Poll: Expats, Do You Reckon That You Will Be Living In Thailand 10 Years From Now?

[saakura]

I don't think I will be here in ten years, my parents are now in their seventies and will to be looked after within the next few years.

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Your parents are blessed to have a son/daughter like you. A society where the children are not on hand to take care of their parents in their final years is really not a sign of progression.

[saakura]

I can't wait to leave this filthy [in so many levels] country. After doing time here for the company I work for I'll leave Thailand for the elderly male expats.

Sorry but looks like you have been shafted royally by a BG. Otherwise even with all her faults, Thailand does not deserve such a sweeping condemnation.

[geriatrickid]

Personally i would not want to be here in 10 years, HOWEVER in my case i am stuck for at least 10-15 years due to having animals.

I am not the kind to leave my animals behind, so will stuck it out and see what life brings.

By the way, i am in late 30"s not married with no prospects on the horizon.

Respect.

The lady that gets you will be blessed many times over.

Besides, if the good people like you left........................ well, you know what I mean.

[geriatrickid]

What is your exit plan JT?

I would prefer to stay. However, I can't really buy decent health insurance here so that's the key factor for me. In the long run it seems like a decent chance I will either repatriate to the USA where it is now possible to get health care coverage (and at 65 which I will have reached in 10 years) USA Medicare. I am also interested in a few Latin American countries where I understand there are better options for obtaining health care even buying into government systems for retired expats. I am not old enough for these Latin American countries YET as not yet of pension age. The biggest thing chasing me from Thailand is the lack of access to health insurance for preexisting conditions AND the outrageous medical cost inflation and the shabby exploitative treatment of foreigners in the cost structure here. When I first moved here I thought the retail costs for health care were OK (and also quite frankly I had been misinformed about the health insurance access situation here) but now it is not OK and surely it will only get WORSE. I am doing my best to stay healthy but as we get older, you know the score. I voted 50/50 but after writing this post, I think its more honest to change my vote to probably leaving. Oh well!

JT...I hear that Cuba has great medical bennies! BTW I have PR...so I guess I'm here for the long haul...come what may.

Kinda reminds me of an old song by the Floaters...Float On...Hmmmmmm!

JT cannot go to Cuba at this time as he is a US national. It is verboten.

Although you have permanent residency, you will still need a private insurance supplement. I would not want to use some of the public hospitals. Health insurance is a problem for all seniors, Thai and foreign alike unless they have the benefit of a large company or government supplemental health insurance program.

[geriatrickid]

What is your exit plan JT?

I would prefer to stay. However, I can't really buy decent health insurance here so that's the key factor for me. In the long run it seems like a decent chance I will either repatriate to the USA where it is now possible to get health care coverage (and at 65 which I will have reached in 10 years) USA Medicare. I am also interested in a few Latin American countries where I understand there are better options for obtaining health care even buying into government systems for retired expats. I am not old enough for these Latin American countries YET as not yet of pension age. The biggest thing chasing me from Thailand is the lack of access to health insurance for preexisting conditions AND the outrageous medical cost inflation and the shabby exploitative treatment of foreigners in the cost structure here. When I first moved here I thought the retail costs for health care were OK (and also quite frankly I had been misinformed about the health insurance access situation here) but now it is not OK and surely it will only get WORSE. I am doing my best to stay healthy but as we get older, you know the score. I voted 50/50 but after writing this post, I think its more honest to change my vote to probably leaving. Oh well!

How could you think the US even with health insurance is more affordable. Best decision of my life was to go to Thailand for surgery. My out of pocket cost here would have been $18,000 plus ( 70K estimated cost), in less pleasing conditions, 29% chance of getting staph etc. etc. Over there full cost, full stay, in private room was $4700 and of the 8 people I know that had similar surgery to me here in the states, all have issues and 5 of them are fighting staph. They get you here with 20% and insurance cost for the 80% supposedly is out rageous and going higher every day. Give me Thailand any day for health care. They want to address the problem not build the bill as they do here in the states. I went to Bumrungrad....anything but shabby.

With all due respect, inflated bills occur in Thailand too. . I regret to advise but the likelihood of contracting a drug resistant post operative infection in Thailand is greater than in in most U.S. facilities. The difference between the USA and Thailand is that in the USA one can verify a physician's credentials, lookup the rate of complications after surgery for any given hospital and verify if there are any malpractice cases registered against the physician. None of this information is available in Thailand. And if there is an error in the USA, one has an option of redress. Personally, I would have my complicated procedures done in Singapore.

[overherebc]

I am sitting here with the scene from An Officer and A Gentleman going through my head, you know the one where the Drill Pig is trying to get Mr Gere to DOR and he ends up sitting in a puddle of water crying ___I GOT NOWHERE ELSE TO GO !

