Medical Insurance that bill RAM direct......I found it.

[Thighlander]

I've posted about www.imglobal.com on here before, who offers direct billing with Bumrungrad. I had always used them on previous trips. I did some searching and found another company rate A+ by A.M., and A+ by BBB. AND IT'S CHEAPER! www.hccmis.com they are a publicly traded company on the NYSE ticker symbol HCC. I chose zero deductible and one million USD in coverage. Cost me 348 for three months. Salud! I guess I should have stated they pay RAM direct.

Edited January 31, 2014 by Thighlander

[NancyL]

Good news! Have you tried it out yet -- actually had an opportunity to use it at Ram for in-patient treatment? (I hope not!)

[Thighlander]

Fortunately. for me, no, but, that would obviously be the best test of coverage. I have a personal agent at HQ in Indianapolis, and they have a 24 hour call center that accepts collect calls. My agent said the hospitals are generally good about calling, because that is the best way for them to be assured of payment, even if the facility is not on their official list of providers. There were 26 complaints made against them on BBB, and 18 were resolved to customers satisfaction, and BBB determined that HCC operated in good faith on the other 8. My agent said there have been a number of attempts to obtain insurance after the fact, and the claims stick out like a sore thumb, for whatever reason. Buckling your seat belt after an accident will not help you.

[northernjohn]

Fortunately. for me, no, but, that would obviously be the best test of coverage. I have a personal agent at HQ in Indianapolis, and they have a 24 hour call center that accepts collect calls. My agent said the hospitals are generally good about calling, because that is the best way for them to be assured of payment, even if the facility is not on their official list of providers. There were 26 complaints made against them on BBB, and 18 were resolved to customers satisfaction, and BBB determined that HCC operated in good faith on the other 8. My agent said there have been a number of attempts to obtain insurance after the fact, and the claims stick out like a sore thumb, for whatever reason. Buckling your seat belt after an accident will not help you.

Well it is certainly good news. How ever there would be an age factor in it. one million American with no deductible sounds to me like you are very young. $1,392 a year is indeed a cheap price for that kind of coverage. Is it only in Thailand or can you use it any where in the world including the States?

[Thighlander]

I'm old enough for a retirement visa. It's for outside US/Canada, but I think they give you a certain amount of time in the US, but there may be a coinsurance. Good question. They all start running together, as I was reviewing several plans....what a bunch of nausea.

[vagabond48]

I just checked out their website and put in a quote for $1,000,000 with $1000 deductible with no USA coverage. The price for 1 year which is the maximum they allow is excellent for my 65+ age but it appears that this is travel health insurance and therefore cannot be relied on continued future yearly policies. Upon further reading, this insurance is only good outside your home country so you would not be covered if you wanted to return for a visit.

[JoePai]

Better yet try the sponsors - AA Ins - and ask for the Allianz plans as they are based here and offer direct payment to any hospital

[Dante99]

Can not evaluate because the devil is in the details of what is covered and what is not, it is not just about dollar limits and deductibles.

May be difficult to use travel insurance it you are living here and have been for years.

[Thighlander]

It's medical insurance; not health insurance. So if you get cancer; it will be considered a pre-existing condition upon renewal. They do offer health insurance, but it will cost more. But, for those of us from the States, we could simply return to the us and be guaranteed coverage ($$$$) with no lifetime limits. Or if we were 65, we could just sign up for medicare. Systems create system players....As far as IMG, most of the complaints I read about were people, who had the health insurance, and were getting big rate increases. Of course they have to offer maternity coverage to men to be in compliance with ACA.

[elektrified]

Right. Insurance plans like that are travel health insurance plans. They are great if you say - are living in the USA and want to travel for a year or in the case of IM Global which I had once, up to 2 years. If you live abroad then they can't be used. I am pretty sure that if you read the fine print that coverage could be denied if you take out a plan and put in a sizable claim, they investigate you, and find out you have lived in Thailand for 10 years.

Plans in Thailand (like Allianz) as one poster mentioned are what you need if you live in Thailand and want to be covered both here and if you travel abroad.

