I now need an expensive operation - what are my options?

[ianwuk]

Hello All.

So, long story short, I was diagnosed a few months back with nasal polyps. I was told that I could have an operation (but from what I learnt the polyps just come back - specialist confirmed this) so I stuck with using nasal spray instead and thought that the condition could be controlled. Fast forward to last week and it seems the infection caused by the nasal polyps has worsened spreading to my lungs causing shortness of breath, general tiredness and fatigue and nasal congestion chronically in the left nostril.

Suffice to say, the second hospital I was at last week (first diagnosis was at Phayathai 1 hospital, second was at Samitivej) checked again and the polyps have worsened and now an operation is needed to the tune of around 300,000 baht.

What are my options? I don't have real health insurance (my work reimburses up to 1500 baht only), I do pay social security though. Fully legally working in Thailand.

Will any healthcare provider cover all or most of it as I really do not have the money? - asking family/friends is also not an option, they don't have the money and nothing is ever for free.

What about bank loans?

I am from the UK but I believe that I have been out of the UK too long (8 years in Thailand) to be able to fly back and get it done on the NHS, is this true?

Any help anyone can provide me with in getting the money to resolve this would be much appreciated.

Many thanks.

Edited September 30, 2014 by ianwuk

[harrry]

If you are on a pension I believe you get covered in the UK if you return (to stay possibly but of course you do not know you have to leave after it because of the cold).

[ianwuk]

Unfortuantely I am not on a pension harrry but thank for the advice. Will no insurers in Thailand help me out? Even if they pay the costs themselves upfront (the insurer) and I pay back per month, I would be fine with that.

Thanks.

ianwuk

[harrry]

http://www.nhs.uk/chq/pages/1087.aspx?categoryid=68&subcategoryid=162

looks as if you may be ok......with a bit of hassle but for that amount worth it.

[robertthebruce]

Go back to the UK and get on the waiting list, hopefully you won't have to wait too long....

All the best

[kurnell]

India!

[stevenl]

What are my options? I don't have real health insurance (my work reimburses up to 1500 baht only), I do pay social security though. Fully legally working in Thailand.

If you pay social security here in Thailand you should be in the 'Thai NHS system'. So at the hospital that was selected for you they will help you and that 'Thai NHS insurance' will pay for that. Check with your employer about this though, because your sentence 'my work reimburses up to 1500 baht only' really confuses the issue.

If not covered: sorry, no Thai insurance company will pay for this and the NHS UK option seems to be your best solution.

Edited September 30, 2014 by stevenl

[loppylugs1]

India!

Have to say best option by a mile. I go there frequently for medical care,just a short hop and damned cheap and excellent care, far better than UK

could go back to UK go private BUPA doctor few hundred £ ,then fast tracked through NHS

Just a point ,have had estimates for past surgery in Thailand chose India 1/20 of the cost at least,and so good.

Going in a month or so PM me if you decide

Edited September 30, 2014 by loppylugs1

[TerryLH]

"..I do pay social security though."

Thai Social Security coverage is pretty good. If you are in the system, I'd suggest going to where you're registered and talking to a doctor there.

If for some reason they can't do a procedure, they'll send you to a hospital that can.

Most stuff won't cost you anything. If you want a private room, you pay the difference between the private room and the cost of a shared room.

"If you pay social security here in Thailand you should be in the 'Thai NHS system'."

I think that is a different system.

[stevenl]

"..I do pay social security though."

Thai Social Security coverage is pretty good. If you are in the system, I'd suggest going to where you're registered and talking to a doctor there.

If for some reason they can't do a procedure, they'll send you to a hospital that can.

Most stuff won't cost you anything. If you want a private room, you pay the difference between the private room and the cost of a shared room.

"If you pay social security here in Thailand you should be in the 'Thai NHS system'."

I think that is a different system.

No, it is not, we're talkning about the same system here.

But the OP is confusing with 'I pay social security' and 'my employer will reimburse me 1500 baht'. So I'm not sure if he is in or not.

[ianwuk]

Just to clear up the confusion.

I do pay social security and I have a social security card with a number and a registered hospital too.

Apologies.

[stevenl]

Just to clear up the confusion.

I do pay social security and I have a social security card with a number and a registered hospital too.

