The catch 22 is that as a Retired American Military man I must pay for Medicare every month albeit I can not avail of Medicare Coverage here in the Philippines. But I can use my (FREE; that so cracks me up) Tri-care Military health benefits here instead. But I can’t have Tri-Care (The free one they promised in 1964) without having Medicare. The perfect catch 22.
My wife is also covered under my plan, and we have Phil-Health also. Phil-Health is inexpensive and is pretty good but there are restrictions. You cannot use it for outpatient care; it is primarily for inpatient care.
Mayang woke up in pain and we took her to Harbor Point Hospital on the Subic Freeport, We stopped by to check in with the TriCare office of course I brought my customary dozen Duncan Donuts for the very helpful ladies who guide you over the rocky road that is health care. They fill out all the forms and keep track of all the paperwork for us eligible members. As much as I can find fault with Tri-Care I can find no fault with the treatment these fine employees render to me. I will say the same about the hospital staff and Doctors at Harbor Point, top notch, everyone.
This glowing testimony is not just from a Kano point of view, all the Filipinos I’ve spoken to feel exactly the same way. About 8 of the biggest health insurance companies here in the RP also have representatives to guide their customers through the ins and outs of their coverage. This is my first time to encounter this at any hospital here.
They also have a well stocked pharmacy and the prices are comparable with Mercury Drugs on the outside.
So about Mayang, she has had a reoccurring problem with her kidneys causing pain once in awhile. While at the Tri-Care office the first week of October and forgetting that the government’s fiscal year starts 1 October the ladies had to inform me that my deductable would be starting all over again. It’s all about timing isn’t it? I smiled and said; “The luck of the Irish?” I don’t think they fully understood that expression, but they saw that I wasn’t surprised. It works like this: $150.00 deductable for both Mayang and also for me for a total of $300.00 per fiscal year. After that I pay 25% of the bill every visit after the deductable is paid. That is my free medical for life that my government promised to me when I enlisted. But it beats the hell out of that farce known as ObamaCare.
Mayang see’s the Doctor at 10AM, off to the lab, x-rays and then a sonogram. We took the prescriptions to be filled and were given an appointment to see the doctor when all the tests were returned the next day. While waiting for all that, the medicine was taking effect and Mrs. Thompson was feeling much better. But in no way would that deter her from returning for her follow up visit. Now me, I would have said: “I’m cured, pour me a beer.”
Meanwhile, our two daughters are running in concentric circles panicking over their mother. I had to bring my smart phone to answer all their calls with step by step information as to what was transpiring throughout the hospital visit. If I knew how to make conference calls it would have been much easier then each question times two. But it’s their mother so I understand.
One week later were back to find out about all the lab work Nothing serious that the medicine can’t fix but come back in November for a follow up. All my prescription medicine is reimbursable but I have to submit the form, so I wait and do it at the end of the fiscal year, you know the one I forgot about a couple of weeks ago. I missed out but it was only $150.00 (Boy medicine is cheap here).
Well now the ordeal with Mayang is over and she has returned to good health once more, she has a follow up appointment in November and that should meet her deductable for the rest of the fiscal year. I have no plan to get sick to pay mine, but one never knows what the fates will bring.
Moan and groan as I might TriCare is still better than nothing, but it damn sure ain’t free. What can I grouse about next week?
Hi Paul,
I’m sure you’ll come up with something next week too and it’ll be just as informative and entertaining. Firstly, I pray everything turns out well for your wife. I keep hesitating about getting Phil-Health because I was told the Insurance plan has to be comparable to Obamacare-less Insurance Plan.
I’m not sure if it would be. I guess I’m going to be penalized during the tax season. I guess I’d rather pay a penalty than be forced into something. Anyway, I’m not all knowing when it comes to Insurances. They give me headaches like that of our politicians.
At least you have the TriCare Coverage to lean on. You’re right! Considering the alternative you’re lucky to have it. I feel as though ALL Veterans should get free Health Care coverage, but that’s just me. Anyway, thanks for the reminder about what Phil-Health will pay and won’t.
Stay safe! Stay strong!
Bill
Bill
If I am not mistaken if you live out of the physical US for eleven months a year you will not have to pay the fee.
Ron;
Thank you for clarifying that ObamaCare Info..
Philhealth should not even be the tiniest hesitation. If you have it, they will treat you, rather than letting you expire in the Emergency Room for lack of funds. It is so cheap, you should not even give it a second thought.
With Obamacare, you are exempt if you are living outside the USA (for tax purposes… 330 days outside the country). In other words, if you can receive the tax exemption, you are exempt from Obamacare.
As to TriCare / Medicare, I am not retired US military, but Paul and the others commenting should give you an idea.
John;
To not purchase Phil-Health make no sense at all, it is a great stopgap Ins in times of an Emergency.
Circa $60 a year for the family is damn cheap and any foriegner can avail it if living in the Philippines, no filipino connection/family required.
Brenton;
I didn’t know a foreigner could avail of Phil-Health without a Pilipino partner. That is new?
