Report: All foreign tourists will soon need insurance in order to enter Thailand

[Pisdjuk]

On 5/10/2017 at 9:27 PM, DogNo1 said:

What about long-term stayers with one-year retirement extensions?  I think that you have to be a resident of another country to buy travel insurance.  Plus travel insrurance certainly won’t be effective for one year.

You CAN buy a Thai insurance - They exist! Also several international companies offer "travel and health insurances" to people on longer stay (3, 6, 9 and 12 months). 

 

Example: https://www2.worldnomads.com/purchase/index.aspx

Edited November 28, 2017 by Pisdjuk
example needed

[Pisdjuk]

On 5/6/2017 at 8:17 AM, ezflip said:

Isn't that what they call 'Medical Tourism' ??? If you invite people to come to your country for medical purposes, you can't really blame them afterwards for filling up your hospitals...

The so-called "medical tourists" pay for their services, so don't count them in here. Plastic surgeries etc. are paid for before the "medical tourists" arrive or have anything done (even the pre-examination). It's a fact that lots of tourists arrive to Thailand without proper insurance cover, I have no clue of how insurance works in China, but can immagine Chinese are without any type of health insurance (state covers all at home). I'm ure many poor Russians have no health insurance or other that will cover, so the idea of forcing visitors to have an insurance is not stupid and is already in place in the USA and the Schengen countries, so why not in Thailand?

 

[Pisdjuk]

On 5/6/2017 at 8:13 AM, ezzra said:

Who are the people that comes up with such ludicrous ideas everyday just

to make tourist's life more difficult and sillier with every lame ideas?

what are they smoking I'd like to know, coz I want some too...

Don't know where you are from, but where I come from the same demand is in charge for foreigners visiting (all Schengen) and the same thing for travelers to other Western countries, so go on smoking your own whatever

 

[DogNo1]

Your link is for travel insurance.  Next year, at the age of 75, I will become a full-time resident of Thailand on yearly extensions.  Insurance for foreign long-term residents of Thailand is terribly expensive.  Sheryl has written about some companies that offer insurance for foreign residents of Thailand but it would be too expensive for me.  If I were to be required to have health insurance here, I would have to reduce the length of my stays and remain a resident of Japan so that I could purchase travel insurance.  So far, I have paid out-of-pocket for all of my health care at Bumrungrad although I don't usually buy their medicine if I can get it at the Pratuu Naam Pharmacy.  I haven't yet inquired at the companies that Sheryl recommended but, even with a large deductible, the monthly cost would probably make my year-long stays unaffordable since, in most cases, I would be paying the expense of the health care out-of-pocket in addition to the insurance premium.

 

Several very long threads on the subject of health insurance posted on TV in the past seemed to reach a consensus that for we elderly, self-insuring is the cost-effective option.

[theguyfromanotherforum]

3 hours ago, Pisdjuk said:

Why not??? If you don't have a receipt or other proof of an insurance you can't buy an airline ticket.

 

 

Why not. Airline could care less.

[hawker9000]

Such a requirement is unworkable in Thailand, and will only result in another source of corruption and graft, not to mention a new addition to the already long & growing list of travel disincentives.  Can you just imagine requiring those hordes of Chinese to show proof of medical insurance?  LOL   Yeah, great idea...

 

The solution is much simpler.  Any foreigner who incurs a hospital bill they can't pay is immediately handed over to Immigration, permanently blacklisted, and deported.   (Blacklisting to be lifted if the deadbeat subsequently forks over the amount owed, plus interest and reasonable fees.)   "Immediately" as in direct, do not pass GO, frog walk from the hospital to the IDC, even if has property, GF, etc., etc., etc., etc.    There'll still be the inevitable few slow-learners, but once the word gets out, foreigners will begin to think twice about deadbeating in Thailand.   Require hospitals to only provide necessary emergency care and not long-term treatments (life-saving or not) when foreigner can't show means to pay.

 

I understand and sympathize with the neediness of some, inability to get health insurance due to age, etc.   Keep these problems at home; no justification for importing them to Thailand.

 

Edited November 28, 2017 by hawker9000

[Damrongsak]

A few years ago in the USA, I was paying about 50,000 Baht a month for health insurance for me, my wife and our son. Usual rates. 

[oldhippy]

7 hours ago, Pisdjuk said:

Why not??? If you don't have a receipt or other proof of an insurance you can't buy an airline ticket. When at the border police/customs will check and if no insurance, there is no entry. Very easy to enforce!

 

So at the border I will show a copy of my insurance contract?

 

How will airline / immigration be able to check wheteher that paper is real or a forgery? Whether it covers all essentials?

Therefore only doable if they require a Thai insurance contract. How will a foreigner (incl Khmer and cheap Chinese) buy such a Thai insurance? And again, how can forgeries be detected?

