Contract, or pay as you go?

[Smeg]

What do the people here think of mobile phone deals in Thailand?








Fuck, this aint the Thaivisa numbskull forum, lets try again.

A lot of people slag off the West for high taxes. So do you prefer having to pay into a (reasonable) quality health system, education system, pension system, unemployment system etc, or do you prefer the Thai "pay as you go" system? (which I think is based on necessity, due to corrupt bastard politicians)

[Ice Maiden]

A lot of people slag off the West for high taxes. So do you prefer having to pay into a (reasonable) quality health system, education system, pension system, unemployment system etc, or do you prefer the Thai "pay as you go" system? (which I think is based on necessity, due to corrupt bastard politicians)

Well whilst being in Thailand my family have spent a lot of time in hospital and I have to say even the hospitals are corrupt! They see a lovely farang and assume his wallet is stacked full of cash and try every scam in the book.

The nurses dont tend to be so friendly once they know you are not falling for their scams and tell you something will be five mins when it is really a few hours of even the next day (so you have to pay the rental charge for the room again). Everytime I enter hospitals in Thailand they manage to get my blood boil and it isn't just us, I've seen many arguments going in in hospitals.

I have to say I prefer the UK when it comes to health care. But saying that Thai hospitals may treat locals with a little more respect. Well they didn't give my Thai Stepmum any respect, maybe because they saw my farang father? I can rant all day but I have my reasons for disliking medical care in the LOS.

[Smeg]

[quote=Ice Maiden]

Well whilst being in Thailand my family have spent a lot of time in hospital and I have to say even the hospitals are corrupt! They see a lovely farang and assume his wallet is stacked full of cash and try every scam in the book.

I can't agree more!!!!

Yesterday I went to Samitivej Sukhumvit with an eye problem. I handed over my BUPA international card at reception and asked if it was ok. They said yes, photocopied the card, and asked me to fill in and sign their claimback form, which I did. I was then taken to the doctor, was weighed and had my blood pressure taken (a nice touch, but irrelevant to my condition, and probably charged at 300 baht each!). I then saw the doctor, who looked at my eye, then listened to my heart (??) and prescribed 4 drugs. (for a condition I now know as now't serious at all). I then went to the pharmacy, and after a 45 minute wait, was asked for 2250 baht cash. I told them that I had given my insurance card details already. They said that they can no longer accept direct payment. After 30 seconds thought, I walked out without payment or drugs. I expect to be pursued by some legal means.

I contacted BUPA later that day. Appearenly Samitivej have been submitting excessive claim forms, with added drugs and treatments, which patients have been denying when later queried about via customer surveys....Hence patients are now required to apply for refunds after paying

[Ice Maiden]

[quote=Smeg]

Well whilst being in Thailand my family have spent a lot of time in hospital and I have to say even the hospitals are corrupt! They see a lovely farang and assume his wallet is stacked full of cash and try every scam in the book.

I can't agree more!!!!

Yesterday I went to Samitivej Sukhumvit with an eye problem. I handed over my BUPA international card at reception and asked if it was ok (I know that it is, the BUPA intl website lists them as a direct charge hospital). they said yes, photocopied the card, and asked me to fill in and sign they claimback form, which I did. I was then taken to the doctor, was weighed and had my blood pressure taken (a nice touch, but irrelevant to my condition, and probably charged at 300 baht each!). I then saw, the doctor, who looked at my eye, then listened to my heart (??) and prescribed 4 drugs. (for a condition I now know as now't serious at all). I then went to the pharmacy, and after a 45 minute wait, was asked for 2250 baht cash. I told them that I had given my insurance card details already. They said that they can no longer accept direct payment. After 30 seconds thought, I walked out without payment or drugs.

I contacted BUPA later that day. Appearenly Samitivej have been submitting excessive claim forms, with added drugs and treatments, which patients have been denying when later queried about via customer surveys....Hence patients are now required to apply for refunds after paying

My Dad has had this one before! He is also with BUPA and before he went for treatment and saw a doctor he asked if they'd accept his BUPA card, they agreed. My Dad's BUPA insurance wont pay a penny if he has any problems such as gout (spelling?) so my Dad made sure he told them this information and had two doctors confirm it wasn't gout.