That has been in place for a while, Paul… maybe at least a year or two. But, it is correct, any foreigner can now sign up for PhilHealth, Filipina wife or not.
Bob;
That one just slipped right by me. that’s why I asked. If one will hang around LiP long enough you will learn what you need to know to live here.
Thanks Bob and Brenton.
Hi Paul – I only learned a few months back this was possible. For $60 a year we joined, you even get to pay quarterly and it takes 3 months before you can avail benefits. $60 really is cheap considering it covers 4 people in our family, the benefits have limitations but you can’t expect the world for $60.
Brenton;
We’ve had Phi;-Health for a few years now, and the only one of us to use it was my Mother-in-law (Automatically covered) we have 2 Kano brother-in-laws and the deal is if she gets sick we each pay 33% I paid 40% without reaching into my pocket The foreigner part was the deal I didn’t know about. I’m glad they did that.
Bill;
As much as I’ve heard and maybe a fellow reader can jump in here, but if you are not living in the states you don’t have to sign up for ObamaCare, but as always I could be wrong.
And thank you, Mayang is on the mend and doing fine.
Have Tri Care also Paul. As you say its better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. Medicine is reimbursed also? Gonna have to run do and see the Reps about that one. Isn’t there also a catastrophic cap provision? Where is if the bill reaches a certain amount Tri Care covers all? Like I said, time to pay the folks a visit to double tap the info.
Scott;
The reps will give you the number to call in Singapore for the information on medicine reimbursement. The Catastrophic Cap is something I didn’t know along with so much other stuff.
Paul, I too need to sign up for Medicare in November and no you cannot use it here in the Philippines. I did some checking and if you fly to Guam you can use Medicare and they have some really good hospitals and doctors there. Yes I know this would not be good for the common flu bug. But heart problems, kidney problems, liver problems any major medical problem would be well served in Guam. I think its $350.00 round trip from Manila. Not a bad price if you are dying.
Pastor Bud;
Call the Embassy in Manila and the young lady in the Social Security section will walk you through the Medicare sign up, it’s so easy and they know their stuff.
I know the Guam option is a good one and as a Merchant Seaman I spent years operating out of Guam, and it has good medical care.
Paul,
We have Philihealth and a Private Policy to cover what Philhealth doesn’t. I keep telling Anne it’s better to be safe than to have to pay a large amount that Philhealth doesn’t cover in case of a Major Medical problem that requires a long hospital stay.
Hello,
Just curious about who you are using for your health care insurer besides the PhilHealth. I have been looking but not having much luck.
Thanks,
Dennis Glass
Randy;
I believe Dennis was directing that question to you. I again could be wrong!
Dennis,
I currently have Blue Cross Dollar Policy which costs about $3400US per year at my current age of 55. It covers everything fully including hospitalization, outpatient, travel insurance up to $2,000,000.00 per year without any out of pocket if the hospital you use takes Blue Cross. If your hospital does not take Blue Cross, like mine here in Lipa doesn’t you have to email a copy of the receipts to Blue Cross in Makati and they will reimburse you by way of LBC, Western Union, etc. This policy expires next month and we will be switching to a peso policy through Blue Cross because I think the other policy is probably a little over coverage. The new policy will cover hospitalization fully up to 3,000,000p per year plus additional coverage for Outpatient. Cost for this policy is about $1200.00 per year. There are other Health Insurances, but I thought Blue Cross was the most complete one. Hope this helps you.
Thanks for the information. I appreciate the you taking the time to share with me. I have talked to Blue Cross but they refuse to cover any past problems. so I have had heart problems, cancer arthritis, knee replacement, COPD a probably 20 or 30 more problems they refuse to cover, Plus I am 68 years old, they make it cost prohibitive for me. But, Thank you,
Dennis
Randy;
A smart move like the Boy Scouts “Be Prepared”
Hi Paul,
Glad things worked out OK with Mayang’s medical issue. As a retired Army sergeant with only 5+ years Vietnam service, I assume TriCare is not available for me. Additionally, being a diabetic for about 40 years now, I have more than my share of hospital ER visits and confinements. In the past two years I have processed thru the Emergency Room two times, two separate physical rehab hospitals for about a month stay each, had all toes on one foot amputated, wound care center patient including (hyperbaric chamber), suffered one hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in the brain) and thru all that, I can still drive, walk and wear shoes (just not flip-flops). Medicare covers just about all of these costs.
—
I update an Excel file on my computer where I weigh the pros and cons relative to the probability of me moving to the Philippines. (It’s been edited so many times I am surprised it has not locked up.) Personally my biggest source of hesitation relative to just getting on an airplane and moving has to be the probability of catastrophic medical cost if and when the unthinkable happens: namely a heart attack, stroke, cancer, etc.
—
How does the average Expat without Tri-Care (PhilHealth only) deal with major medical issues there in the islands?? In a perfect world we would all have some sort of nest egg or savings to take care of these things. However, my observations from reading blogs and forums from Asia, the mental image I get is usually that this person lives from hand-to-mouth and if they had a heart attack tomorrow they would definitely be up sheet-creek without a paddle.
