Rellek
Hello. I'm on a Silver Tier level of health insurance with Prudential and I'll turn 65 this year. I've been with Prudential for 4 years going on my 5th this month. I've never filed a claim for insurance with Prudential.My premium cost has gone up 50% this year and 100% in 2 years which doesn't seem right. Even worse, I've been told my existing benefits are being trimmed due to "rising medical costs in the industry". My current cost for renewal is 49 Million Rp for a single smoker with no pre-existing conditions. Also, EVERY document I receive from Prudential is full of small print and it's ALWAYS in Indonesian language...anyone else struggling with this communication barrier?Is the rapid rise in health insurance costs affecting anyone else this way? Any recommendations? One good aspect about the policy is I'm covered until age 99 but i suppose even that is subject to change.Any advice is hugely appreciated.
harryopal1
Hello. I'm on a Silver Tier level of health insurance with Prudential and I'll turn 65 this year. I've been with Prudential for 4 years going on my 5th this month. I've never filed a claim for insurance with Prudential.My premium cost has gone up 50% this year and 100% in 2 years which doesn't seem right. Even worse, I've been told my existing benefits are being trimmed due to "rising medical costs in the industry". My current cost for renewal is 49 Million Rp for a single smoker with no pre-existing conditions. Also, EVERY document I receive from Prudential is full of small print and it's ALWAYS in Indonesian language...anyone else struggling with this communication barrier?Is the rapid rise in health insurance costs affecting anyone else this way? Any recommendations? One good aspect about the policy is I'm covered until age 99 but i suppose even that is subject to change.[B]Any advice is hugely appreciated.[/B][/QUOTE]You are moving into an age bracket where as you get older the rates become impossibly high. There is a view expressed many times on this forum that you are better off opening a special purpose bank account and saving what you would otherwise pay for insurance.[B]"Any advice is hugely appreciated."Stop smoking. [/B]Many years ago I interviewed an emminent British surgeon who told me that he had many patients with circulation problems caused by smoking who he warned if they did not stop smoking they would lose an arm or leg. He said they still would not stop and he had amputated hundreds of arms and legs.[ATTACH type="full" alt="1733190810432.png"]4183[/ATTACH]
Rellek
You are moving into an age bracket where as you get older the rates become impossibly high. There is a view expressed many times on this forum that you are better off opening a special purpose bank account and saving what you would otherwise pay for insurance.[B]"Any advice is hugely appreciated."Stop smoking. [/B]Many years ago I interviewed an emminent British surgeon who told me that he had many patients with circulation problems caused by smoking who he warned if they did not stop smoking they would lose an arm or leg. He said they still would not stop and he had amputated hundreds of arms and legs.[ATTACH type="full" alt="1733190810432.png"]4183[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]Thank you for the reply. I'm leaning in that direction after researching today several options from different providers (Allianz and AXA). Prudential came back with a lower rate if I have a deductible of 5 Mill Rp. which makes sense. AXA (I know nothing about these guys) came back with a cheap plan with basic coverage for 28 Million. I have savings already to help with any major medical consequence. Basic coverage plus savings seems the best option.Prudential has been shockingly bad (any correspondence is in Indonesian, my agent knows I don't understand Bahasa very well yet continues to send me updates and plan alternatives in Bahasa). Thanks for your concern about smoking..yes, I know and I expected some criticism when I posted it in the OP.
Shadrach
Thank you for the reply. I'm leaning in that direction after researching today several options from different providers (Allianz and AXA). Prudential came back with a lower rate if I have a deductible of 5 Mill Rp. which makes sense. AXA (I know nothing about these guys) came back with a cheap plan with basic coverage for 28 Million. I have savings already to help with any major medical consequence. Basic coverage plus savings seems the best option.Prudential has been shockingly bad (any correspondence is in Indonesian, my agent knows I don't understand Bahasa very well yet continues to send me updates and plan alternatives in Bahasa). Thanks for your concern about smoking..yes, I know and I expected some criticism when I posted it in the OP.[/QUOTE]Don't worry about it. Some of the oldest people in the world, smoke, and drink like a fish! It's eating all the Plastic in our food, and Chlorine, and Fluoride, in our water nowadays, you should be more concerned about!