Apologies.

So what is your problem?

Go there. They'll pay for it, and any upgrades you can pay yourself, like the mentioned private room.

[AlanAunuum]

if you have a krungthai bank account and visa debit card you can get your hospital bill paid for you,the only problem is you have to pay the bill yourself then submit the paid bill to the bank and they thern reinburse you i pay 900 baht a year for this and it is worth it

[stevenl]

if you have a krungthai bank account and visa debit card you can get your hospital bill paid for you,the only problem is you have to pay the bill yourself then submit the paid bill to the bank and they thern reinburse you i pay 900 baht a year for this and it is worth it

Wait, you're saying here they have a health insurance for 900 Baht per annum.

[AlanAunuum]

yes go into krunfthai bank and get a debit card mine is the blue platinum one you can choose your own levelof card the mst expensive one is about 1500 baht

[stevenl]

yes go into krunfthai bank and get a debit card mine is the blue platinum one you can choose your own levelof card the mst expensive one is about 1500 baht

Sorry, but that is not health insurance.

You really should not be posting this in a thread from someone enquiring about health cover.

[ianwuk]

Just to clear up the confusion.

I do pay social security and I have a social security card with a number and a registered hospital too.

Apologies.

So what is your problem?

Go there. They'll pay for it, and any upgrades you can pay yourself, like the mentioned private room.

Thanks very much Stevenl. Appreciate the advice. I am doing just that.

[stevenl]

Just to clear up the confusion.

I do pay social security and I have a social security card with a number and a registered hospital too.

Apologies.

So what is your problem?

Go there. They'll pay for it, and any upgrades you can pay yourself, like the mentioned private room.

Thanks very much Stevenl. Appreciate the advice. I am doing just that.

Good luck with the operation.

[JoePai]

yes go into krunfthai bank and get a debit card mine is the blue platinum one you can choose your own levelof card the mst expensive one is about 1500 baht

Sounds more like P.A. not medical insurance (and usually pretty poor from the banks as well ...)

[AlanAunuum]

well call me old fashioned but it is health cover or even health insurance you get ill you go to hospital you get your bill you pay it and you get your money back,sounds ok to me so you are covered or do you all want to scrounge and hust tell the Thai government well i live here what about giving me a little green card as well i was trying to be helpful but stevenl does not seem to like members trying to help. I had a bad motor bike accident 2 years ago and it cost me over 8000 baht so i paid it then got my money back in about 1 month,so i would call it health insurance or cover i was not out of pocket unlike some farangs who do not have accident or health insurance here.

[AlanAunuum]

it also covers you in the event of heart attacks or any health problems which involve you having to spend time in hospital

[stevenl]

Sorry, not possible.

You may have had your expenses for the motorbike accident covered by the porobor, or compulsory insurance.

But health cover for 900 baht per year is simply not possible.

[MJCM]

@AlanA can you please post a link to the website where it says this, as I looked at the KTC website and the only thing I could find is 0.8% cashback or if you get a BPH cc you can get a % discount on the whole bill etc.

I also personally think this is P.A, and that will most certainly not cover you for Heart Attack etc.

Another question I have, is did you have to fill in a form which asked about your previous medical conditions?

[AlanAunuum]

Hi mjcm It helps i you work here s you need to show them your work permit or be married to a thai. I went in i was shown a card with all dierent kinds of cc cards on it which varied in price so i chose the 900 baht one which gives me 25000 bank hospital bill cover.of course the more you py for your atm card the higher the monitery value o the cost paid is. I hope this helps also AIA do insurnce and health insurance my late wife had one when she worked but only paid 300 baht per month so it only gve her 8,000 baht insurance Hope this helps

[Suradit69]

Unfortuantely I am not on a pension harrry but thank for the advice. Will no insurers in Thailand help me out? Even if they pay the costs themselves upfront (the insurer) and I pay back per month, I would be fine with that.

Thanks.

ianwuk

No insurer is going to offer you coverage for an existing condition. Sorry but you are essentially asking a business to advance you Baht 300,000 on your promise to repay it. You can't really think that's a reasonable thing to expect. Obviously as an expat you could board the next airplane out of the country following your recovery, never to be seen again.