—
Are there any other doable options for a retiree to find insurance in addition to PhilHealth?
Richard;
There are many good insurance companies here, but since I don’t use them I hope a few readers will jump in again and answer those questions you have.
The way you mentioned the flip flop I see that you still retain your sense of humor. I hope the answers come to you from our fellow readers.
My most expensive pet ever was a free cat. :o)
Mike;
Thank you for sharing that.
Mike – You got me worried because I obtained a free cat recently!
Yeah Paul, your Tri-Care even beats the hell out of the private healthcare before there was ObamCare.
Den;
Has ObamaCare fulfilled you insurance need? If that is what you are saying, then I’m pleased for you. My brothers in the states (All registered Democrats (They live in Massachusetts) all found it lacking compared to what they had before.
I really have no idea, but then the government has done such a fine job with the post office and Amtrak that insurance should naturally be fine also.
Now if I misread your comment…Never mind. (lol)
Hi Paul,
It is good to read that your wife will be ok. I think just about any health or for that matter other kinds of insurance can be very confusing and lacking at times depending on the exact circumstances, LOL.
From anything I have read about Philhealth, it certainly seems a bargain for the things that it does cover. For the price I think anyone that qualifies for it would be crazy not to have it.
Bob New York;
The price per year is the price of a few cases of beer. But you’re so very right, you can’t lose with it.
As an aging gentleman myself, and a Navy retiree, health care in the Philippines is a concern. Right now we spend only half the year here, but in a very remote barrio in northern Luzon, more than two hours from a decent hospital. I was severely injured a few years ago and spent a week in St. Paul Hospital in Tuguegarao, paying out of pocket, of course. But I saved my receipts and TriCare reimbursed the whole amount.
I’ll check up on PhilHealth, since I’m flying naked whenever we’re here. Our plan at this point is to return to the U.S. for two months each year to get our annual check-ups.
Glad your wife is doing well.
Peter
http://www.myphilippinechronicles.com
Peter;(Shipmate)
I might revise my feeling toward Tri-Care after reading this. I’m happy it worked out so well for you. Stay well.
Hi Peter –
LOL I also call my wife “Sweetie” – that’s one of the first things I noticed in your blog. Interesting blog, btw. The second thing I noticed was that you’re from Maine, which reminds me that I just placed my yearly order for a 30-inch Maine holiday wreath from Ellsworth, ME, for my youngest son in Ashburn, VA.
The Maine holiday wreath is a 30-plus years holiday tradition that started when we still had our family home in MD, and he was still a child. Now married with two kids of his own, the wreath arrives at his doorstep a couple of days before Thanksgiving to continue the tradition.
I can only imagine what it is like to be deep inside the Maine woods, but to inhale the sweet fragrance of the Maine holiday wreath made from freshly cut balsam fir, in my opinion, has to be the next best thing to being there.
The wreath looks good anywhere it’s placed. To hang it on the front door of your Albatross nestled among pine trees and with snow on the ground would make it “picture perfect” like Christmas card, I think. 🙂
John –
I like my snowy Christmases in the form of a card, not the real thing. We are at the moment in Maine, where it is getting quite uncomfortable. At this time next week we will be back in our cozy barrio sipping wine and watching the river amble by.
I admit the balsam smell of Christmas is a pleasant memory. My Sweetie loves her holiday decorations and has strung lights on our barrio house and will, once again, put up the tree – imitation, of course, on the front porch.
I am always amused by the singers who come by the house each year singing of Frosty and White Christmas.
Take care,
Peter
Paul:
Don’t know when you last had health insurance in the US, but it ain’t like it used to be and that’s not because (or just because) of Obamacare.
I work for a Fortune 500 company. While our health insurance premiums are zero, deductible for my wife and I is $3500. I will have to get good and sick or she will have to have a baby 🙂 for us to ever benefit from the insurance company.
Dave
DaveW;
When I was a Merchant Seaman working for the Navy under contact I was on the same plan as the congress, it was reasonably priced and a low deductible. plus I was covered internationally. But that was in the 90’s and when I retired the cost to be covered overseas during retirement sky rocked, so since I was also covered by Tri-care I let it fall by the wayside.
But that was before the great plan to over charge the working folk for insurance so the terminally unemployed could be covered for free.
If the government has all these wonderful plans to aid poor people, why are there still poor people?.
Paul,
Got the deductible info for tricare but you did not say what the maximum out of pocket expense is per year.
you pay 25 percent, but is that with no cap? Most of us in the gulag here in the people’s republic of california have a max out of pocket of 1500 per person after a deductible of 500 bucks.
Tito Joe;
As a matter of fact I have no idea. But I really should find out, thank you for bring that up. It seems that since I’ve been retired (From the Navy 1986) I’ve never had to find out, I guess that’s a good thing, but I’m older now.
Nice hospital and very clen too
I just found you on here. Looking for tricare supplement. Can you use both tricare and philhealth at the same time? I found a supliment from tricare but its $124 a month. How does it work for using tricare and philhealth at the same time? Do they do that?