The next day after he spent the night there and medication he awoke in the morning with a huge bill! And security standing there making sure he'd pay. I was annoyed by this and so was my Dad, to cut a long story short we just walked out the hospital and told them to fuck off.

As I noticed in your post they gave you a lot of treatment you didn't need! When my Stepmum was seriously ill and needed a brain scan we had the doctor insist she needed weighing and a basic medical check but we didn't have the time and she didn't have the time! Terrible.

[Marmite the Dog]

I'm not impressed with Samitivej either after being sent to a muscle doctor for food poisoning. The triage nurse either wasn't listening or was on a scam. Thieving wankers.

Do we have time for all the horror stories I've got about Bedford South Wing Hospital? No? Good.

I'd still rather be in a Thai hospital, and as the health insurance is so cheap here, there's no excuse not to have top cover (unless you're lazy like me).

[friscofrankie]

The health care system her is so far behind the US when it comes to scams it's pathetic. Wouldn;t know about the UK but the costs incurred going to the hospital in the us are absolutely a monumental scam. The cost of drugs, the bait and switch tactics used by doctors, the 'extra' care, tests, consultants. The arrogant "it's your body but your too stupid to be told whats going on" attitude.
Never been scammed here. When my kid was in intensive care they had me in there with him and the doctor was explainig evrything that was happening as it happened. he got my kid sort put back together and in nice private room.
whe it was all said and done it cost me less than when I shattered my hand in bar fight back in the good ol' USofA give me Thailands systems any day.
the US has the most corrupt health system you could imagine. The AMA and medical schools ensure there will always be a demand by limiting amount of medical graduates to get licenesed even artificially limiting the number of medical school openings not reserving them for the most talented but the best "qualified"

[Marmite the Dog]

Well, its free in the UK if you're prepared to wait months or even years to see a specialist. If you've got health insurance or you're prepared to pay you can see the same specialist quickly in the same government run hospital.

[aging one]

I have so damn much insurance its falling out my ears.

[dirtydog]

No insurance for me, last 15 years I have spent about 10k baht on medical care, damn I am so healthy

[aging one]

On myself I havent spent even 1000 baht in the last 15 years. But the kids are a different story. Achooo and the wife had them off to the hospital. But for the last two years they havent had a sick day one either.
Which is something that I am glad about. I dont like hospitals or doctors unless I am very very ill, or very very injured.

[ozman]

No insurance for me, last 15 years I have spent about 10k baht on medical care, damn I am so healthy

Must be all that healthy living in Short Time Bars

[colourful-era]

Yesterday I went to Samitivej Sukhumvit with an eye problem. I handed over my BUPA international card at reception and asked if it was ok.

I then went to the pharmacy, and after a 45 minute wait, was asked for 2250 baht cash.

Not sure what was up with your eye but I had a similar problem last week - got conjunctivits from a swimming pool - painfull as fuck.
I have got some kind of basic insurance but just went to my local clinic - no messing around , the doctor just looked at my eyes and prescribed some antibiotics for it - only 350B and it worked.

Perhaps they don't try in on when you're paying them direct.

[otherstuff1957]

As much as you Brits complain about your National Health system, you'll always have it better than us Yanks. In the US, we have a pay or die system. FF was 100% accurate when he described health care in the US. Thailand's health system has it's faults, but it's ridiculously cheap and the quality isn't that bad.
I went to a Government Hospital (Rama Thibodi) that a Thai friend had recommended to have my eyes checked about a year ago. The doctor told me that my prescription hadn't changed, but I had a couple of holes in my retinas that could lead to detached retinas if left untreated. A couple a days later, he spent about 1/2 an hour zapping my eyes with a lazer. By the next day, my eyes were as good as new, with the holes in my retinas welded shut! The total bill: 6200 baht. That may sound like a lot here in Thailand, but it's about 1/10 of the US cost for the same operation.

Affordable, reasonably good health care is one of the things that makes life in the LOS attractive.