[Thighlander]

Each term is good up to 364 days. You can keep adding on new policies without limit. The max coverage does decrease at certain ages. Might be 100K at age 70. I'm a shareholder in Allianz, and wouldn't hesitate to give my business to them, but for my situation, they can't compete. The quotes I've gotten from the TV sponsors always seem high. Some in the neighborhood of 300 usd per month. But with true health insurance; you get 10 dollar office visits...hip-hip-hooray, because most of the outpatient clinics in thailand charge less than that without making a claim.

HCC also offers short term plans for the US, as do quite a few others, and they are all way cheaper than health insurance, and none are in compliance with ACA.

Edited February 1, 2014 by Thighlander

[northernjohn]

Each term is good up to 364 days. You can keep adding on new policies without limit. The max coverage does decrease at certain ages. Might be 100K at age 70. I'm a shareholder in Allianz, and wouldn't hesitate to give my business to them, but for my situation, they can't compete. The quotes I've gotten from the TV sponsors always seem high. Some in the neighborhood of 300 usd per month. But with true health insurance; you get 10 dollar office visits...hip-hip-hooray, because most of the outpatient clinics in thailand charge less than that without making a claim.

HCC also offers short term plans for the US, as do quite a few others, and they are all way cheaper than health insurance, and none are in compliance with ACA.

So I visit my doctor once a month. Would they pay her directly or would she be willing to go through all the paper work to get it? Also visiting monthly could be construed as a preexisting problem They might also say why are you seeing the same doctor (because it makes sense) on a regular basses if you are not living there? Must be a pre existing condition.

[circusman]

Some plans only allow you to be out of the usa for 30 days or less, each trip.

[Thighlander]

Each term is good up to 364 days. You can keep adding on new policies without limit. The max coverage does decrease at certain ages. Might be 100K at age 70. I'm a shareholder in Allianz, and wouldn't hesitate to give my business to them, but for my situation, they can't compete. The quotes I've gotten from the TV sponsors always seem high. Some in the neighborhood of 300 usd per month. But with true health insurance; you get 10 dollar office visits...hip-hip-hooray, because most of the outpatient clinics in thailand charge less than that without making a claim.

HCC also offers short term plans for the US, as do quite a few others, and they are all way cheaper than health insurance, and none are in compliance with ACA.

So I visit my doctor once a month. Would they pay her directly or would she be willing to go through all the paper work to get it? Also visiting monthly could be construed as a preexisting problem They might also say why are you seeing the same doctor (because it makes sense) on a regular basses if you are not living there? Must be a pre existing condition.

If you have to go to the Doctor every month, then it obviously IS a pre-existing condition.

[poweratradio]

Way to expensive for 3 months but i guess if you like the features.

[northernjohn]

Way to expensive for 3 months but i guess if you like the features.

Definitely as I was offered a $2000 deductible at $1,600 US a year that was a health plan. Of course excluding pre existing conditions this was at age 70.

[Suradit69]

Can not evaluate because the devil is in the details of what is covered and what is not, it is not just about dollar limits and deductibles.

May be difficult to use travel insurance it you are living here and have been for years.

And have you checked with the hospital(s) to see if they're willing to accept you for treatment without a deposit based on this particular insurance?

With my (former employer) insurance, I pay first and get reimbursed, which has its obvious disadvantages, but it also means there's no delay while verifying everything.

Also, the $1 million sounds nice, but they would undoubtedly have limits based on the procedure/treatment you receive so, for instance, it you go in for surgery that costs Baht 100,000, the insurance company's max allowable for that procedure won't be $1 million and it might be well less than the Baht 100,000 ... so you'd still need to post a deposit despite the nondeductible clause.

And of course if you were travelling away from your usual hospital, say in Chiang Mai or Siem Reap or Bali, how readily will hospitals there accept this insurance without a deposit from you first?

Edited February 2, 2014 by Suradit69

[Thighlander]

Here is the brochure:

Atlas Brochure - 9800590.pdf

[elektrified]

Here is the brochure:

I think you will find they are also IM Global or one of their affiliates. Both in Indianapolis, Indiana USA. When I had IM Global during my first year in Europe, they converted my policy to Atlas the 2nd year. At the end of the 2nd year they wrote me and said that I was clearly a resident of Europe at that point and no longer a traveler from the USA and that my policy was over at the end of year 2.

