Any New Suggestions for Medical Insurance?

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Thanks.  Think my problem was checking out the April company itself.  Found a place in UK called April Medibroker so will get a quote from them for both the 'Basic' and 'Comprehensive' cover.

The options provided by Kurnia also seem quite good mind and reasonably priced too.  I am looking for proper cover as opposed to, for want of a better word' mere 'visa qualification' cover.  The latter is perhaps fine until something happens   

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I am looking for proper cover as opposed to, for want of a better word' mere 'visa qualification' cover.  The latter is perhaps fine until something happens 

Yes, exactly. Over the many years I have been an expat have seen a few tragic instances where people tried to save on medical insurance.

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Have also sent a contact at the site your provided.  May well not decide until I get there.  I may even look to use the HSBC policy cover as a stop-gap for the 'qualification' cover, if I need it quickly and haven't had time to decide. 

Not sure how the agents work commission wise, whether they all charge the same (and get their fees from April) or whether they load the prices instead of (or as well as!!).  Be interesting to see the prices of cover as can be arranged from the UK via a UK agent or in Malaysia via one there.

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hi,

I visited MAA this morning, but they said it would take at least a month to process my application.

I went into the local MAA office on a Friday morning. The representative faxed the application through to MAA Central (KL ?) and got approval that afternoon. She telephoned me, and I returned and paid the cash.

And picked up 1 original & 1 copy of the policy the following Tuesday morning.

There must be 2 MAA's :

MAASLOW & MAAFAST.

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Both the UK and KL agents have got back to me and both quote the same prices in US $.  Converted to UK £ the cover comes out at roughly:

1) £886 for basic cover

2) £1,176 (inc. dental and outpatient)

Repatriation can be added at around £173 to either.

Not cheap but cheaper than most, if not all, the European providers I have looked at.  Need to compare now with the likes of Kurnia, Prudential and Great Eastern etc.  Given the prices are the same it is tempting to just sort cover now from UK but figure there may be greater advantage to having a KL based agent given prices are same, should I decide to go with April Mobilite.

My recollection with Kurnia is that they are cheaper but, as per the recurring theme, it's how good they are should you need to call on the policy.

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Not sure how the agents work commission wise, whether they all charge the same (and get their fees from April) or whether they load the prices instead of (or as well as!!).  Be interesting to see the prices of cover as can be arranged from the UK via a UK agent or in Malaysia via one there.

I pay my premiums directly to April, so am assuming they get their cut via April. It is possible to sign up online direct with April, but all in French last time I checked, so good to have an agent here in the same time zone I can talk to directly (in English). Did have reason to call the Emergency number in  France (yes, I was in an accident) and language was not a problem.

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 Hi Guys

 I happen to work for the largest medical insurance broker in Asia,  I did not sign up to this forum to tout for business however, I have bought a place in Penang and considering the MM2H route.

Having read some comments on this thread i would like to chime in by saying,  there are policies that can be taken out all the way up to 80 years old and even above (but rare),  all depends on your health condition of course.  Going the local plan route is not great because they are not community rated plans,  meaning your claims are not pooled with their entire portfolio. Instead its just you,  when you get sick and have a large claim, they will either deny you a renewal or increase your rates so high to recover some of their losses.  This is not insurance,  they are merely acting as a claims handler for your own underwriting.  You may opt not to renew and go elsewhere but no insurer will take you on if you have just had a major sickness.

Best to always get an International inpatient only plan with a reasonable deductible  and check the renewal terms carefully

Chris

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I used Kurnia here and will stick with it at least for the first year, until I have more time to devote to reading medical policy notes, not my favourite pastime!!  My policy was sorted the day I went into their office and they will then post you the documentation. In KL you may get it there and then.  You will certainly get an acceptance letter from them indicating you are on cover.  Kurnia did ask for a copy of my passport, copy of the MM2H acceptance letter and a medical report (they accepted a copy of the RB II medical form you have to get done for MM2H anyway), I posted full details on my blog.

I figured there are three main approaches to medical cover.  There is the cheap and cheerful 'qualification' cover which IS cheap for sure.  What it would be like when claiming I don't know.  Then there is the middle of the road stuff with premiums around the £200-300 pa (Kurnia, AIA, Great Eastern and Prudential) mark and then there is the Rolls Royce stuff priced at a lot more £1,000 to £2,000 pa with outpatient, dental and repatriation.  Like I say, I plan to look closer over the next 12 months.

