Dual pricing: Retirees and expats may be charged more at Thai govt hospitals

[HampiK]

2 minutes ago, StayinThailand2much said:

Wait till long-term tourists are required to have health insurance. The insurers won't be pleased to fork out higher payments to the hospitals.

If you have an Insurance, then you for sure not will go to a government hospital. there are a lot of private hospitals from normal price till expensive. Government hospitals people mostly go because they don't have the money or maybe a few who only want safe some money. But the time you lose there is mostly worth more!

[Mister Fixit]

I get charged 50 baht to see the arthritis specialist (top man for knee replacements in Thailand) at Phramongkutklao hospital so no double pricing there.  440 baht for a knee X-ray which I certainly don't quibble over.  

Nor is there at the Sirindhorn rehabilitation hospital in Nonthaburi where I have been a quite a few times for physiotherapy for my arthritic knees. I forget exactly how much but about 150 baht or so for a session of physio by excellent staff.

 

I pay Thai price at both.  They are both excellent places and the care could not be better.

[Scot123]

3 hours ago, monkfish said:

Well this should please those who are happy to pay more Thai's club what next dual pricing at supermarkets and restaurants.

An example from the link below
 

For example, an HIV test costs 160 baht if you’re Thai. It goes up to 240 baht for working expats and then to 320 baht for retirees and tourists.

Or, a spinal MRI examination will cost Thais 18,700 baht. That jumps to 23,375 baht for working expats and 28,050 baht for retirees and tourists.
 

https://thethaiger.com/news/national/foreigners-crying-foul-over-the-new-dual-pricing-policy-at-thai-public-hospitals

Will this mean dual pricing at private hospitals in the future?
 

 

3 hours ago, Tropposurfer said:

Private top medical coverage ... never going near a public hospital !

Then your making a big mistake. Fact is the most intelligent doctors ie the cream is in the government sector as mummy and daddy didn't buy their degree, second if there is something more serious you always get transfered to the government hospital. I've been down the private sector hospital and found them useless at best, incompetent at most and thieving at best. I have found that the private rooms in the government hospitals to be very nice and as good as the private that we and the family have used. This is not a good sign the government brining in another rip-off the farang policy because it will filter throughout Thai society just as the visitor attractions did. Love Thailand but thank god we left as its going to get a lot worse. 

[monkfish]

7 minutes ago, Mister Fixit said:

I get charged 50 baht to see the arthritis specialist (top man for knee replacements in Thailand) at Phramongkutklao hospital so no double pricing there.  440 baht for a knee X-ray which I certainly don't quibble over.  

Nor is there at the Sirindhorn rehabilitation hospital in Nonthaburi where I have been a quite a few times for physiotherapy for my arthritic knees. I forget exactly how much but about 150 baht or so for a session of physio by excellent staff.

 

I pay Thai price at both.  They are both excellent places and the care could not be better.

Prices are supposed to go up for Foreigners from 30th September let us know if that is the case next time you go.

Edited September 4, 2019 by monkfish

[Mister Fixit]

Just now, monkfish said:

Prices are supposed to go up from 30th September let us know if that is the case next time you go.

I'm due for a checkup in October, so will do.

 

Having said that, I have been going to Phramontkutklao and Sirindhorn for 8 years on and off and have only ever paid 50 baht to see the knee doc and 440 baht for an X-ray.  

[ICELANDMAN]

20 minutes ago, Matzzon said:

You are soo right! When his fighting thread was up, and I posted that he was making too much noise, and just should have accepted his compensation from start. Then I got attaced from soo many posters here. Now we see what it leads to. I also hope that all of them are super happy now. Or at least that they understand better next time. Unfortunately that is also a hope i vain. Anyway, thank you for todays best comment.

So, now everybody out there on this forum knows exactly why I am so utterly tired of all the foreigner coming to this country an feel some kind of entitlement. Complaining over rules and regulations, complaining over Thai thinking, values and culture. Complaining over all they can complain about. That´s the real people that should be blacklisted for life.

And in human nature I always want the best, I have been following a forum in Japan for a long time and the complaints are different but always complaining. But you have to admit that here things are happening in Thailand for expats bad so quickly now.

[Roy Baht]

This is the best argument against being self-insured. BTW, public hospitals have been charging foreigners double for years. This law has simply codified it. And Thai private hospitals have been overcharging the self-insured by up to 300%. If you don't like tiered pricing, buy Thai health insurance (exactly what the Thai government is telling expats to do at the moment). Want to pay nothing for healthcare? Go home to the UK. Want to pay much more for worse treatment? Go back to the US and join Medicare.

[ICELANDMAN]

19 minutes ago, HampiK said:

If you have an Insurance, then you for sure not will go to a government hospital. there are a lot of private hospitals from normal price till expensive. Government hospitals people mostly go because they don't have the money or maybe a few who only want safe some money. But the time you lose there is mostly worth more!

Or you not living near private hospital, you not have many choice maybe if you living distant.

[Mister Fixit]

40 minutes ago, drbeach said:

And yes, I'm happy to pay whatever the price is at a superior private hospital because generally speaking, they don't employ a discriminatory pricing policy.

