Paying large hospital bills

[Sheryl]

Was that Cigna International (out of UK) expat plan? As I have been trying to find feedback on it.

[mogandave]

Was that Cigna International (out of UK) expat plan? As I have been trying to find feedback on it.

It was out of the U.S., and yes it was an expat plan.

I could submit everything online and would have payment direct deposited into my account usually within a week.

BCBS blows.

[lopburi3]

Actually BCBS varies - my FEP plan allows online submission without translations and pays directly into account if I wish and if arranged may directly pay some hospitals for inpatient service. But normally takes about 3 weeks for reimbursement for submitted outpatient claims - but do not believe that is abnormal. But this is a special group plan so not an option for most.

[al007]

Remember everything is negotiable

Go to the hospital ask to see the financial director, if you have nothing you are in a position of strength, also the hospital do not want to go to court, you have to be able to negotiate a minimum of 20% off, dropping comments like you are flying home tonight, not next week tonight! when you return you will progress matter again

The hospital does not want to write off the full debt

Be pleasant be well dressed you may be surprised what you can achieve

Actually it is possible to get insurance through European based insurers at virtually any age. And he most urgently should get it - he actually got off lightly this tiem, 200K baht is nothing. Can easily rack up 1-5 million for a really major illness or injury.

I am aged 70, have no insurance and will probably be facing some relatively large medical costs in the near future

Recently I was offered medical cover that would have cost approx 60,000 batt per annum; batt1.0m per annum, but any one condition only 500,000, I was offered this on no medical basis

It was suggested I could use for my existing problems if I waited a couple of months

I chose not to proceed because I prefer not to fill insurance proposal incorrectly, which if found out later can invalidate the insurance, and further be considered criminal and result in police charges

On an annual basis with the cover per item at 500,000 I consider the premium too high

I have over recent years investigated medical cover and always found it too exorbitantly expensive for older people, it is a risk I choose to take as a result of my wish to live here

I am still eligible for free medical in the UK having paid 40 yrs of contributions and being over retirement age, unless both these criteria are met then you may not be covered in the UK if you have been out for more than six months, until you have made a further six months of contributions

I have one other card up my sleeve and that is one credit-card with a limit on it of over 2.2M batt pay now worry about later and be pursued from a different country, or use it to get to UK and free treatment

I hope I never need these options

Stay lucky I consider I am very lucky

[watcharacters]

He doesn't have a credit card?

more to the point why no medical insurance ?

More to the point. After open heart surgery in Bangkok, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of California raised my premiums to $3,000 a month, with huge deductables. Had to cancel. Because I have had open heart surgery in Thailand, the Thai companies won't insure me at all. Hope that answers your question.

Since you mention "Blue Cross/Blue Shield of California", I guess you're not covered by Medicare or couldn't get to the USA for treatment.

$3,000. a month is one hefty premium.

Good luck

[mogandave]

In the US if your broke and don't have insurance it's free.

[thaipod]

My mother in-law went into Bangkok General a few months ago for a heart by pass and didn't make it after a few more unnecessary operations that doctors encouraged the family to have and ended up with a 9 million Baht bill which they are still spinning from the huge bill. 200000 is not expensive.

[Soutpeel]

He doesn't have a credit card?

more to the point why no medical insurance ?

More to the point. After open heart surgery in Bangkok, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of California raised my premiums to $3,000 a month, with huge deductables. Had to cancel. Because I have had open heart surgery in Thailand, the Thai companies won't insure me at all. Hope that answers your question.

No it doesn't answer my question, given OP states "colleague" therefore the person is working in Thailand and as a minimum should have access to at least a government hospital or in a lot of cases the company has their own private employees medical insurance

So maybe time to get off that high horse

Further is it a case the Thai company refuses to insure you ? Or the company will not cover preexisting conditions not the same as refusing to insure you, as I know multiple people in Thailand who have had heart surgery in Thailand on private Thai medical insurance and they have been refused further insurance and yes their premiums have increased but that much

[cooked]

Actually it is possible to get insurance through European based insurers at virtually any age. And he most urgently should get it - he actually got off lightly this tiem, 200K baht is nothing. Can easily rack up 1-5 million for a really major illness or injury.

And if he is working, should be covered under SS. Unless at a private school?

If he is under SS but ended up at a hospital other than the one he is registered at there are avenues for recourse and he should immediately contact the SS Office. And don't pay the hospital a thing until he has done so and then only if SS Office so advises. Private hospitals are supposed to treat people with SS in emergencies at the rate of reimbursment provided by SS though they often try to get the patients to pay them directly.

If he is truly without insurance, he will have topay what her can now and then work out a payment plan with the hospital for the rest. They will provide one if he remains firm in saying he does not have the full amount. They will charge interest, and they will take down his passport and employment details. This has happened to many people and every hospital has encountered it.

I can not find it -------but there was some posts on here at one time about a Thai insurance company that will insure you (for the standard Thai hospitals) up to the age 90. I didn't take a lot of notice of it at the time---but as I get older & my BUPA payments gets higher-------just wondering does anyone recall the discussion ??

http://www.thaihealth.co.th/2012/index.php

But you have get your insurance before the age of 65.