[kdw512]

I can't wait to leave this filthy [in so many levels] country. After doing time here for the company I work for I'll leave Thailand for the elderly male expats.

You are "Doing Time" for a company that does business in a filthy country?

Sorry to tell you, but this makes you filthy too. you should reconsider your situation...

Ironically I work for an enviromental protection agency... and I have reconsider my situation: moving away...

[phuturatica]

I'm only 25 and I can't really see myself here in 10 years time. I fully understand why people want to retire here etc but for my age I just see living in Thailand as a chapter in my life which will not be a permanent thing.

[kdw512]

I can't wait to leave this filthy [in so many levels] country. After doing time here for the company I work for I'll leave Thailand for the elderly male expats.

Sorry but looks like you have been shafted royally by a BG. Otherwise even with all her faults, Thailand does not deserve such a sweeping condemnation.

Condemnation? Are you refering to the elder expats?

[kdw512]

I can't wait to leave this filthy [in so many levels] country. After doing time here for the company I work for I'll leave Thailand for the elderly male expats.

I am widely traveled yet rather surprised that you highlight Thailand as being notably filthy. It certainly has its filthy spots but I would not have regarded it as particularly filthy. Perhaps your comment was about moral behaviour. Do I detect that you have some malice towards elderly male expats.

Like you, I too have traveled the world, my comment was also about moral. No malice towards the elderly male expats, happy they have a place enjoy the golden years in "love" and care young Thai girls.

[davejones]

I voted that I'll probably be here. A few months before I came here I had no plans at all to come here, so I can never be sure anything. At the moment I plan to have a base in Thailand and live here for around 6 months of the year. The other 6 months I'll be in one or two places, or maybe some years traveling more widely. I plan to go to US for 6 months in a few weeks time. I'm a Brit, but I love NYC. If I left Thailand for good, I'd love to live in NYC. Not so easy to get a long-term visa though.

For those that think they may not be able to afford living here when they're older, I would suggest building up some income now, while you still have a chance. Build a few websites, write a few books, invest in some property that will give rental income, or whatever else you can think of. If you have 10-20 years until old age, then you have plenty of time to set things up. You can start slow. Even little bits of income can really add up over a few years. Have lots of little bits of income and it soon becomes big bits of income.

When people can't make ends meet, I think too many only see the option of spending less. There is also the option of earning more. You're never too old to start, but if you're younger, you have a real head start.

Also, not sure why so many say they are getting bored here. What exactly do you find boring? And wouldn't you be bored elsewhere. A place is what you make it, and if you're bored you probably need to add some excitement back into your life. This applies wherever you live. Try something different that's completely out of character. Get out of your comfort zone and live a little.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I'd like to know why the OP poll didn't include another of the common dispositions for farangs here:

No, I expect to be jumping to my death from a local high-rise building (or being pushed off by my ex-wife and/or her family).

[lannarebirth]

What is your exit plan JT?

I would prefer to stay. However, I can't really buy decent health insurance here so that's the key factor for me. In the long run it seems like a decent chance I will either repatriate to the USA where it is now possible to get health care coverage (and at 65 which I will have reached in 10 years) USA Medicare. I am also interested in a few Latin American countries where I understand there are better options for obtaining health care even buying into government systems for retired expats. I am not old enough for these Latin American countries YET as not yet of pension age. The biggest thing chasing me from Thailand is the lack of access to health insurance for preexisting conditions AND the outrageous medical cost inflation and the shabby exploitative treatment of foreigners in the cost structure here. When I first moved here I thought the retail costs for health care were OK (and also quite frankly I had been misinformed about the health insurance access situation here) but now it is not OK and surely it will only get WORSE. I am doing my best to stay healthy but as we get older, you know the score. I voted 50/50 but after writing this post, I think its more honest to change my vote to probably leaving. Oh well!

If you like living there I think you should try harder to find medical insurance that you can live with. I've had to return to the US for a couple of years and medical insurance here is outrageously priced and not particularly good at that.

I voted that it is very probable that I will be in Thailand in 10 years time. I am the same age as you and if not for winding down a business, seeing my daughters matriculated to university, and taking care of a citizenship issue concerning my wife, spending some time with my advanced age father, I never would have stepped foot back in this country.

I do understand living outside ones native culture can be more difficult as one gets older if one is without a family around them.

Edited May 1, 2013 by lannarebirth

[homeownership]

I intend to be living in Thailand indefinitly. There is simply no better place to live in the world.

Food is bearable but options are available to get around that.

Internet is improving by the day, which is essential for me.

Schools are second to none, especially some of the high end international schools. WOW.

Shopping is good, you can pretty much get what you want.

The people are friendly and very welcoming, its hard not to fall in love with them.

