Medical insurance and health care in your country

From the Mayo Clinic:

"Allergy shots are regular injections over a period of time — generally around three to five years — to stop or reduce allergy attacks. Allergy shots are a form of treatment called immunotherapy. Each allergy shot contains a tiny amount of the specific substance or substances that trigger your allergic reactions. These are called allergens. Allergy shots contain just enough allergens to stimulate your immune system — but not enough to cause a full-blown allergic reaction.

Over time, your doctor increases the dose of allergens in each of your allergy shots. This helps get your body used to the allergens (desensitization). Your immune system builds up a tolerance to the allergens, causing your allergy symptoms to diminish over time."

Ah - OK.
 
Here's a good insurance story from a few years ago.

I was having severe heel pain in my feet, went to the specialist, and he diagnosed me with plantar fasciitis.

He said there were some short-term things to do to treat it (therapy, cortisone shots) and two long term things:

"I can make you some custom shoe inserts, made just for your feet, about a 70% success rate in eliminating your pain, and that's about $2500."

"Also, I can do surgery, that's about the same for the success rate, but involves a somewhat painful recovery, and off your feet for eight weeks. That's about $12,000."

"Now, I ask all my patients this: one of those is covered by insurance, and one of those is not. Which one do you think it is?"

Seemed obvious to me. Same success rate, much quicker and easier, and much less expensive, it had to be the inserts that were covered.

"Nope, you're wrong. But everyone gets it wrong. Here's why: when I tell you about the recovery, and the time, the insurance company is betting you'll say no to the surgery, and you'll either pay for the inserts yourself, or just put up with it. And you know what...they're almost always right."
 
In the year 2000 I was quoted ฿35,000.00 (about $1,150.00) p.a. for private health insurance. In 2018 I was quoted ฿160,000.00 p.a. for private health insurance. I took neither policies. Should I have taken the policy in 2000 then I could possibly have paid out ฿1,950,000.00 by 2020. Including one one night stay in hospital in 2012 (which was a joke) my total medical bills for that period were c. ฿7,000.00.

From around 1984 to 1999 the company paid B.U.P.A. for my health cover. I had zero claims during that period although my daughter had two.

I could be considered lucky, I guess.

[Edit: The above figures are for me as a foreigner. Thais may apply for a "health card" which entitles them to certain treatment for a payment of ฿30.00 (US$1.00)]
 
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In the year 2000 I was quoted ฿35,000.00 (about $1,150.00) p.a. for private health insurance. In 2018 I was quoted ฿160,000.00 p.a. for private health insurance. I took neither policies. Should I have taken the policy in 2000 then I could possibly have paid out ฿1,950,000.00 by 2020. Including one one night stay in hospital in 2012 (which was a joke) my total medical bills for that period were c. ฿7,000.00.

From around 1984 to 1999 the company paid B.U.P.A. for my health cover. I had zero claims during that period although my daughter had two.

I could be considered lucky, I guess.


Same here, everyone else lived like kings in private hospitals. And I needed nothing!! And I paid,lol.

Russ
 
Little wonder that many of us campaign so hard to save our health service.
Bravo, it costs about £360 K to train a Doctor. The majority of hands on training is in NHS facilities. They then are allowed to practice privately. My chief annoyance is the cosmetic surgery factories. Surgeons who profit from the physiological vulnerabilities of other humans.
NB The late John Smith MP would have been one of the greatest PM's the UK had seen. Blair would no have been PM and our disgraceful collusion with Bush over Iraq would not have happened. My good friend Dr Brian Iddon MP sacrificed a future front bench seat as one of the 149 who voted again the Weapons of Mass Destruction Amendment.
 
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