 

The only workable idea would be - as another poster suggested - to add a fixed amount to the visa price. That money could then be used by the government to reimburse hospitals. With of course the added advantage 555 that it would be soooooo easy to abuse this system......

 

My conclusion: If Thailand wants the benefits of mass tourism, the government will have to pay some of the costs of this tourism - there is after all no free lunch.

 

 

[bttao]

Speaking of health.... while watching all those "vlogs" on UTube , I can't help it but wonder with those millions of Motorcycles and cars , the air must be toxic in most urban areas in Thailand.. and Lung Cancer must be rampant.

I wonder if they test or publish the pollution index in Thailand... and the number of lung cancer deaths.

 

Edited December 5, 2017 by bttao

[ravip]

6 minutes ago, bttao said:

Speaking of health.... while watching all those "vlogs" on UTube , I can't help it but wonder with those millions of Motorcycles and cars , the air must be toxic in most urban areas in Thailand.. and Lung Cancer must be rampant.

I wonder if they test or publish the pollution index in Thailand... and the number of lung cancer deaths.

 

Here it is >>> http://aqicn.org/map/world/#@g/5.2554/253.4766/1z

Edited December 5, 2017 by ravip

[bttao]

39 minutes ago, ravip said:

Here it is >>> http://aqicn.org/map/world/#@g/5.2554/253.4766/1z

 

Thanks for the MAP...

It doesn't show many monitoring stations for Thailand... but that whole region from India to Japan is kind of screwed up, specially China.

[my friend I]

Chiang Rai has monitoring stations. They need it for smoke season which is getting longer each year.

[William T]

At one time when applying for a Retirement Visa, you had to have a certificate from a Doctor(?)  saying you were fit and well. 

Went to a (recommended) clinic, The Doc sounded my chest, signed a certificate,. Cost 200 baht.

[Bucko]

Often wondered --what if you arrive at a hospital unconscious -- no wallet with your insurance card -or that has been lost in an accident-- how are you supposed to pay upfront first --and claim back off your insurance later  -- even if you had your wallet & card with you --would the hospital take that as proof and start the medical help ?? 

[ravip]

Here is some food for thought...

In 2006 for the German visa these were some of the conditions...

I bet there will be no one to comment on this. GROBR

 

Quote

(i)  Any other proof of your financial and social status, bank statements for the last 6 months as well as a balance confirmation letter, fixed deposits, saving accounts, credit cards, property

deeds if any

 

(ii) Health insurance covering a minimum sum of 30,000.00 Euro 

hospital treatment, repatriation to Sri Lanka, valid for the whole Schengen-territory and the

whole stay. The insurance company must have a branch either in the European Union,

Switzerland or Liechtenstein.

Unquote

 

Imaging the complainants oft mentioned 'quality' for complaining of the Thai immigration requirements!!!

Edited January 5, 2018 by ravip

[StayinThailand2much]

1 hour ago, ravip said:

(ii) Health insurance covering a minimum sum of 30,000.00 Euro 

hospital treatment, repatriation to Sri Lanka, valid for the whole Schengen-territory and the

whole stay. The insurance company must have a branch either in the European Union,

Switzerland or Liechtenstein.

Last time I checked, Thailand was not part of the 'Schengen-territory', so this is irrelevant.

 

[Thongkorn]

So will you have to Have insurance for Facelifts  , and all other cosmetic surgerys. Done in Thailand

[ravip]

8 hours ago, StayinThailand2much said:

Last time I checked, Thailand was not part of the 'Schengen-territory', so this is irrelevant.

 

Excellent!

[LionofMedaCM]

Some people here are just mixing, EU is not Thailand, and Thailand is not EU, married foreigners to Thai womens must pay and pay, and must have a Yearly visum ( Visa ) means visit not redience , no right to work, 800k in the bank a load o fpaper work, 90 days report like a criminila apart of the social scam , before you compare two things these two things must be similar , pother ways read the lines and shut up .....in the EU all are equal in law and rights, in Thailand you are less than a dog! in EU yu have no money ...? ok you are welcome , work, save, send back to Thailand , here in Thailand no money means you are not welcome, and the most important things is a stable of pig in greece better than a private hospital in Thailand , so do not compare , and you must be ashamed before you ask the EU to be ashamed 

[wabothai]

So, how many underpaid immigration officials are able to read the fine print in for instance Greek? 

It would take days for just one person with a Greek insurance policy.

Are the tourists provided with a bed and fed at the airport?

[NCFC]

They would turn it into a scam and make you pay to translate the insurance document

Sent from my G7-L01 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[the guest]

I agree all foreigners must have insurance, then they won't be a burden to the Thai system. Thailand is for Thais, not for foreigners !