WHAAAATTTT?  Are you for real?  Of course private hospitals employ a discriminatory pricing policy.  It's called screwing the foreigner for as much as they can possibly get.

 

That's not discriminatory?  Get real.  

[rumak]

10 minutes ago, ICELANDMAN said:

But you have to admit that here things are happening in Thailand for expats bad so quickly now.

I think the MAJORITY of guys here (most of them with no desire to visit this forum) would not admit what you have written because for them live here is STILL very affordable and pleasant to live a relatively free and happy life.  (and yes, I include myself in that group and I have been here the better part of 30 years).

Good infrastructure.   Affordable housing and food....and medical care.   And very nice people if you choose to live away from the "hot spots".   I say this and believe me my glasses are no longer rose colored  ????

But certainly, like anywhere,  Thailand is not for everyone.  I wish them well as they buy their tickets to greener pastures.  

 

[rumak]

20 minutes ago, Roy Baht said:

Want to pay much more for worse treatment? Go back to the US and join Medicare.

Now THAT is the truth !     

[happy chappie]

Hey why not go the whole way and have farang gasoline pumps at 50b a litre,farang bank accounts with zero interest rates,or even FAT (farang added tax) at all checkouts and payment centres.

very good timing too with the baht going through the roof.

[Mister Fixit]

3 hours ago, zhounan said:

The solution is simple: move to another Country, let Thailand to Thais.

Oh Gawd, here we go again ...

[rumak]

2 hours ago, DavisH said:

3 hours ago, Papafarang said:

Yes I know what is ment buy Thai doctors my GF went to a clinic and was given 8 different pills when I looked them 7 of them where Placebos and the other was a 200mg ibuprofen but they where 10 mgs of ibuprofen and the rest was a Bulking agent I took them back a got the doctor to explain what they where he not like it when I showed him the write up I handed him he had no choice but give back the 800 baht  I gave my GF a 200mg from england and it knock her out for 4 hours and when she woke up he Period pain had gone

Yeah,  OK

Edited September 4, 2019 by rumak

[rabas]

29 minutes ago, Roy Baht said:

This is the best argument against being self-insured. BTW, public hospitals have been charging foreigners double for years. This law has simply codified it. And Thai private hospitals have been overcharging the self-insured by up to 300%. If you don't like tiered pricing, buy Thai health insurance (exactly what the Thai government is telling expats to do at the moment). Want to pay nothing for healthcare? Go home to the UK. Want to pay much more for worse treatment? Go back to the US and join Medicare.

Which private hospitals charge up to 300% for people paying their own bills? The private hospitals I use are quite reasonably priced. Some  but not all have 2 tier pricing for foreigners but not for insurance. I don't question that some hospitals gouge what they can but it is not universal.

 

 

 

[rabas]

oops...

Edited September 4, 2019 by rabas

[Mister Fixit]

1 hour ago, drbeach said:

Somewhat amusing your comments considering that the only reason to go to a dirty third world public Thai hospital is if you don't have insurance. And have all the time in the world to wait before being served.

 

Wow, so self-entitled!  And such hubris!

 

FYI, in my 15 years here I have used a number of hospitals from Bumrungrad down.  NONE of the Government hospitals I have been to could ever be described as 'dirty'.  That's a problem of perception that you seem to have, not the hospital. 

 

Shabby, yes, some of them are indeed shabby, but not dirty.  But many public hospitals in many countries aren't as bright and shiny as the expensive private ones.

 

As I've posted elsewhere, I pay 50 baht to see the top knee specialist in Thailand and 440 baht for a knee X-ray.  So, less than 500 baht per 6-monthly visit.  Sure, I have to wait about 3 hours and it can be a minor hassle, but I take a book.  

 

You carry on paying your 5 grand a pop for a 10 minute consultation and X-ray in your inflated private hospital and I'll carry on paying 500 baht for exactly the same, except my chappie is the top knee and hip replacement doctor in Thailand and not some doctor working 2 or 3 gigs a day flitting between hospitals.  Makes sense to me.

Edited September 4, 2019 by Mister Fixit

[thaiguzzi]

4 hours ago, Mango Bob said:

No matter what a Thai government hospital charged I would never use one.  I been to one with my wife  The doctor was an idiot.  I knew more than he did.

Well thanx for your knowledgeble opinion doc.

So when my appendix burst, i should have just died in the car park then?

ps, the operating theatre was state of the art, the medical staff superb, post op care great, and it cost in total 14k.

Government hospital.

[mommysboy]

7 minutes ago, thaiguzzi said:

Well thanx for your knowledgeble opinion doc.

So when my appendix burst, i should have just died in the car park then?

ps, the operating theatre was state of the art, the medical staff superb, post op care great, and it cost in total 14k.

Government hospital.

Sounds great!  My insurers picked up 70k bill for same in a private hospital.

[trigpoint]

The Navy hospital in Sattahip has been charging foreigners more for years, there's  a sign that says, Thai price to see doctor 50bht foreigner 500bht. 