Then theres are the materialistic things, like your house, car, air conditioning system, etc etc etc all of which pampers you and beats what you get in old blighty.

[givenall]

Would it possible all expatriates get together and create health insurance co-op at a reasonable cost

[Naam]

So, in other words, you're another hostage of the health care/health insurance industries, and making life decisions on that basis.

At present, fee based Thai health care costs are still cheaper then paying insurance premiums, deductibles and co-pays when you plop that insurance card down at the pay window.

Don't forget that if you are healthy about all the money you save by not paying an insurance company annually. Put that same amount into a 'health care' investment account, invest wisely, and you might have more than enough to cover the big one when and if it happens. Then you won't have some bureaucrat - or worse, some clerk - deciding what is and isn't going to be covered, or even worse, that they aren't going to cover it at all because after all, it was a pre-existing condition and you are stuck for the full cost, despite your insurance policy.

I read somewhere where 50% of most people's health care costs in old age are spent during the last year of one's life. When that time comes, do like doctors do - submit to the realities, live that last year to the fullest, but don't try to buy your way out.

silly advice! not trying to buy your way out means you don't have the cash. anybody with the financial means will of course try to buy his/her way out; except in those cases where there's no quality of life left.

[StreetCowboy]

Would it possible all expatriates get together and create health insurance co-op at a reasonable cost

Sure. We could all work together for the common good. You only need to look at this forum to see how much we all support one another without question

SC

[NewlyMintedThai]

If it were financially, insurance companies would be willing to insure them.

Unfortunately, it is not financially viable.

You have a bunch of old guys with preexisting issues probably leading unhealthy lifestyles and looking at extensive medical needs in the near future.

And they undoubtedly want the best care available, and want it for peanuts.

They probably should have thought of this a long time ago, when they were young and healthy and pissing away their money on booze, cigarettes, and hookers.

[davejones]

Would it possible all expatriates get together and create health insurance co-op at a reasonable cost

Sure. We could all work together for the common good. You only need to look at this forum to see how much we all support one another without question

SC

I still think you'd be surprised how expensive it is. How would costs be shared? Would people who drink and smoke contribute more. My health is my number one priority, and I'd never pool health money with the average expat, because I'd end up paying their medical expenses. We never know what's coming, but most expats I see don't make any effort to stay healthy, and only worry when it's too late. Those are the people that would want to join the scheme, and that's what would make it expensive. Administrative costs would be huge.

Why not do it on a small level though. I've never bought health insurance and don't have a private pension. Instead I've invested that money myself and now have enough to cover almost any eventuality. That's really what you're talking about, but as a shared things. If people can't do this on their own, then it will be more difficult to administer as a group.

Maybe not suitable for everyone, but I think it could work for many, especially if you start at a young age. But most young people think they are invincible, so won't bother.

Personally responsibility is the easiest and cheapest way around this. Stay as healthy as possible, and invest for you future. It's (almost) never too late.

[Jingthing]

I'd like to know why the OP poll didn't include another of the common dispositions for farangs here:

No, I expect to be jumping to my death from a local high-rise building (or being pushed off by my ex-wife and/or her family).

That's a bloody good idea. Sorry I didn't think of it. Too late now.

[davejones]

My ten year plan is to have the option to choose where I want to live. Essentially that's the finances to do so and with luck the good health too.

Home now is Thailand, 'back home' is the UK.

I have an inalienable right to live in the UK,something I might come to cherrish if things gonthe way I fear they will in Thailand.

So my ten year plan is not to burn bridges in either direction.

Excellent plan. My plan is also to live wherever I want. I reality that will probably mean a base here for 6 months of the year, and then somewhere else for the other 6 months.

What do you fear will happen in Thailand. It's growing nicely. Things could go wrong, but even then things recover. I can't imagine them going so wrong that I'd have to leave. It's possible, as is anything, but highly unlikely. Seems more stable now than when I first arrived - during the May 2010 curfew.

[davejones]

So, in other words, you're another hostage of the health care/health insurance industries, and making life decisions on that basis.

At present, fee based Thai health care costs are still cheaper then paying insurance premiums, deductibles and co-pays when you plop that insurance card down at the pay window.

Don't forget that if you are healthy about all the money you save by not paying an insurance company annually. Put that same amount into a 'health care' investment account, invest wisely, and you might have more than enough to cover the big one when and if it happens. Then you won't have some bureaucrat - or worse, some clerk - deciding what is and isn't going to be covered, or even worse, that they aren't going to cover it at all because after all, it was a pre-existing condition and you are stuck for the full cost, despite your insurance policy.

I read somewhere where 50% of most people's health care costs in old age are spent during the last year of one's life. When that time comes, do like doctors do - submit to the realities, live that last year to the fullest, but don't try to buy your way out.

It would be nice to know when your last year is approaching could have lots of fun during the lead up.