Again, for those of us who live in Thailand, a policy like that is not going to work. The Allianz policy is a very good one. The quote I got from TV sponsor AA Insurance was USD $99.00 per month (age 50-55). I have no idea why the quote was in USD and how one would pay the premium each month but it was very comprehensive and paid full coverage if traveling to the USA.

[Thighlander]

Here is the brochure:

I think you will find they are also IM Global or one of their affiliates. Both in Indianapolis, Indiana USA. When I had IM Global during my first year in Europe, they converted my policy to Atlas the 2nd year. At the end of the 2nd year they wrote me and said that I was clearly a resident of Europe at that point and no longer a traveler from the USA and that my policy was over at the end of year 2.

Again, for those of us who live in Thailand, a policy like that is not going to work. The Allianz policy is a very good one. The quote I got from TV sponsor AA Insurance was USD $99.00 per month (age 50-55). I have no idea why the quote was in USD and how one would pay the premium each month but it was very comprehensive and paid full coverage if traveling to the USA.

It's a different company, but they may be backed by the same underwriters. Read the brochure, it is good for up to 364 days, and you can do it three consecutive times. You don't need to be in your home country to sign up. What were the deductible and max coverage with Allianz?

If I had chosen a 250 deductible would have lowered mine to 94 per month.

[canopus1969]

Here is the brochure:

This is a Travel policy - no good as you are living here - if anything serious happens and they check it could be disallowed

[Thighlander]

Here is the brochure:

This is a Travel policy - no good as you are living here - if anything serious happens and they check it could be disallowed

2 years 11.9 months....they specialize in insuring missionaries, who are also on long stay visas, with kids enrolled in schools, etc..Also, they send you an email 15 days from the end of coverage to see if you want to add on or renew, and your agent contacts you one week before.

Here is a list of providers: Search by country and province:

hccintl.cmn-global.com

Edited February 4, 2014 by Thighlander

[cardinalblue]

Does anyone have the CM contact information for AA/allianz insurance?

.$1200 a year sounds reasonable and one really can't expect that to cover US given the cost of health care...

CB

[elektrified]

Does anyone have the CM contact information for AA/allianz insurance?

.$1200 a year sounds reasonable and one really can't expect that to cover US given the cost of health care...

CB

Here is the contact info:

AA INSURANCE BROKERS CO., LTD.

565/62 Moo 10 (Next to Big C)

South Pattaya

Nongprue, Banglamung

Chonburi 20150, Thailand

Phone: +66 (0) 38 415 795-6

Fax: +66 (0) 38 374 251

Email: [email protected]

Ask for Peter. He is the principal of the company.

The Allianz policy covers 100% of medical costs in the USA during a 30 day visit there as I recall. Note: that quote (for people aged 50-55) was given to me about 2 years ago. I don't know if it has gone up or not.

[elektrified]

Here is the brochure:

This is a Travel policy - no good as you are living here - if anything serious happens and they check it could be disallowed

2 years 11.9 months....they specialize in insuring missionaries, who are also on long stay visas, with kids enrolled in schools, etc..Also, they send you an email 15 days from the end of coverage to see if you want to add on or renew, and your agent contacts you one week before.

Here is a list of providers: Search by country and province:

hccintl.cmn-global.com

Again, it's a travel policy if you originate from the USA. At one time you had to prove you were in the USA; like answering their phone call, showing them your airline ticket, or something. I forget, it was more than 10 years ago that I had their policies. I believe that they even tell you on the telephone that if they determine you are not a traveler and that you have relocated, then they would deny any claims made - after an investigation.

[Thighlander]

I just read more of the policy. For US citizens, you get 15 days of coverage in the US for every three months of your policy See page 2.

Atlas-E91112283.pdf

Edited February 4, 2014 by Thighlander

[onthedarkside]

Inflammatory post removed

[haybilly]

Not sure about currently--but AiA Insurance brokers, of which Peter in Pattaya is the Head Honcho, did have a representative at Mee Chok Plaza--but I believe that they have 'temporarily' ceased operations from there--whether that means that they will start up again, I have no idea.