Medical Insurance in Thailand

[TexasRanger]

I use ACS, a bit expensive but very good when we needed them.

[farangforever]

You might also check out Thai Health www.thaihealth.co.th

[janpharma]

Take a look at LMG Pacific...

[charliebadenhop]

Does anyone have experience with the policies issued through various banks?

cb

[stevenl]

Does anyone have experience with the policies issued through various banks?

cb

These tend to be accident policies, not health.

[waitingforalife]

Would recommend you have a look at www.worldwidehealthcover.com. You can get prices on a range of policies and compare the benefits to choose what suits you best. International policies offer a range of benefits that local policies do not, so I would urge looking carefully.

There is no issue with your visa type when applying for medical insurance. It is however worth bearing in mind that with the majority of the local companies (possibly even all) that your cover will cease if you leave Thailand whereas this is not true of an international policy.

[PMZ]

I have used the broker below for several years now for my medical insurance (I am Thailand based) and he consistently comes up with the best pricing (always better then I can get from the same Insurance companies directly) and his company provide great support services. He will provide you with a sheet of choices based upon your requirements and this allows you to choose the most appropriate cover / pricing.

Ricky Batten
Senior Advisor - Pacific Prime
T: +86 21 6445 4592 Ext 121
M: +86 131 2086 9110
[email protected]
Skype: ricky.batten_pacific
www.pacificprime.com

[bigote54]

I have BUPA 18,000 baht a year and I shall upgrade to 36,000 a year when I get back in November They are very good I am 61 next birthday

rgds

matthew

[Gutterboy]

Also use Bupa international and am very pleased with them. The cover is for inpatient treatment only but that's fine as outpatient treatment is so cheap in Thailand anyway.

Best thing about Bupa is you can call and speak directly to a doctor in English whenever you want, as often as you want, at no additional charge. This means you are not at the mercy of inept Thai doctors, and can back up your outpatient treatment or just get helpful medical advice whenever needed.

[FredNL]

Are they f#@k!ng crazy ???

863.19 GBP / month !!!

[Mike45]

I am also looking for the best health insurance and have norrowed it down to BUPA and AXA

BUPA links are already in this topic.

Here is what I found about AXA:

http://www.axa.co.th/553/en/Health-Insurance/Personal-Health/SmartCare-Optimum

SmartCareOptimum Your Ultimate Health Insurance Protection With as charged benefits that pays up to Baht 5 Million a Year.

Pay for your medical Bill with “ As charged” Plan

Most policy set limits on how much you can claim per disability, but SmartCare Optimum is an as-charged* plan that pays you in full for number of days in Hospital Room & Board charged, ICU charges, Surgeon’s fees, Dr.’s Visit, Specialist Consultation and Hospital Miscellaneous Expenses.

Pricing is on the same page as you scroll down.

Eligibility

Thai Citizens, permanent resident of Thai, employment pass holders or work permit holders.

Does this mean if you are retired you can't have the insurance?

[DFCarlson]

Is there any age which if you are older it is not possible to get any kind of inpatient hospital insurance? If not, what company is best? I will be 74 years young when I ultimately retire to Thailand.

[farangforever]

Is there any age which if you are older it is not possible to get any kind of inpatient hospital insurance? If not, what company is best? I will be 74 years young when I ultimately retire to Thailand.

Thai life you can renew up to 80 for IPD, 70 for OPD but you have to begin the first year up to 65 years, brochure says.

[DFCarlson]

Thanks, Newbie - but if that's all there is I guess I'm out of luck as I'm 71 years old now.

I joined the PEC in 2012 and learned they have some connections. Maybe I'll try in that direction.

[Si Thea01]

I am now 66 and retired in Thailand. You did not state your age but as you are also looking at retiring I expect you're 50+.. I was able to obtain a life policy with a company in U0don Thani, AIA and not only does this provide a million baht payout to my wife, in case of death but I also received full hospital coverage as well as an accident insurance policy. It does not cover me for out patient visits but I have found a doctor who only charges me the local rate, 250 baht a visit, which includes medication.

