what do you do if you are too old to get insurance?

[thaibeachlovers]

Mods please note I'm not asking for advice on insurance, so not an insurance forum topic.

 

I'm nearly to that stage.

 

Do you cast yourself at the mercy of the Thai public health hospitals?

[JaseTheBass]

How old is too old?

 

Some companies will continue to insure you however old you are as long as you started before a certian age.

[Jingthing]

The answer is you need to self fund your health care here.

You seek cheaper providers.

You avoid medical care you might need because of cost.

If the health goes down far and you run out of money, you either die without needed care or you run to a home country if that is still possible.

Then there are issues of being boarded on the plane.

 

Running out of money depending on the luck of the timing might also complicate your visa situation here, which could send you to Thai prison, which being sick, would often be fatal. 

 

To add, has anyone ever heard of any embassy here paying the cost of an air ambulance evacuation flight (which is massive) to the west? 

 

BTW, I am certainly not suggesting that the government of Thailand have any kind of obligation to cover such medical costs for medically destitute foreigners. Just suggesting it's foolish to think there is much in the way of safety nets here. There aren't! 

Edited September 15, 2016 by Jingthing

[Deepinthailand]

My insurance runs until I'm 90 (can't see me lasting that long in fact I don't want to last that long)  if I keep taking it out with the same company year on year. It will cover everything including a same condition emergency 

Edited September 15, 2016 by Deepinthailand

[anotheruser]

You die, you just voluntarily lay down and die.

[johnnybgood]

When my insurance becomes untenable here,  I intend to return to Blighty. The wife can follow if she wants to. 
Why should Thailand be the terminus? The place has no soul.

[Deepinthailand]

Just now, johnnybgood said:

When my insurance becomes untenable here,  I intend to return to Blighty. The wife can follow if she wants to. 
Why should Thailand be the terminus? The place has no soul.

Once your dead your dead who cares wherever that is. As for she can follow if she wants who has no soul.

[chiang mai]

I've been "self insuring" for more than twelve years and it's worked well for me and I intend to continue to do so, I will review each health related scenario that emerges and take a view at that time. Most likely I will continue to use the doctors and hospitals I know well, for the larger things I have no problems using the Provincial Hospital here, I've seen them in action several times and I'm impressed. I suggest that if you are going to do the same that you should get over any reluctance or stigma associated with provincial hospitals first.

[Jeffrey346]

Simple solution.. Marry a woman who works for Government and you are covered..

[watgate]

What is a provincial hospital? Is it a government hospital?

[chiang mai]

42 minutes ago, watgate said:

What is a provincial hospital? Is it a government hospital?

 

The main government hospital in the province, typically the largest and best equipped. In CM that's Mahraj/Suan Dok which is linked in to other provincial hospitals they exchange services with, CM for example trades open heart surgery with Lamphun Provincial Hospital, if one is full then the their partner is the fallback and CM residents could find themselves in either.

Edited September 16, 2016 by chiang mai

[johnnybgood]

1 hour ago, Deepinthailand said:

Once your dead your dead who cares wherever that is. As for she can follow if she wants who has no soul.

 

Illness may be a long drawn out affair needing constant care and draining your wealth.....Some of us may not pass away instantly or peacefully in one's sleep 

The reference to my wife ... ooops sorry forgot to put in a little smilie  for you.

 

[Farang99]

15 hours ago, JaseTheBass said:

How old is too old?

 

Some companies will continue to insure you however old you are as long as you started before a certian age.

And no company will insure you if you have any pre-existing health problems. In which case you depend  on the sympathy and help of your local doctor. They always ask if you have insurance, and when you say "no" and why, they will often prescribe drugs you can buy in town at a pharmacy rather than from the hospital, and try to avoid any expensive diagnosis tests.

[TerryLH]

"Simple solution.. Marry a woman who works for Government and you are covered.."

 

A good plan, but be careful because not all government workers are covered by civil servant insurance plan.

