Health Insurance in LOS for 68 and beyond 70

[The Deerhunter]

I stared a topic on this a couple of weeks ago & cannot/do not know how to - find it.

It had one very useful contact but I ned to see if there are more useful answers.

My current policy from another country expires next month as I am now beyond 2 years living "overseas permanently", so I need to get onto it

I am in good health (full medical including stress EKG 2 months ago, just turned 68 but want to do cover past 70 yo.

Any further advice of the suggestion of very cheap Thai Govt health scheme for foreigners discussed in this forum back in 2013 as a back-up or for non life-threatening treatment.

I am gong to try and save this topic as a favourite so I can find it again.

[chiang mai]

If you want a policy in Thailand, take a look at these guys, they're more sensibly priced than many:

http://www.pacificcrosshealth.com/

As for the government health system for foreigners, nothing has moved forward on that front and I personally don't expect it will for a very long time.

[lopburi3]

Your topic is here - posted on the 18th of December

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/879674-health-insurance-in-thailand-and-travel-insurance-out-of-los/#entry10205949

Just click on your name at top right on any page and click on "My Content". You then have a list of everything you have posted.

[stevenl]

If you want a policy in Thailand, take a look at these guys, they're more sensibly priced than many:

http://www.pacificcrosshealth.com/

As for the government health system for foreigners, nothing has moved forward on that front and I personally don't expect it will for a very long time.

That same company you recommend here gave the OP the nonsense advice about the government health insurance for foreigners.

[Sheryl]

I don't think you will find Thai insurance at your age but there are European based policies that will cover. Some that I know of are:

Cigna Silver (Cigna in the UK, not US)

AXA PPP

AXA Now Health

Globality Health

ALC

The above all have direct billing arrangements with Thai hospitals, which I think is pretty important unless you have ready at hand large cash savings/high credit card limit. And they will all cover you for life if you keep up the premiums.

There is no government scheme for foreigners and doesn't look like any is coming anytime soon.

[chiang mai]

If you want a policy in Thailand, take a look at these guys, they're more sensibly priced than many:

http://www.pacificcrosshealth.com/

As for the government health system for foreigners, nothing has moved forward on that front and I personally don't expect it will for a very long time.

That same company you recommend here gave the OP the nonsense advice about the government health insurance for foreigners.

I don't recommend anything, I merely suggest the OP look at them.

[gamini]

I tried to get health insurance when I was 70 and it was very difficult to get any quotation at all. The quotations that I did get were ridiculous, especially as they excluded any existing health problems. You're looking at about 200 K baht a year. If you don't have any pre-existing health problems.

In the last 15 years I have looking around researching different hospitals and clinics. There are some very good clinics and hospitals in Thailand, which cost very little, so that is just not worth getting insurance when you are old. You can go to a semi-government hospital in Chiang Mai and get first-class treatment from major operations at a reasonable price far less, then you would be paying out for insurance. I have kept a rough record of my medical expenses over the past 15 years. This included three major operations and lots of testing and medication. And it all worked out a lot less than 15 years of insurance would have cost me. I buy all my medicine wholesale from a Chinese pharmacy in Bangkok. I go to a very good laboratory get all my tests done for a fraction of the cost of the hospital. The hospital don't particularly like this when I arrive with all the necessary tests done. But when I tell them I simply can't afford their prices, they become more sympathetic and accept what I am doing. Additionally, if you do a bit of research you can find some very good doctors who have a private clinic and some of them only charge 1 to 200bt.

so to sum up. It's isn't worth getting medical insurance in Thailand. If you have to pay the huge charges for being elderly. Additionally, if you travel you can get a very good insurance in Thailand up to and including the age of 85, but it cannot be used in Thailand.

[Sheryl]

It is a mistake to base decisions on what ordinary medical care costs. You need to consider catastrophic events - major accidents with serious head injury and multiple trauma, heart attack or stroke requiring extended ICU care and specialized surgery etc.

Even in a government hospital the costs for treatment of such things can easily exceed 1 million baht. And should you be brought unconscious into a private hospital -- as can happen -- it won't need even extended care to into the millions of baht.

Believe me, I've encountered many cases where people who didn't insure because they though health care here was affordable wound up with bills on the millions of baht. It has bankrupted whole families.

But indeed, it is true that as you age the premiums get more and more costly.

[colinneil]

If OP is not married, get yourself married to a government official.

I was lucky when i had my accident, 95% of all costs were paid by Thai government.

6 operations, intensive care for 1 month, 7 month stay in hospital, still on medication after 2 years.

Many expats moan about Thai hospitals, i only have praise for them.

[thaiduncankk]

If OP is not married, get yourself married to a government official.

I was lucky when i had my accident, 95% of all costs were paid by Thai government.

6 operations, intensive care for 1 month, 7 month stay in hospital, still on medication after 2 years.