[micmichd]

On 05/06/2017 at 12:59 PM, CLW said:

BS. Anyway, everyone with a brain should have one. No matter where he's going to travel. But as someone wrote already, if you read the fine print your holiday might be very boring...

In  Germany e.g. a social health insurance is compulsory for the majority of people. Unfortunately, German Sozialgesetzbuch makes it impossible to cover medical costs outside the EU unless a bilateral social agreement is signed, and there is no such bilateral social agreement with Thailand covering medical costs at the moment. Something should be done about it , then this problem wouldn't occur.

[oldhippy]

1 hour ago, micmichd said:

In  Germany e.g. a social health insurance is compulsory for the majority of people. Unfortunately, German Sozialgesetzbuch makes it impossible to cover medical costs outside the EU unless a bilateral social agreement is signed, and there is no such bilateral social agreement with Thailand covering medical costs at the moment. Something should be done about it , then this problem wouldn't occur.

Thailand could join the EU.... There is a vacancy at present.

[stament]

Interesting .....

[nong38]

This is not a simple subject to deal with, I can understand why it is being muted as a lot of "younger people" are not bothering to get travel Insurance and it can become  burden to country, that being said consider a few points.

In the UK the norm is now that you have been resident in the UK for the previous 6 months before an application is entertained ( I got a friend who runs Insurance for a major UK company who offer Insurance services to check the position with Aviva).

Age here is also an issue, when you get to  65 you are usually transferred to another site who deals with over 65s and when you get to 75 forget Insurance altogether you are a bad risk, now if the Thai Government decided to offer a Health Insurance for the duration that might not be a bad thing would solve a lot of problems, just then a case of when and where you got it, no one wants the queues at the point of entry to be the place so perhaps it needs to be done before departure?

Most of us here I am guessing are on a Retirement Visa so if we leave the country for a short break what is the position for the re-entry? Is the Retirement Visa giving a right of passage without Insurance ( look at the 2nd paragraph).

Being here for the majority of the year lets say 10/11 months means you cannot get travel Insurance, you are not travelling-you are living here, this is your main residence and if you took out Insurance to cover you then you might find the company would find you had invalidated the terms and conditions, you know how these companies like to gather premiums quickly and then look for any way to get out of paying.

Hospital bills could all be paid by credit card and that would simplify things at the point of service but the before anything is done it needs to be thought through in great detail with nothing open to interpretation by different officials. Good luck with that then another Pandora's box is about to open, maybe.

[bttao]

On 1/17/2018 at 8:29 AM, the guest said:

I agree all foreigners must have insurance, then they won't be a burden to the Thai system. Thailand is for Thais, not for foreigners !

If and when that day comes (Health Insurance requirement): They can  say good buy to a very big chunk  of revenues from tourism... supported mostly by expat retirees 50-60 and over, and not by young free loader backpackers.

Those Retirees will find greener pastures in other foreign currency hungry countries in SEA... and Thailand will undoubtedly feel the big crunch as a consequence.

 

[HampiK]

9 hours ago, bttao said:

If and when that day comes (Health Insurance requirement): They can  say good buy to a very big chunk  of revenues from tourism... supported mostly by expat retirees 50-60 and over, and not by young free loader backpackers.

Those Retirees will find greener pastures in other foreign currency hungry countries in SEA... and Thailand will undoubtedly feel the big crunch as a consequence.

 

I don't think so. Many older peopel have Insurance. Only a few think they can stay without.

 

Of course there are really a few which I believe they do self insurance.. but there are also a big part who tell they to this. but then when there is a bigger Issue.. they have no money and have to start a fund campain to become money.

Or mostly then they will be silent.. but as long they are in good health you hear them say everytime they don't need and till now already saved like 500'000 insurance cost.. so it was worth... when then the next day they have to go ICU for a few weeks the 500'000 which they in reality they not have would not even be enough.

 

But at the end it doesn't matter, because this people will never accept this.

[Nielsk]

53 minutes ago, HampiK said:

I don't think so. Many older peopel have Insurance. Only a few think they can stay without.

 

Of course there are really a few which I believe they do self insurance.. but there are also a big part who tell they to this. but then when there is a bigger Issue.. they have no money and have to start a fund campain to become money.

Or mostly then they will be silent.. but as long they are in good health you hear them say everytime they don't need and till now already saved like 500'000 insurance cost.. so it was worth... when then the next day they have to go ICU for a few weeks the 500'000 which they in reality they not have would not even be enough.

 

But at the end it doesn't matter, because this people will never accept this.

You are so right  !

 

[hansnl]

On 6/5/2017 at 1:02 PM, fatdrunkandstupid said:

Retirement extension fee...  1900 THB

 

Compulsory insurance...   36,000 THB

 

Getting to stay in a country where you are despised...  Priceless...

36,000 a year for insurance?

Not a bad deal!