[adhd]

I guess the best thing is to go back to your home country

 

and pray you get the same benefits as many of the illegals, refugees, ...

[Agent Sumo]

1 hour ago, chiang mai said:

I've been "self insuring" for more than twelve years and it's worked well for me and I intend to continue to do so, I will review each health related scenario that emerges and take a view at that time. Most likely I will continue to use the doctors and hospitals I know well, for the larger things I have no problems using the Provincial Hospital here, I've seen them in action several times and I'm impressed. I suggest that if you are going to do the same that you should get over any reluctance or stigma associated with provincial hospitals first.

 

Self insuring is daft.

 

What happens if you fall ill and have to pay out for treatment?

 

Your fund is depleted and, if you don't have have enough income/capital to replenish it, you're screwed come the next illness.

[seedy]

Nonsense post Removed

[chiang mai]

1 minute ago, Agent Sumo said:

 

Self insuring is daft.

 

What happens if you fall ill and have to pay out for treatment?

 

Your fund is depleted and, if you don't have have enough income/capital to replenish it, you're screwed come the next illness.

 

I have 5 mill set aside for this purpose and have had for the past ten years, it has nothing to do with my income or my savings, it's completely separate. And as said, I review each medical scenario as it arises, I don't rule out the possibility that I may return to the UK at some point in the future, if I do I will be ahead by at least twelve years health insurance premiums.

[Deepinthailand]

I have come to Thailand to retire(eventually 1 year to go) and live out what's left of my life in peace. I have built everything I need for retirement a house with no stairs. A few others (Houses) for a modest income for my wife of course. I don't worry about getting ill if it happens it happens. So I don't worry about costs of getting ill otherwise I would do 2 things.

1. Make myself I'll with the worry and stress associated with it.

2. Not enjoy what I came here to do retire and relax.

I have an insurance which covers me for illness which I have had for about 15 yrs and I'm told by them if I keep paying for it it will go on till I'm 85 then I get 5 years free.. If of course I decided to keep on paying through the nose for it. That is something I alone will revisit when I retire. Goverment hospitals are not expensive, some people turn there noses up at them that's there choice all the dealings I've had with family at goverment hospital have been very good and not expensive. So I may decide to go down that route. If I end up with a disease that is going to claim me 12 or 18 mths down the line before it gets to much there are things I can do.

Insurance or no insurance is up to individual choice. 

[Moonlover]

There is the old saying 'Prevention is better than cure'. I take that proverb quite seriously, when it comes to this topic. No one will offer me insurance now as I'm post 70, so I take matters into my own hands.

 

Taking care of oneself through regular exercise, watching one's weight and eating healthily are, for me the key ingredients in keeping away from the doctor's office. I also meditate daily and monitor my blood pressure regularly.

 

One of the big threats to health here is alcohol and it can very difficult to avoid at times. It is in the culture,of  both falangs and Thais. I've been horrified by the amount of drinking that takes place among the Thai community and the adverse affect it has on their health.

 

Many of my wife's friends and relatives, from the village have succumbed at an early age due to renal failure, directly attributable to alcohol. We haven't taken the pledge completely, but we both now strictly limit our intake.

 

At the end of the day, we are responsible for our own health. Doctors and hospitals only have an interest in sick people, not healthy ones.

 

I thoroughly recommend the website 'webmd' as a useful guide to healthy living. And if you are so minded, look up Dr. Walter Bortz - 'Dare to be 100' on YouTube. It is very interesting.

 

Stay healthy, live well.

 

Edited September 16, 2016 by Moonlover
Spelling correction

[elgenon]

48 minutes ago, Farang99 said:

And no company will insure you if you have any pre-existing health problems. In which case you depend  on the sympathy and help of your local doctor. They always ask if you have insurance, and when you say "no" and why, they will often prescribe drugs you can buy in town at a pharmacy rather than from the hospital, and try to avoid any expensive diagnosis tests.