Sorry for your situation, but the point of paying for insurance is to cover unexpected events in the future, not things that have already happened. If that were the case, no one would buy insurance until they had a problem that required immediate payment.

Hopefully you can somehow manage to get the treatment back in the UK.

Edited September 30, 2014 by Suradit69

[Suradit69]

it also covers you in the event of heart attacks or any health problems which involve you having to spend time in hospital

This will come as news to KrungThai Bank. According to them this is only for accidents:

KTB Website:

Accidents are random and can happen to anyone anytime anywhere. Most accidents

are minor, but others can be more serious. In the blink of an eye, life could be changed

forever. Accidents happen every day and everywhere.

Whether cardholder is at hotel, travelling, shopping or enjoy leisure activities in

Thailand, this card provides covered from Personal Accident Insurance protection 24-

hour within the first 7 days of entry to Thailand or since card issued at KTB branches

whichever is the latest date. This card provides financial help to cardholder if an

accident should happen:

Death, Dismemberment, Loss of sight, Permanent disability cover up to Baht

1,000,000.

First Aid Medical Expenses cover up to Baht 10,000 with cashless scheme on

260 high standard hospitals on our network throughout Thailand.

Moreover, Instant cover is the peace of mind straight away. For the most convenient,

this card also provides Hospital Network Call Center at Tel. 0-2612-6948 on 24 hours.

FAQ:

Q: Does this insurance cover death or medical expenses resulting from sickness?

A: No, this insurance covers death and medical expenses resulting from an accident.

http://www.ktb.co.th/ktb/Download/product/MediaFile_148104KPIInsurance.pdf

[Satcommlee]

Some strange posts here...

The insurance that comes with a VISA card is Accident insurance only.

The social security card is good but waiting lists for non-emergencies can be very very long, perhaps infinit.

Forget about any insurance company paying for this - it is now a pre-existing condition.

300K sounds expensive - why not try as a paying patient at a government/army/navy hospital?

[Suradit69]

Some strange posts here...

The insurance that comes with a VISA card is Accident insurance only.

The social security card is good but waiting lists for non-emergencies can be very very long, perhaps infinit.

Forget about any insurance company paying for this - it is now a pre-existing condition.

300K sounds expensive - why not try as a paying patient at a government/army/navy hospital?

"300K sounds expensive - why not try as a paying patient at a government/army/navy hospital?"

Good idea. The Queen Sirikit Hospital at Sattahip has some excellent doctors and, while the costs are not as low as for Thais (understandably since it's a government subsidized hospital primarily for military personnel), they are considerably less than at a private hospital.

I went there for a hernia operation. Since it wasn't an emergency they scheduled me for 3 months from when I first saw the doctor, so eventually I decided to have it done at Bangkok Hospital Pattaya (also an excellent surgeon there and quick, painless recovery). The doctors spoke excellent English, but virtually no one else there did ... so you'll need to bring along a Thai speaking spouse or friend, but overall I was quite impressed with the services.

The insurance that comes with a VISA card is Accident insurance only.

Yes, as I pointed out in the post above yours, the policy shown on Krung Thai Bank's website clearly states that they only cover accidents. The person who claimed and received Baht 8000 following a motorcycle accident was lucky indeed if they paid even that amount.

Clearly some people think insurance companies operate like lotteries where everyone holds a winning ticket.

Edited September 30, 2014 by Suradit69

[KittenKong]

I was diagnosed a few months back with nasal polyps. I was told that I could have an operation (but from what I learnt the polyps just come back - specialist confirmed this) so I stuck with using nasal spray instead and thought that the condition could be controlled.

......

Suffice to say, the second hospital I was at last week (first diagnosis was at Phayathai 1 hospital, second was at Samitivej) checked again and the polyps have worsened and now an operation is needed to the tune of around 300,000 baht.

I had nasal polyps about 10-12 years ago in Europe. They were operated on successfully and never returned. I spent one night in hospital and the total bill (no insurance) was about 50,000B (equiv).

Your condition does sound worse than mine was though.

[meatboy]

Go back to the UK and get on the waiting list, hopefully you won't have to wait too long....

All the best

sorry to be so harsh but being in thailand and cant afford 300,000bht.no bank would lend you that amount,and borrowing elswhere [dont even think about it]

so the only option you have is to return back to the uk.and stay there.