harryopal1
Don't worry about it. Some of the oldest people in the world, smoke, and drink like a fish!It's eating all the Plastic in our food, and Chlorine, and Fluoride, in our water nowadays, you should be more concerned about![/QUOTE]Yes, there are some people live to a very old age who smoke, drink and defy all the traditional advice about maintaining health. But the majority of people who smoke have a shorter life and poorer quality of life than non smokers.There are now so many scientific studies that prove the dangers of smoking. BioMed Central is an internatonal research agency with a substantial reputation. One of their studies concludes:"In this large-scale, population-based Australian study, death rates in current smokers were around three-fold those of people who had never smoked, in both men and women. On average, smokers died around 10 years earlier than non-smokers, over the ages examined.The risks of cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and a range of other health problems are increased in tobacco smokers and, as a consequence, smokers are more likely than non-smokers to die prematurely [[URL='https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-015-0281-z#ref-CR1']1[/URL]]. Smoking is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in virtually every country in the world and is second only to high blood pressure as a risk factor for global disease burden [[URL='https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-015-0281-z#ref-CR2']2[/URL]]. It is arguably the leading readily preventable factor."While we are in danger from plastics at an individual level we may join protest groups and strive to lesson the danger but it is clearly going to take many years to bring about significant change. On the other hand, regarding smoking, we can make an immediate turn around with health and longevity expectations. Simply... stop smoking.
Markit
I'm sure I've written this before so if you haven't read it then you haven't been paying attention: stop with all the expensive insurance that you won't need anyway. Why won't you use it? If you ever get anything significant (being a smoker, almost a sure thing) then you wouldn't let the Numpties here touch you would you? Course not! With your last gram of energy you'd get on a plane and fly to Penang or Thailand, two places that are relatively near with world class medical care at knock-down prices. So do as HarryO suggested and put your premium into a bank account and get yourself a BPJS Indonesian health coverage. It's about as good as you'd expect and not as bad as some make it out to be, but it covers all the normal scratchs and scrapes of daily life well enough and is fecking cheap. Do an archival search here for how to join. I wrote it up a couple of years ago. You could throw a party for the BaliPod member to drink your beer for all the money you will save.
Rellek
I'm sure I've written this before so if you haven't read it then you haven't been paying attention: stop with all the expensive insurance that you won't need anyway.Why won't you use it?If you ever get anything significant (being a smoker, almost a sure thing) then you wouldn't let the Numpties here touch you would you? Course not!With your last gram of energy you'd get on a plane and fly to Penang or Thailand, two places that are relatively near with world class medical care at knock-down prices.So do as HarryO suggested and put your premium into a bank account and get yourself a BPJS Indonesian health coverage. It's about as good as you'd expect and not as bad as some make it out to be, but it covers all the normal scratchs and scrapes of daily life well enough and is fecking cheap.Do an archival search here for how to join. I wrote it up a couple of years ago.You could throw a party for the BaliPod member to drink your beer for all the money you will save.[/QUOTE]I've been going to Jakarta for ongoing treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis (Ankylosing Spondilitis) with excellent results. I'm on a medication (Humira) which is unavailable at Thailand's biggest hospital (can't recall the name). Jakarta hospitals I've been to are sparkling clean, modern, have a newly constructed feel about them and are MUCH cheaper than any hospital I've been to here on Bali. I can be in and out of Jakarta in one day. Regarding BPJS...there is too much confusion about the program. I recently heard that BPJS doesn't cover scooter accidents, another person wrote that he spent several hours sitting on the floor of a crowded Siloam Hospital with very sick locals all around him. If I need eye surgery, I wanna go to the best physician and not get a referral to someone who is incompetent.
Balifrog
50 million Rp per year ..Madness and way out of budget for most pensioners.Stopping smoking, not sure it would make a difference if you have been smoking all your life but it sure would be a good step.
AuroraB
Key to lower costs; - Exclude out patient, routine dental, US, elective treatments- Specify co-payment as high as possible and set aside amount if need arises.Note that after 70 I doubt any provider in Indonesia will sign new clients. I could be wrong.For terms & conditions in English: NowHealth terms & conditions are clear and in plain English. Their Indonesian rep is PT Sompo, a huge Japanese insurance company. I have used them in the past. [URL]https://www.now-health.com/en/compare-insurance-plans/[/URL]I have also used a Singapore company to find suitable plans based on my needs; Search google for "pacific prime singapore"Their service is "free of charge" although I assume they get a backhander from the insurance companies they sell in.