Kurnia KL office details here: malaysia.kurnia.com/AboutKurnia/Branch/Selangor/Default.aspx  PM me if you want any further detail.

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hi,

I got the cheapest insurance that I could find, simply to meet MM2H require,emts.

I didn't intend to make any claim on the insurance unless I was hospitalised during the first year. I didn't renew the insurance for the next 4 years. On renewal I got a waiver via a letter of rejection from Kurnia.

IME with Kunia, the company has some really fixed rules so they're a good bet for a reject letter.

My intention is to use the mm2h FD for extreme medical expenses, although no-one has yet posted on the extent of this facility. But it's there, along with property purchase, and education.

I imagine that if you can withdraw RM50 grand towards a property, you should be able to get at least that much for medical costs. And if the intention is to stay really long-term in Malaysia then the FD will be there when the big visa expires. So the mm2h amount doesn't really matter.

Alternatively I'll use some ready cash. A triple heart by-pass in a government hospital in Malaysia costs RM25,000, give or take a stent or two. For anything less the cost is very reasonable.

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1./
I assume as we are under MM2H we are fully entitled to use government hospitals but naturally pay our own way ?

2./
Does anyone know if the government hospitals have the same different room scale charges system similar to Singapore ?

3./
Anybody any idea of the cost difference between government & private ?

This would no doubt be a considerable saving on using private,  I’ve been fortunate enough not to require hospitalization here “yet” but it is always in the back of one’s mind.

 

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hi,

As a local government-hospital user :

I) assume as we are under MM2H we are fully entitled to use government hospitals but naturally pay our own way ?

Any foreigners, MM2H or not, can use Government Hospitals. There's a foreigners charge as opposed to a Malaysian citizens charge, which is fair enough. I'm sure that part of the Singaporean citizens online aggro against the influx of PR's was that the PR's got the same medical benefits.

For a rough comparison, the foreigners charge is around RM60 per initial treatment as against either RM1 or RM10 for Malaysians.

2). Does anyone know if the government hospitals have the same different room scale charges system similar to Singapore ?

In the local hospital nearest me there's no different rooms so no different charges. And the morgue is free.   

3). Anybody any idea of the cost difference between government & private ?

I once started to make a list for this but gave up as other more exciting things to do came into my life. I also had a list for charges for private medical stuff in Singapore. Maybe I'll make something out of it.

I can tell you this though, for the standard foreigners A&E charge of RM60 you get a lot of medical repairs. Broken arm, no problemo, fix it for RM300. A couple of days in ICU, that'll be about RM600.  Stress tests for cardio at RM1,000 won't stress your cash flow.

Every hospital has a charges list. I've photographed it but never yet translated.

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My intention is to use the mm2h FD for extreme medical expenses, although no-one has yet posted on the extent of this facility.

It is also not mentioned on the MM2H website itself. I also assume it would not be too difficult to release part of the FD for medical expenses, considering the money goes to some Malaysian healthcare provider.

I purchased a 'minimum' package with Tokio Marine to qualify for the visa. Now, I realize it's too limited because they will not cover me outside Malaysia and I travel a lot.  If I have an extreme medical issue in a more expensive country as Malaysia, the FD amount may not be enough to finance the costs and it is not certain that the MoT will allow me to withdraw it for expenses outside Malaysia.

I am now considering a worldwide ex. USA Allianz policy. (You save a lot of premium when you waive coverage in the US and I don't plan to go there soon). I might combine a solid insurance policy with a International SOS membership (about 450 usd). International SOS is a worldwide traveller assistance organization, who can organize medical repatriation.

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Hi Jaco

Looks like you are Dutch, if so have a look at http://www.oominsurance.com/products/global-traveler-insurance/general-information

I now of a few Dutch expats who are insured there for their medical expenses, including me

Paul

BTW you can withdraw from your FD for medical expenses:

http://www.mm2h.gov.my/conditions.php

"After a period of one year, the participant can withdraw up to RM150,000.00/RM50,000.00 for approved expenses relating to house purchase, education for children in Malaysia and medical purposes."

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Looks like you are Dutch, if so have a look at http://www.oominsurance.com/products/global-traveler-insurance/general-information

Bedankt Paul. Indeed I am Dutch and I was kicked out of the mandatory Dutch national health insurance plan for leaving the Netherlands.

That website is useful. I never heard about Oom. However the webcalculation results in a premium which is, in my case, somewhat higher than Allianz Worldwide for a comparable package. I will study it further thought and their Third party insurance for liability might be useful: I did not think about that risk yet.