I recently had an operation at a private hospital (my mistake) as the greedy SOB'S not only charged the full amount to the insurer but hit me for an additional 52,000 baht in excess charges. Learning the hard way I had complications following the operation and ended up in Khon Kaen University Hospital. What a marvellous institution. Admittedly I had to pay the full amount upon discharge but my insurer reimbursed the total amount to me in just over a month.

The cost of the policies totalled 104,000.00 baht per annum but the first payout and the second payout combined totalled 151,000.00 baht. I was even visited by the office staff of the insurer on three occasions and were given two get well gifts. I would say that you being younger than I then the policies would cost less and even if you do not want to obtain cover with them, at least check them out.

Also, if you can find a good government teaching hospital then this is the way to go as the private ones only stick it to you. I am fortunate that I can afford the additional charges but at the same time I do not like it stuck up me because I am a farang. I say this because of inquiries my wife made with other patients at the private hospital, who costs were at least 50,000 baht less then mine for similar time in hospital and after having similar operations. The policies however, do not cover medical costs outside of Thailand but if I was travel then I would take out travel insurance.

Hoping this is of some assistance to you.

[hugh2121]

I use BUPA International, it provides insurance everywhere apart from the USA so you only need additional insurance if you go to the US.

As this is a health insurance policy instead of a travel related policy the visa type and duration of trip doesn't matter.

It's not the cheapest but I believe it's one of the better options. Like all insurance the younger you are when you 'get recruited' the cheaper it is...

"As this is a health insurance policy instead ..."

In most cases it would be solely a hospital insurance, not comprehensive "health" insurance. If you opt to add on out-patient coverage, the additional premium will be virtually the same as the maximum coverage you would get if you used the policy to its full out=patient allowance during the year.

To continue BUPA as you enter the golden years, the premium will escalate and, if you don't maintain uninterrupted coverage after a certain age, you would not be eligible to restart it.

Any recommendations for an alternative policy?

Erika Glew - Expatriate Insurance Services <[email protected]>;

She will find you whatever you require at an affordable price.

[Franky Bear]

Some good info in here. Thanks

This's probably a silly question but do the top end rates cover you for the likes of a major operation and things like Cancer treatment?

Also do you have to pay out the initial cash and claim it back or do the insurance companies cover it themselves from the get-go?

[hugh2121]

Google for Morgan Price and take a look.

[Overcome]

I got my plan directly from them by calling the UK office.

The details are on this page : http://www.bupa-intl.com/for-you

I believe BUPA international is different from anything BUPA Thailand will offer. If you're only looking for Thailand cover then BUPA Thailand might be the best option.

If I were you I'd check both of them and weigh up the options. You might get a lot more cover on the international option.

It's a common misconception that Thai health insurers have cover that is just local or is at a lower level than you are able to get out in the 'real world' but this is not the case at all and has not been for decades. However it is a myth that is actively perpetrated by offshore brokers who of course are not able to sell Thai regulated policies, and considering the fact there's nothing illegal about making false statements or financial gain from your office in Hong Kong to some gullible schmuck in Thailand, what possible reason would they have for telling the truth?

[Overcome]

I got my plan directly from them by calling the UK office.

The details are on this page : http://www.bupa-intl.com/for-you

I believe BUPA international is different from anything BUPA Thailand will offer. If you're only looking for Thailand cover then BUPA Thailand might be the best option.

If I were you I'd check both of them and weigh up the options. You might get a lot more cover on the international option.

It's a common misconception that Thai health insurers have cover that is just local or is at a lower level than you are able to get out in the 'real world' but this is not the case at all and has not been for decades. However it is a myth that is actively perpetrated by offshore brokers who of course are not able to sell Thai regulated policies, and considering the fact there's nothing illegal about making false statements or financial gain from your office in Hong Kong to some gullible schmuck in Thailand, what possible reason would they have for telling the truth?

[Overcome]

I got my plan directly from them by calling the UK office.