Rellek
Key to lower costs;- Exclude out patient, routine dental, US, elective treatments- Specify co-payment as high as possible and set aside amount if need arises.Note that after 70 I doubt any provider in Indonesia will sign new clients. I could be wrong.For terms & conditions in English: NowHealth terms & conditions are clear and in plain English. Their Indonesian rep is PT Sompo, a huge Japanese insurance company. I have used them in the past. [URL]https://www.now-health.com/en/compare-insurance-plans/[/URL]I have also used a Singapore company to find suitable plans based on my needs; Search google for "pacific prime singapore"Their service is "free of charge" although I assume they get a backhander from the insurance companies they sell in.[/QUOTE]All very good points. Finding a high deductible ($5,000 USD) plan with low annual cover of $50,000 for a reasonable price is proving difficult. Endless questions about things like my blood pressure. "In the last 12 months have you ever had a BP reading greater than 120/80?" The answer is YES! I had a BP of 128/90 which is still considered normal! I raised flags with a few other questions as well. AXA Insurance had me jump through 100 hoops and finally said I need to get a medical check up to finalize the policy....Bring it on, I said. The AXA agent said I first need to deposit the $32 Million Rp Premium into an account (It turned out to be the agents personal account under his name!), then get the medical checkup at AXA cost, then a revised Premium would be issued based on the checkup...if the revised Premium was declined then I would pay for the medical checkup. The whole process would take about 3 weeks.After all this, I've decided to bag health insurance here. I now have accident insurance with high deductible and a $50,000 USD annual cover limit. No health conditions are covered, but if I get hit by a bus tomorrow I'll at least have some sort of cover.
Rellek
For any US citizens here, I'm looking into Medicaid benefits as an option which covers prescription medicine, in-patient/out-patient care, surgery, even hospice care. Get critically ill in Indonesia and fly back to the US Virgin Islands or Puerto Rico, get a US address, get the insurance and get treated ($250 annual deductible). My Humira medication bought here is running about $1,000 USD per month....on Puerto Rico, the Medicaid price is $2.00 USD per month!!! US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico aren't bad places except for the hurricanes.
Shadrach
For any US citizens here, I'm looking into Medicaid benefits as an option which covers prescription medicine, in-patient/out-patient care, surgery, even hospice care. Get critically ill in Indonesia and fly back to the US Virgin Islands or Puerto Rico, get a US address, get the insurance and get treated ($250 annual deductible). My Humira medication bought here is running about $1,000 USD per month....on Puerto Rico, the Medicaid price is $2.00 USD per month!!! US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico aren't bad places except for the hurricanes.[/QUOTE]You said it. The problem with your idea, is that Medicaid only covers you on US soil, or US territory. I want them to cover my medical expenses wherever, I want to live. I don't want to leave, to be covered. Why do they want to control where I live in my retirement? It's a screwed up system if you ask me!!Somehow, it has to do with the Government making money from taxes or something. It's not for my benefit?Your Humira medication costing that much here is Criminal!!
Rellek
You said it. The problem with your idea, is that Medicaid only covers you on US soil, or US territory. I want them to cover my medical expenses wherever, I want to live. I don't want to leave, to be covered. Why do they want to control where I live in my retirement? It's a screwed up system if you ask me!!Somehow, it has to do with the Government making money from taxes or something. It's not for my benefit?Your Humira medication costing that much here is Criminal!![/QUOTE]Simple (I think) as it appears you can return to the US (a US Territory is my preference), get an address and move, sign up for Medicaid with the pre-existing condition and get treatment.BTW, Humira in the US is $8,000 USD per month without insurance.
Shadrach
Simple (I think) as it appears you can return to the US (a US Territory is my preference), get an address and move, sign up for Medicaid with the pre-existing condition and get treatment.BTW, Humira in the US is $8,000 USD per month without insurance.[/QUOTE]You completely ignored what I said about having to go back to America ti be covered. I already am on their coverage, and have used it before, when I had a broken leg. It was called MediCal, since that's where I was living. That Humira is crazy expensive! Sounds like you might be better off, moving to Puerto Rico. It's just not right, that you can't get the same price here!! That's what I want for myself also. Why does someone retired, have to move back to America for coverage?