You can have even more fun by assuming that every year is your last year. The beauty of it is that one day you'll be right. No need to miss out on all that fun while waiting for your last year. Your whole life should be fun.

[davejones]

What is your exit plan JT?

I would prefer to stay. However, I can't really buy decent health insurance here so that's the key factor for me. In the long run it seems like a decent chance I will either repatriate to the USA where it is now possible to get health care coverage (and at 65 which I will have reached in 10 years) USA Medicare. I am also interested in a few Latin American countries where I understand there are better options for obtaining health care even buying into government systems for retired expats. I am not old enough for these Latin American countries YET as not yet of pension age. The biggest thing chasing me from Thailand is the lack of access to health insurance for preexisting conditions AND the outrageous medical cost inflation and the shabby exploitative treatment of foreigners in the cost structure here. When I first moved here I thought the retail costs for health care were OK (and also quite frankly I had been misinformed about the health insurance access situation here) but now it is not OK and surely it will only get WORSE. I am doing my best to stay healthy but as we get older, you know the score. I voted 50/50 but after writing this post, I think its more honest to change my vote to probably leaving. Oh well!

JT...I hear that Cuba has great medical bennies! BTW I have PR...so I guess I'm here for the long haul...come what may.

Kinda reminds me of an old song by the Floaters...Float On...Hmmmmmm!

JT cannot go to Cuba at this time as he is a US national. It is verboten.

Although you have permanent residency, you will still need a private insurance supplement. I would not want to use some of the public hospitals. Health insurance is a problem for all seniors, Thai and foreign alike unless they have the benefit of a large company or government supplemental health insurance program.

America, the land of the free. Makes you laugh doesn't it, when American's have to be told which countries they can and can't visit. When communist countries do this, American governments always say how wrong it is, and here they are doing it to their own citizens. Shameful.

[Chonburiram]

America, the land of the free. Makes you laugh doesn't it, when American's have to be told which countries they can and can't visit. When communist countries do this, American governments always say how wrong it is, and here they are doing it to their own citizens. Shameful.

Could it be that US Americans are not allowed in Cuba bec Cuba does not let them in?

Last time I looked Guantánamo was on Cuba, doesn't the USA maintain a KZ there?

[Jingthing]

America, the land of the free. Makes you laugh doesn't it, when American's have to be told which countries they can and can't visit. When communist countries do this, American governments always say how wrong it is, and here they are doing it to their own citizens. Shameful.

Could it be that US Americans are not allowed in Cuba bec Cuba does not let them in?

Last time I looked Guantánamo was on Cuba, doesn't the USA maintain a KZ there?

Cuba not only lets in Americans (generally you fly from Cancun Mexico) but it will not stamp their passports on request. Cheers.

[NewlyMintedThai]

Yes, over 300,000 Americans visit Cuba annually. Some legally (with license -- easy enough), but most just show up. The Cubans welcome everyone.

No big deal.

Guess no one saw Beyonce and Jay-Z holidaying there a couple weeks ago.

[aboctok]

What is your exit plan JT?

It's stripy, yellow and black; just reach up (if you still can) and give it a good hard yank.

[aboctok]

So, in other words, you're another hostage of the health care/health insurance industries, and making life decisions on that basis.

At present, fee based Thai health care costs are still cheaper then paying insurance premiums, deductibles and co-pays when you plop that insurance card down at the pay window.

Don't forget that if you are healthy about all the money you save by not paying an insurance company annually. Put that same amount into a 'health care' investment account, invest wisely, and you might have more than enough to cover the big one when and if it happens. Then you won't have some bureaucrat - or worse, some clerk - deciding what is and isn't going to be covered, or even worse, that they aren't going to cover it at all because after all, it was a pre-existing condition and you are stuck for the full cost, despite your insurance policy.

I read somewhere where 50% of most people's health care costs in old age are spent during the last year of one's life. When that time comes, do like doctors do - submit to the realities, live that last year to the fullest, but don't try to buy your way out.

It would be nice to know when your last year is approaching could have lots of fun during the lead up.

You can have even more fun by assuming that every year is your last year. The beauty of it is that one day you'll be right. No need to miss out on all that fun while waiting for your last year. Your whole life should be fun.

Now this is planning.

[Billy The Kid]

Not a Expat yet, Will plan to in near future. There is no country i like to live except Thailand. If my health detoriorated in later years, I might have to go to nursery home, I picked it already.. Look link below.

http://goo.gl/maps/c6DEI

[davejones]

Not a Expat yet, Will plan to in near future. There is no country i like to live except Thailand. If my health detoriorated in later years, I might have to go to nursery home, I picked it already.. Look link below.

http://goo.gl/maps/c6DEI

Planning for ill health seem like a bad thing to do. Why not plan for great health?