[autanic]

Here in Chiang Mai, it's the norm for private hospitals to hold onto a patient's passport during the time that a contract is being paid. They will send a representative with the passport to meet you at Immigration to keep everything up-to-date with regard to 90 day reports, visa extensions, etc, but they hold the passport to prevent you from leaving the country with an unpaid bill.

The gov't hospitals don't do this, but they do tell Immigration about people with outstanding bills and the question can come up during an Immigration interview for a visa extension, especially if you're claiming a certain level of income to support a retirement or marriage visa extension application. In other words, claim of poverty at a gov't hospital is one way to alert Immigration that the income you're claiming when you apply for a visa extension may not be accurate.

I am pretty sure that it is illegal to hold to the passport.

If I recall right my passport is the property of my country. Beside that I could claim it lost, get a new passport and pass immigration (if they aren't informed).

Well I have 2 passports but that would kind of hard to explain that I leave Thailand but never entered....

Actually on your last point its not. As long as you can prove you came to Thailand and when, you simply fill out the a new entry form, they stamp you in and when you leave they stamp you out.

However with that said, ripping off a hospital and not paying your bill is very bad Karma.

Edited September 1, 2015 by autanic

[h90]

Here in Chiang Mai, it's the norm for private hospitals to hold onto a patient's passport during the time that a contract is being paid. They will send a representative with the passport to meet you at Immigration to keep everything up-to-date with regard to 90 day reports, visa extensions, etc, but they hold the passport to prevent you from leaving the country with an unpaid bill.

The gov't hospitals don't do this, but they do tell Immigration about people with outstanding bills and the question can come up during an Immigration interview for a visa extension, especially if you're claiming a certain level of income to support a retirement or marriage visa extension application. In other words, claim of poverty at a gov't hospital is one way to alert Immigration that the income you're claiming when you apply for a visa extension may not be accurate.

I am pretty sure that it is illegal to hold to the passport.

If I recall right my passport is the property of my country. Beside that I could claim it lost, get a new passport and pass immigration (if they aren't informed).

Well I have 2 passports but that would kind of hard to explain that I leave Thailand but never entered....

Actually on your last point its not. As long as you can prove you came to Thailand and when, you simply fill out the a new entry form, they stamp you in and when you leave they stamp you out.

However with that said, ripping off a hospital and not paying your bill is very bad Karma.

I am not intending to rip off a hospital :-)

I don't believe in Karma...And so do some private hospitals who rip of people in need.

[swampdonkey]

How can someone rack up a large bill like that?

I thought hospital care in Thailand was relatively cheap to Westerners.

I'm worried now because I don't have insurance here. I'll probably get a yearly BUPA plan.

200000 is not a large bill for hospital care

[al007]

Was that Cigna International (out of UK) expat plan? As I have been trying to find feedback on it.

Reading this thread I though maybe I should recheck rates, I went to Cigna Int has US and UK phone numbers, on line quote about 23,000 batt per month, limit 3,000,000 batt, no out patient treatment and every claim subject to `13500 batt excess pre-existing conditions excluded, and subject to underwriters approval of proposal form

This is too dear for me and I do not even know I would be accepted

So the man with a hospital bill of 200,000 that he can not pay pretty certainly could not afford these premiums

All I can suggest is if no insurance as is my case then you need a plan in the event the worst happens, even if it is like the lame horse and bullet in the head!!

[Sheryl]

Was that Cigna International (out of UK) expat plan? As I have been trying to find feedback on it.

Reading this thread I though maybe I should recheck rates, I went to Cigna Int has US and UK phone numbers, on line quote about 23,000 batt per month, limit 3,000,000 batt, no out patient treatment and every claim subject to `13500 batt excess pre-existing conditions excluded, and subject to underwriters approval of proposal form

This is too dear for me and I do not even know I would be accepted

So the man with a hospital bill of 200,000 that he can not pay pretty certainly could not afford these premiums

All I can suggest is if no insurance as is my case then you need a plan in the event the worst happens, even if it is like the lame horse and bullet in the head!!

Something is way off there.

Cigna US and UK are entirely different plans and not to be confused. The US plan is for health care in the US and accordingly costly as all US insurance policies are. The Cigna International Expat plan is out of the UK. Premiums for people aged around 60 run around US $2,200-3,500 per year depending on deductible. Quite a bit less than the 23,000 baht a month you quote. The maximum benefit is 1 million USD per year, again quite different from what you quote.

I strongly suggest working with an insurance broker to get accurate sense of premium costs and benefits.

[Soutpeel]

How can someone rack up a large bill like that?

I thought hospital care in Thailand was relatively cheap to Westerners.

I'm worried now because I don't have insurance here. I'll probably get a yearly BUPA plan.

Go get in a bad car wreck or one suspects a bad motocy wreck in your case and see how "big" a 200k bill is ? Its only a bit over USD 5k....end up in ICU or similar and you will burn through 200k pretty quick in costs

[lopburi3]

Actually you will spend more than 200k on an overnight stent procedure in reasonably inexpensive private hospitals. I spent 30k on about a 30 minute outpatient small carcinoma removal last week.