Rellek
You completely ignored what I said about having to go back to America ti be covered. I already am on their coverage, and have used it before, when I had a broken leg. It was called MediCal, since that's where I was living.That Humira is crazy expensive! Sounds like you might be better off, moving to Puerto Rico. It's just not right, that you can't get the same price here!! That's what I want for myself also. Why does someone retired, have to move back to America for coverage?[/QUOTE]What I said, or meant for you to understand, is if a US citizen is living abroad without Medicaid hospitalization coverage then I believe it's possible to return to the US or a US Territory, get a physical address in the US, apply for Medicaid and then get treatment. You and I have been paying into Medicaid for our entire working lives. Understand?Puerto Rico actually has a Medicaid program for those of us having to pay outrageous prices for medication which is called Reforma; I'm on a Puerto Rico forum (Moving to PR) and have talked to a guy who also uses Humira and he pays only $2.00 USD a month to have it delivered to his doorstep each month, he is on Reforma Medicare until he turns 65 then he applies for Reforma Medicaid.
Shadrach
What I said, or meant for you to understand, is if a US citizen is living abroad without Medicaid hospitalization coverage then I believe it's possible to return to the US or a US Territory, get a physical address in the US, apply for Medicaid and then get treatment. You and I have been paying into Medicaid for our entire working lives. Understand?Puerto Rico actually has a Medicaid program for those of us having to pay outrageous prices for medication which is called Reforma; I'm on a Puerto Rico forum (Moving to PR) and have talked to a guy who also uses Humira and he pays only $2.00 USD a month to have it delivered to his doorstep each month, he is on Reforma Medicare until he turns 65 then he applies for Reforma Medicaid.[/QUOTE]Yes I understand you. But what I am trying to convey is I don't think it's fair, that we have to return to the US or US Territory, to receive our benefits. What do you think about that?
Rellek
Yes I understand you. But what I am trying to convey is I don't think it's fair, that we have to return to the US or US Territory, to receive our benefits. What do you think about that?[/QUOTE]How would that work? If a retiree needs an operation in Thailand, you think the US should cover the treatment? How would fraud be monitored? Medicare/Medicaid is socialized medicine for those that can't afford health care in the US which is why Trump and his Palm Beach cronies will try to strip it. Trump calls these "entitlements" as in something optional and handed out for free and his newly-appointed Department of Government Efficiency will likely see many US plans as Government waste.You can opt out of Medicare Part A and get more money in your SS check each month. Part A covers mental health, lab tests and ambulance ride fees. I opted out and get an extra $500 each month. Medicare Part A covers inpatient care in a hospital and the relatively small amount deducted from your paycheck over a 40 year career wouldn't cover major operations in most overseas countries.In short, it makes sense to me to have Medicare/Medicaid benefits administered in the US only.
Shadrach
How would that work? If a retiree needs an operation in Thailand, you think the US should cover the treatment? How would fraud be monitored? Medicare/Medicaid is socialized medicine for those that can't afford health care in the US which is why Trump and his Palm Beach cronies will try to strip it. Trump calls these "entitlements" as in something optional and handed out for free and his newly-appointed Department of Government Efficiency will likely see many US plans as Government waste.You can opt out of Medicare Part A and get more money in your SS check each month. Part A covers mental health, lab tests and ambulance ride fees. I opted out and get an extra $500 each month. Medicare Part A covers inpatient care in a hospital and the relatively small amount deducted from your paycheck over a 40 year career wouldn't cover major operations in most overseas countries.In short, it makes sense to me to have Medicare/Medicaid benefits administered in the US only[/QUOTE]The cost of the operation in Say, Thailand, could be monitored the same way it is in the US. Come on, you know the cost of medical assistance in America is ridiculously high, due to Doctors, Hospitals, and Insurance companies overcharging! The cost of the same operation in Thailand would be much cheaper than in America. So it would only make sense, that it is a better option! America is by far the most expensive western country in the world! When it comes to medical expenses. And Trump 's idea of entitlements are only to give the rich people, and corporations tax breaks! And not give a damn about the elderly, and poor people from America. Just look at who he wants to run this new DOGE program. Two of the richest people in the world! Do you think they care about common people?
Rellek
Prudential Insurance truly showing bad form. I can qualify for a 7 Juta discount on my health insurance if I can demonstrate I'm fluent in Bahasa. Hell, I'm even encouraged to practice my Bahasa with the locals to pass an interview showing my fluency in Bahasa. https://photos.smugmug.com/Personal-photos/i-QbV2K7F/0/MZJWPVk34vhqPnPPKXhJw8BBbZdDGs4kXL5wdzcgZ/L/20241224_140400-L.jpg[/IMG]https://photos.smugmug.com/Personal-photos/i-HxTktb7/0/LmSQPVR3BxX3KjZNXwfQsTCpCvm3Z56bwxhN4ZNdf/L/20241224_140458-L.jpg[/IMG]