Many expats moan about Thai hospitals, i only have praise for them.

Your case was an exception Mr Dow.

[thaiduncankk]

If OP is not married, get yourself married to a government official.

I was lucky when i had my accident, 95% of all costs were paid by Thai government.

6 operations, intensive care for 1 month, 7 month stay in hospital, still on medication after 2 years.

Many expats moan about Thai hospitals, i only have praise for them.

Your case was an exception Mr Dow.

So you suggest, marry a government official, like you did, for government healthcare ?

Where is the love ?

And I know you married her before your unfortunate accident, but let's get in the real world.

[thaiduncankk]

And to get in the real world, you used to ride back to Ban Phai pissed off your head.

[Gutenberg]

I tried to get health insurance when I was 70 and it was very difficult to get any quotation at all. The quotations that I did get were ridiculous, especially as they excluded any existing health problems. You're looking at about 200 K baht a year. If you don't have any pre-existing health problems.

In the last 15 years I have looking around researching different hospitals and clinics. There are some very good clinics and hospitals in Thailand, which cost very little, so that is just not worth getting insurance when you are old. You can go to a semi-government hospital in Chiang Mai and get first-class treatment from major operations at a reasonable price far less, then you would be paying out for insurance. I have kept a rough record of my medical expenses over the past 15 years. This included three major operations and lots of testing and medication. And it all worked out a lot less than 15 years of insurance would have cost me. I buy all my medicine wholesale from a Chinese pharmacy in Bangkok. I go to a very good laboratory get all my tests done for a fraction of the cost of the hospital. The hospital don't particularly like this when I arrive with all the necessary tests done. But when I tell them I simply can't afford their prices, they become more sympathetic and accept what I am doing. Additionally, if you do a bit of research you can find some very good doctors who have a private clinic and some of them only charge 1 to 200bt.

so to sum up. It's isn't worth getting medical insurance in Thailand. If you have to pay the huge charges for being elderly. Additionally, if you travel you can get a very good insurance in Thailand up to and including the age of 85, but it cannot be used in Thailand.

Well, a health insurance is mostly used for things in life we cannot plan.

Of course you can plan to see a cheap doctor in a clinic or get tests done in another clinic.

A heart attack you cannot plan.

Getting a health insurance is a great idea to cover all those things you never hope for.

[cmsally]

I don't think you will find Thai insurance at your age but there are European based policies that will cover. Some that I know of are:

Cigna Silver (Cigna in the UK, not US)

AXA PPP

AXA Now Health

Globality Health

ALC

The above all have direct billing arrangements with Thai hospitals, which I think is pretty important unless you have ready at hand large cash savings/high credit card limit. And they will all cover you for life if you keep up the premiums.

There is no government scheme for foreigners and doesn't look like any is coming anytime soon.

Anyone have any approx figures for the above.

And being Euro policies would these be purchasable in Thailand?

[chiang mai]

I don't think you will find Thai insurance at your age but there are European based policies that will cover. Some that I know of are:

Cigna Silver (Cigna in the UK, not US)

AXA PPP

AXA Now Health

Globality Health

ALC

The above all have direct billing arrangements with Thai hospitals, which I think is pretty important unless you have ready at hand large cash savings/high credit card limit. And they will all cover you for life if you keep up the premiums.

There is no government scheme for foreigners and doesn't look like any is coming anytime soon.

Anyone have any approx figures for the above.

And being Euro policies would these be purchasable in Thailand?

For a male aged 65 with a 2,000 Pound deductible, the annual premium is 1,750 Pounds per year, the premium rises sharply at age 66, purchased from the UK.

I'll PM you with some material they sent to me, if of interest?

[cmsally]

I don't think you will find Thai insurance at your age but there are European based policies that will cover. Some that I know of are:

Cigna Silver (Cigna in the UK, not US)

AXA PPP

AXA Now Health

Globality Health

ALC

The above all have direct billing arrangements with Thai hospitals, which I think is pretty important unless you have ready at hand large cash savings/high credit card limit. And they will all cover you for life if you keep up the premiums.

There is no government scheme for foreigners and doesn't look like any is coming anytime soon.

Anyone have any approx figures for the above.

And being Euro policies would these be purchasable in Thailand?

For a male aged 65 with a 2,000 Pound deductible, the annual premium is 1,750 Pounds per year, the premium rises sharply at age 66, purchased from the UK.

I'll PM you with some material they sent to me, if of interest?

Yes thanks for that, I would be interested. Do you know if there is a max. age or do the premiums just get ridiculously high .

[chiang mai]

I don't think you will find Thai insurance at your age but there are European based policies that will cover. Some that I know of are:

Cigna Silver (Cigna in the UK, not US)

AXA PPP

AXA Now Health

Globality Health

ALC

The above all have direct billing arrangements with Thai hospitals, which I think is pretty important unless you have ready at hand large cash savings/high credit card limit. And they will all cover you for life if you keep up the premiums.