The details are on this page : http://www.bupa-intl.com/for-you

I believe BUPA international is different from anything BUPA Thailand will offer. If you're only looking for Thailand cover then BUPA Thailand might be the best option.

If I were you I'd check both of them and weigh up the options. You might get a lot more cover on the international option.

It's a common misconception that Thai health insurers have cover that is just local or is at a lower level than you are able to get out in the 'real world' but this is not the case at all and has not been for decades. However it is a myth that is actively perpetrated by offshore brokers who of course are not able to sell Thai regulated policies, and considering the fact there's nothing illegal about making false statements or financial gain from your office in Hong Kong to some gullible schmuck in Thailand, what possible reason would they have for telling the truth?

[TexasRanger]

Some good info in here. Thanks

This's probably a silly question but do the top end rates cover you for the likes of a major operation and things like Cancer treatment?

Also do you have to pay out the initial cash and claim it back or do the insurance companies cover it themselves from the get-go?

With mine I pay minor outpatient stuff myself and once I've got about 6 months of receipts I claim it back.

With operations etc we just give the hospital the card and they deal directly with the insurance company.

[RichardThailand]

What company are you using? What plan? Otherwise sorry but your and other posts don't help :-(

[Overcome]

Would recommend you have a look at www.worldwidehealthcover.com. You can get prices on a range of policies and compare the benefits to choose what suits you best. International policies offer a range of benefits that local policies do not, so I would urge looking carefully.

There is no issue with your visa type when applying for medical insurance. It is however worth bearing in mind that with the majority of the local companies (possibly even all) that your cover will cease if you leave Thailand whereas this is not true of an international policy.

Interesting indeed. I can't see this company on the list of licensed insurance brokers in Thailand, yet they claim to be based in Bangkok. The list of insurance companies they represent does not include any Thai registered companies. Yet they are comfortable saying International policies are better, which by come stroke of luck is what they sell.

Those claims are both self-serving as well as unsubstantiated (because they are not correct) - you are not getting the full picture, only what they want you to hear - like many of the offshore vultures that act in the same way.

As I have said before, I would rather spend the weekend with a HIV-positive leper who has Ebola.

[TexasRanger]

What company are you using? What plan? Otherwise sorry but your and other posts don't help :-(

See post 31.

[charliebadenhop]

There are a LOT of posts here, so I did not read through them all....

Anyone have experience with LMG health insurance.

The quote from them seems quite good and I would love to know if anyone is using this company.

TIA

Charlie

[charliebadenhop]

Ok, so I did a bit of searching on this site and already got a lot of feedback on LMG, and mostly very positive.

[PacificCrossInsurance]

Pacific Cross Health Insurance is Thailand's newest registered health insurance company with a comprehensive range of health insurance options with extremely competitive rates and benefits, and a high degree of flexibility. You can obtain a free no-obligation quote at this link PacificCrossHealthQuote or speak with your Thailand based Broker (offshore brokers are not able to offer the products of insurance companies registered in Thailand).

We are part of the Pacific Cross Group, Asia's pre-eminent health and travel insurance specialists and although our new brand may not be familiar we are in fact highly experienced in the Thai health insurance market with our heritage stretching back to 1957, then as Blue Cross during the 1980's and 1990's through to our partnership with LMG Insurance from 2005 (we are the 'Pacific' in LMG Pacific Healthcare).

There's a lot of talk in the expat community about whether Thai registered health insurance companies or international companies are the best option, and there is a lot of misinformation on this topic. This article from an insurance industry expert provides a good understanding of the issues and what is the best option for you. What's The Best Expat Health Insurance - Thailand or International?

[Paulywhite]

Go here and forget about the rest:

http://www.aainsure.net/health_insurance_thailand.html

Cheers.

Filled in the quote form in once, never heard from them

[Paulywhite]

Go here and forget about the rest:

http://www.aainsure.net/health_insurance_thailand.html

Cheers.

Filled in the quote form in once, never heard from them

Ditto. Not a word back from them.