capabilities and cost against what you have at home.

[Ijustwannateach]

Was told by a friend who'd had it in the States that a routine lab test I'd had in a top private hospital here for about $30 would have been more like $300 in a U.S. public hospital. I don't think that's so bad...

"Steven"

[OldAsiaHand]

My experience over a good many years is that the cost of health care in Thailand is about 10-15% of the US cost for similar or identical procedures. Naturally costs have risen substantially here since, say, 1990, but the 10-15% ratio has remained pretty accurate.

As for the standard of care, it is not as high, of course, but it is pretty close. I agree with the prior posters that health care is delivered in Thailand in a more humanistic way than it is in the States (at least at the top of the food chain), but the fact is that on the whole Thai doctors are less rigorous and thorough than American doctors and less inclined to apply sophisticated diagnostic techniques. Still, the standard is more than adequate for almost all normal situations and improving all the time.

And you can't beat the cost......

[tavarich]

I had left hand carpel tunnel surgery done in the U.S. $5000.00

I had right hand done at Bumrungard $1000.00

I don't go back the states for medical anymore.

[ding]

opothai, ding,

You are talking elective things. The original post is, as I read it, about circumstances when a situation is difficult. A complex surgery or serious treatment that may make you question thai health system, it's capabilities and cost against what you have at home.

think too mut (a.k.a. chainsaw Dr),

You're right. I wanted to hint at that when I added this;

"Knee reconstruction..., maybe motrgage the house and head to the states"

I almost mentioned heart surgery, but a Thai lady from Philly had her bypass done in BKK and said there's a great heart hospital there.

Now, I wonder, I got this pain see... maybe you can take a look???

Edited January 17, 2006 by ding

[LindsayBKK]

My bf is a doctor, no problem

[sleepyjohn]

My frend had some sort of colon problem in the UK. THey put him on a 6 month waiting list. He came here for a break and it started going wrong. Went to Chiangmai Ram. You need to see the specialist urgently said the admitting doctor. He went out, came back and said "He's on the golf course but nearly done, can you wait a little while?". The specialist arrived after a moderate wait. "Can your girlfriend pick up your things?" he asked, I'd like to operate tomorrow morning. They put him in a very nice room with a spare couch his girlfriend could sleep on, and cable TV.

Next morning a colostomy to give the problem time to heal. Two months later a reversal and everything's been fine for three years.

Total something in the order of £2-3,000.

My friend's verdict...FANTASTIC! and the difference was it wouldn't have been allowed to get to the serious stage in Thailand as it was in Britain.

I had a virus and was admitted to CM Ram couldn't breathe in fact too much pain to lie down...was admitted and spent two nights....didn't die though I thought it was possible for a while. Total bill, emergency room, medicines, nursing and stay I think was about 15,000baht, a fair bit of which was for cultivation of samples.

I see American's worrying terribly about being able to pay for their healthcare, trying to pay insurance so they can go home for ops of they have to.

My feeling is this is itself very likely to affect their health.

Why not take a chance?

We all have to die sometime. You'll probably get good treatment here, but hey there's a chance it won't be the best. Take a chance and relax, and do it at Thai prices. If the worst comes to the worst hey you're missing all that old age stuff!

What's lacking, just occasionally, in expertise here is made up for in care and timeliness.

I have no insurance at all and guess that if I had really really big problems it could cost up to a small number of tens of thousands. Nasty but do-able, and most more likely serious scenarios might be more likely in the three noughts area.

I think the American medical profession should be lined up against a wall and shot along with the lawyers and start again....they are worse than normal criminals who only steal from healthy people.

cheers Sleepyjohn

Edited January 17, 2006 by sleepyjohn

[ding]

In America;

The number of people having in-hospital, adverse drug reactions (ADR) to prescribed medicine is 2.2 million.

The number of unnecessary medical and surgical procedures performed annually is 7.5 million.

The number of people exposed to unnecessary hospitalization annually is 8.9 million.

It is evident that the American medical system is the leading cause of death and injury in the United States.

The total number of (iatrogenic) deaths shown in the following table is 783,936.

(The 2001 heart disease annual death rate is 699,697; the annual cancer death rate, 553,251)

attribution

Edited January 18, 2006 by ding

[dutch]

It is all a question of calculation ( and a little bit luck I quess)

I just received the (new) offer of my long existing healthinsurance, who always stated:not to worry as they would insure me abroad too!

They did not lie

as from now (I paid 240 euro monthly last year); 609 euro /month

65 years old 831 " "\

70 " 1163 " "

75 " 1440

80 1551 " "

Very clear you're better of to put the money in the bank.( as long as you have a basic amount available at the moment!!)

Paid 45 years my insurance premium and because decide to retire in Thailand and a new law (per 1-1-2006) no more insurance. Any illegal entering holland at the moment is insured right away!!

[donna]

ive been hospitalised here a couple of times with malaria. the usual stay is 4 nights. max cost has been 60K.

another time was suspected malaria but they couldnt find anything. had CAT scans, millions of blood screens, ultrasounds, colonoscopy, x-rays etc. stayed in hospital for 1 week. 100K.

and yet another time i had to have arthroscopic surgery on my shoulder. overnight stay in hospital. 136K.

i received excellent care each time in bumrungrad. could not fault it at all. so, i say youre better off being sick here than at home. financially wise that is.

[astral]

I am not sure that foreigners qualify for the Thai 30 baht system.

Why should we?

Would we even want to?

I would never allow myself or my family to go to a Thai government hospital.

The private hospitals are another question, and as indicated above, are good and reasonably priced.

If you plan to retire, then go for a local health policy.

The premiums reflect the local price structure.

BUPA Blue Cross and Royal & Sun Alliance come to mind, but I am sure there are other.

[bronze]

Thank you for all the useful info.

Right now, I am outside Thailand but these will be very helpful for me to make a plan ahead.

Cheers

[sonthaya]

A few years back I suffered a serious heartproblem in Phuket, I was admittet to the Phuket International hospital around 2 AM , the doctor was ready when I arrived by ambulance, the treatment and service was fantastic, 4 days in intensive care and 2 days in a single room that looked like a 5 star hotel, the total bill 45000 bath, that's cheap they saved my life.

Edited January 18, 2006 by sonthaya