Expat Medical Insurance --Please Advise

[MikeB]

But serious , 1 of the insurance names I keep hearing about when I am around others from the Western worldis BLUE CROSS of the Philippines, ,the only Negative feedback I hear is the "Waiting period" for preexisting conditions.WELL? i am not a rocket scientist nor a brain surgeonbut most if not all insurance companies do have "waiting periods" for current/preexisting health issues.

Here's the pdf for BC Royale. Pre-exisisting conditions can be excluded from coverage regardless of waiting period, although it is says they are evaluated by the Medical Director. There is a 30 day waiting period for claims, however coverage is immediate for accidental injury eg, road accident. I have had major claims (over 1 million pesos) with them and they have paid off promptly, in 15 business days. I would recommend buying through an agent, they can be a big help sorting out which policy and dealing with the insurance company.

[Art2ro]

When one reaches the age of 65 and over, private medical health care insurance premiums gets awfully expensive, especially with the dollar type account without the up front cash outlay or reimbursement claims with Blue Cross of the Philippines! They have other plans, but they still maybe expensive for those age 65 and over and one who is over 70 years of age, it even gets more expensive! So, best to save a good sizable nest egg for just in case to supplement those huge medical up front cash payments while waiting for your reimbursement, but that's if one has that type of policy, which most do because those 100% type medical coverage are expensive as hell and would probably cost 50% to 60% of a retiree's pension who makes at least $3,000 to $4,000 a month! So what happens to those who are only living on $1,000 to $2,000 a month? They are SOL and will have to bite the bullet! Phil Health helps, but it's still not enough unless one has a sizable nest egg for that purpose in mind! BTW, most medical health insurance other than Phil Health and our TRICARE military health care plan, has a one year waiting period for prior existing health conditions and it's not always a guarantee it will be covered after a year, but if it is, most likely your premiums will be increased by 20% because of it! If anyone can contact Gold Heart who hasn't posted in awhile, he can verify what I've just stated concerning the waiting period and premium increase from Blue Cross of the Philippines which he had to jump some hoops in order to get coverage, but he and his family moved back to the U.S. a few years ago and hasn't posted here since! Here's his previous post. Anyone can search further of his other posts or topics under his profile Gold Heart. http://www.philippin...2427#entry22427

Edited February 4, 2012 by Art2ro

[JJReyes]

Many Americans do not realize that Medicare is a co-payment system. This is after you spent a lifetime paying into the fund. You need money after retirement for premiums, deductibles and co-insurance. MSN Money estimates a couple's additional lifetime retirement medical bill at $240,000. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, even with Medicare, the average beneficiary spent $4,241 out-of-pocket in 2006. Things are about to get worse because the US Congress plans to make changes to Social Security and Medicare. Of course, they don't want to upset current senior citizens since many of them vote. So they will pass new laws that will take effect in 10, 15 or 20 years. If you have children, they are screwed. Their contributions to Social Security and Medicare will increase, while the benefits will decrease.

[Art2ro]

It will probably be "til hell freezes over" before we can even use our Medicare in the Philippines or not in our life time, which is still, when "Hell freezes over"! They say it's in the works! Yeah right!