[thaiguzzi]

3 minutes ago, mommysboy said:

Sounds great!  My insurers picked up 70k bill for same in a private hospital.

# A lot of the government doctors work in the private hospitals to supplement their income.

# You can see what a bunch of thieves private hospitals are, comparing the prices 70k vis a vis 14k. Sure your private room had a better tv selection, the nurses may have been sexier, and the food might have been better, but 56k different?

# By the way, what do you pay for your annual health insurance?

Prolly a tad more than 14k..............

 

[Matzzon]

51 minutes ago, ICELANDMAN said:

And in human nature I always want the best, I have been following a forum in Japan for a long time and the complaints are different but always complaining. But you have to admit that here things are happening in Thailand for expats bad so quickly now.

Regarding the higher fees in hospitals, I can agree that it can sound a little bit wrong. Otherwise I do not know what has been happening that is so bad? You can se my thoughts below. Feel free to add something if I should have missed it.
 

• No income letter/affidavit complaints: This regards only some countries, and was a result out of too many foreigners faking their income without sufficent proof.
• Need to show money in bank complaints: The rules have always been there, but now they are enforced. Nothing really changed for the ones that know and followed the rules before. The ones that were breaking them from start feel the pain. On the other hand, there is always agents and fixers, so no problem.
• TM30 complaints: Also an old rules that has recently been enforced. Not a big deal, and just to ask the local Immigration Office how they want it and comply with the rules.
• Tourist and ED visa denials: Too many has been working the system, and as a result more denials is beeing made out of people trying to live in Thailand on the wrong kind of visas.
• Entry denials: Connected to the above. Like a double check so people do not try to live in Thailand on the wrong kind of visa.
• Possible mandatory health insurance: Not at all a problem, due to that a responsible person already have one.
• The strong baht: Okey, the baht is too strong. Just see it as a test. If a person can´t ride out the storm, then he/she had a bad plan without a safety net when leaving the home country.

I am sure I have forgotten something, like for example: One guy recently complained about the high price of wine in Thailand. Yep, big deal! 

 

[the guest]

I'm going to pass this information to the Insurance companies in Europe, I'm sure they would be very interested on this policy. Charging foreigners based on race is totally unacceptable. The country should be ashamed of itself. Xenophobic, racist policies will not go down well.

 

Thailand must learn to behave like adults, not like children.

[Selatan]

4 hours ago, watcharacters said:

 

 

If government hospitals are subsidized by the Thai government,  I wonder why  foreigners are allowed to use them in the first place?

 

Emergencies? In Malaysia, no one is refused treatment at government hospitals, whereas private hospitals may reject patients if they think they couldn't pay. That's why foreigners owed millions of ringgits to Malaysian government hospitals.

This Malaysian family made a huge mistake of not crossing the border into Johor Bahru to seek treatment, but the Singapore government hospital was "generous" in allowing them to pay in instalments:

3-year-old meningitis patient allowed to pay hospital bill over 42 years

[sead]

may be, arent they already...

[Odysseus123]

1 hour ago, rumak said:

I think the MAJORITY of guys here (most of them with no desire to visit this forum) would not admit what you have written because for them live here is STILL very affordable and pleasant to live a relatively free and happy life.  (and yes, I include myself in that group and I have been here the better part of 30 years).

Good infrastructure.   Affordable housing and food....and medical care.   And very nice people if you choose to live away from the "hot spots".   I say this and believe me my glasses are no longer rose colored  ????

But certainly, like anywhere,  Thailand is not for everyone.  I wish them well as they buy their tickets to greener pastures.  

 

Have you ever thought about stealing a motorbike (conveniently to hand) and romping thru Bavaria whilst you hijack history (turning into a nonsense) a la Americaine Hollywood codswallop?

 

Congratulations from recovering from cowering in your bunker gasping thu' your gasmask in the world's most polluted city to emerge unfazed for your next dose of sugar candy,, you have about 3 months to go...and back into it..eh?

 

 

Edited September 4, 2019 by Odysseus123

[bert bloggs]

5 hours ago, Mango Bob said:

No matter what a Thai government hospital charged I would never use one.  I been to one with my wife  The doctor was an idiot.  I knew more than he did.

I have used Queen Sirakit ,same doctor as Pattaya Memorial ,and Banglamung ,had great service in emergency ,and Sri Racha govt hospital ,very competant young doctor , have used Bangkok Pattaya ,had good service and <deleted> service ,

[riclag]

5 hours ago, faraday said:

I had a Spinal MRI at a Government hospital about 18 months ago, & it cost 8000 baht.

 

 

I have a fear of needles in my back,getting back to the topic  It certainly looks dire for Farangs living and wanting to die here,with IO rules and medical requirements! What a difference the last 6 years has been  

[dcnx]

Hahahaha. Good. You oldies should pay more for the privilege of living here.

[riclag]

1 minute ago, dcnx said:

Hahahaha. Good. You oldies should pay more for the privilege of living here.

 

3 minutes ago, dcnx said:

Hahahaha. Good. You oldies should pay more for the privilege of living here.

No sweat off my nuggets, youngin! I salted away a handsome nest egg!

Nice respect