 

Some insurance companies will cover preexisting after a fixed period of time.

[impulse]

15 hours ago, Deepinthailand said:

My insurance runs until I'm 90 (can't see me lasting that long in fact I don't want to last that long)  if I keep taking it out with the same company year on year. It will cover everything including a same condition emergency 

 

Until you get sick and they drop you like a sack of potatoes.  Or stick you in a high risk pool that jacks up your rates to where you can't afford them.

[Suradit69]

1 hour ago, Farang99 said:

And no company will insure you if you have any pre-existing health problems. In which case you depend  on the sympathy and help of your local doctor. They always ask if you have insurance, and when you say "no" and why, they will often prescribe drugs you can buy in town at a pharmacy rather than from the hospital, and try to avoid any expensive diagnosis tests.

"when you say "no" and why, they will often prescribe drugs you can buy in town at a pharmacy rather than from the  hospital"

 

No need to tell him why.  I use Bangkok Hospital Pattaya and I have full US former employer insurance, but quite often I opt to get medications, especially if it's something I'll be taking long term, from Fascino's in town. Just ask the doctor what he wants you to take and tell him you'll get it at a pharmacy. No need to make up excuses or to tell the world how poor you are. I get reimbursed for prescription meds, but I still don't like over-paying for things.

 

Beside, even if you have insurance, many policies only cover in-patient expenses. Visits to the doctor and prescriptions wouldn't be covered.

 

As to insurance, if you start insuring with some companies before a certain age, they may agree to allow you to keep insuring with them as long as you never allow the coverage to lapse, but past a certain age they don't even show the cost of insurance in their literature for anyone over 70 or so. So yes, you can insure with them, but they can keep lifting the annual payments to the point where it's no longer affordable.

Edited September 16, 2016 by Suradit69

[Tarteso]

2 hours ago, Jeffrey346 said:

Simple solution.. Marry a woman who works for Government and you are covered..

And extra bonus if the woman was a nurse.

[elliottm]

Give up whoring (at your age) and use your home country health care?

[OMGImInPattaya]

17 hours ago, JaseTheBass said:

How old is too old?

 

Some companies will continue to insure you however old you are as long as you started before a certian age.

Can you name any that covers expatriates in Thailand?  I don't know of any...and if they do, after a certain age the premiums become prohibitively expensive for the limited coverage provided.

 

Basically, after 60 or 65, expats have to self-insure or rely on the cheap government hospitals.

[JaseTheBass]

Can you name any that covers expatriates in Thailand?  I don't know of any...and if they do, after a certain age the premiums become prohibitively expensive for the limited coverage provided.

 

Basically, after 60 or 65, expats have to self-insure or rely on the cheap government hospitals.

Yes. PM sent

[Deepinthailand]

1 hour ago, impulse said:

 

Until you get sick and they drop you like a sack of potatoes.  Or stick you in a high risk pool that jacks up your rates to where you can't afford them.

Not so but if that's your experiance then you picked the wrong company 

[chiang mai]

34 minutes ago, OMGImInPattaya said:

Can you name any that covers expatriates in Thailand?  I don't know of any...and if they do, after a certain age the premiums become prohibitively expensive for the limited coverage provided.

 

Basically, after 60 or 65, expats have to self-insure or rely on the cheap government hospitals.

 

AXA, Cigna and Pacific Cross all insure past age 65.

[JSixpack]

3 hours ago, johnnybgood said:

When my insurance becomes untenable here,  I intend to return to Blighty. The wife can follow if she wants to. 
Why should Thailand be the terminus? The place has no soul.

 

Exactly. You've hit the nail on head. Return to Blighty is the best possible solution. Many, in fact, wisely don't wait for the health insurance issue to arise. Fortunately we have lots of helpful threads on the forum about moving back to the UK. Hart in Hampshire looks lovely, no cesspool that: Best places to live in the UK: Hart in Hampshire tops list for the fifth year in a row.