There is no government scheme for foreigners and doesn't look like any is coming anytime soon.

Anyone have any approx figures for the above.

And being Euro policies would these be purchasable in Thailand?

For a male aged 65 with a 2,000 Pound deductible, the annual premium is 1,750 Pounds per year, the premium rises sharply at age 66, purchased from the UK.

I'll PM you with some material they sent to me, if of interest?

Yes thanks for that, I would be interested. Do you know if there is a max. age or do the premiums just get ridiculously high .

The premiums simply get very expensive although there may also be an upper age limit although I'm not sure what it is. I'll PM some material for you to read.

[Sheryl]

Each of these has a different maximum age for enrollment. All of them continue to insure for life but yes, premiums do go up as you age.

Premium costs depend on your age and whether or not you opt for a deductible or copay.

Suggest you ho to the webdites of these companies, can get quotes online and you will see more cleatly how deductible and copay options affect premiums.

[chiang mai]

Here's a question maybe Sheryl knows the answer to:

Virtually all health insurance policies exclude pre-existing conditions, at least for a specific period of time. In a country such as the UK where all medical records are centralized it's easy to see a patients entire medical history, less so in Thailand where records are held by individual hospitals. I therefore wonder if insurance companies can really check to see if the patient has received treatment for a specific complaint or is this aspect down to patient honesty alone?

[JLCrab]

Here's a question maybe Sheryl knows the answer to:

Virtually all health insurance policies exclude pre-existing conditions, at least for a specific period of time. In a country such as the UK where all medical records are centralized it's easy to see a patients entire medical history, less so in Thailand where records are held by individual hospitals. I therefore wonder if insurance companies can really check to see if the patient has received treatment for a specific complaint or is this aspect down to patient honesty alone?

It seems here and maybe elsewhere it comes down to when the insured first goes in for some major procedure and the doctor in the Provider network notes some discrepancy in the medical record as provided by the insurer and his/her observations of the patient standing before them.

[Sheryl]

Here's a question maybe Sheryl knows the answer to:

Virtually all health insurance policies exclude pre-existing conditions, at least for a specific period of time. In a country such as the UK where all medical records are centralized it's easy to see a patients entire medical history, less so in Thailand where records are held by individual hospitals. I therefore wonder if insurance companies can really check to see if the patient has received treatment for a specific complaint or is this aspect down to patient honesty alone?

They can and do check..but they also rely heavily on the nature of the problem and duration since enrollment. Certain health problems just don't occur overnight.

In the case of BUPA it seems that when there is a situation where it looks likely that the condition pre-existed they will deny the claim even without clear evidence that this is so, putting the burden on the indured person to lodge an appeal.

This only happens with claims made in the first year or two of coverage.

Note that lying about anything on your application (including failure to mention) can invalidate the entire policy, not just relevant claims.

Internationally issued policies will often cover pre- existing after a period of about 2 years if no recurrence during that time. Some policies will also cover acute exacerbations of pre-existing diseases.

[chiang mai]

Thanks Sheryl, I was more curious about the process rather than any attempt to defraud et al.

On other fronts, I've just found out that AXA-PPP International (UK) offers an international policy to expats residents in Thailand, very good medical coverage but pre-existing conditions not covered (for two years) plus chronic conditions not covered at all.

At age 65 the premium is 1,350 per year, not a huge sum considering. Premiums increase by around 5% a year thereafter.

You'll need to contact them directly to get all the details you might need.

[stevenl]

Thanks Sheryl, I was more curious about the process rather than any attempt to defraud et al.

On other fronts, I've just found out that AXA-PPP International (UK) offers an international policy to expats residents in Thailand, very good medical coverage but pre-existing conditions not covered (for two years) plus chronic conditions not covered at all.

At age 65 the premium is 1,350 per year, not a huge sum considering. Premiums increase by around 5% a year thereafter.

You'll need to contact them directly to get all the details you might need.

Do you have any info on 'chronic conditions not covered at all'? Seems very strange.

[chiang mai]

Thanks Sheryl, I was more curious about the process rather than any attempt to defraud et al.

On other fronts, I've just found out that AXA-PPP International (UK) offers an international policy to expats residents in Thailand, very good medical coverage but pre-existing conditions not covered (for two years) plus chronic conditions not covered at all.

At age 65 the premium is 1,350 per year, not a huge sum considering. Premiums increase by around 5% a year thereafter.

You'll need to contact them directly to get all the details you might need.

Do you have any info on 'chronic conditions not covered at all'? Seems very strange.

I tried to upload the plan handbook but can't for some reason, you'll have to google AXA-PPP UK standard plan for details. In essence, chronic conditions are covered for a max 120 days following diagnosis, thereafter no coverage.

[Sheryl]

That is a serious drawback especially for older people. I'd keep looking, there are policies that don't have that exclusion.