Medical Health insurance in Thailand and Coronavirus Covid19
Medical Health insurance in Thailand and Coronavirus Covid19
You plan to come to Thailand soon, please note that you will have to justify having health insurance covering Covid19 with a minimum of USD 100,000.
Even if you are already in Thailand, this is a good question to ask, does insurance cover Covid19 or not. If by chance yes, will the insurer accept to provide a certificate that will mention it?
Being effectively covered against Covid19 means having insurance that will cover medical costs, especially if you are hospitalized in intensive care in a private hospital. Costs quickly reaching hundreds of thousands of USD.
In principle health insurance covers any viral disease. The coverage will depend on the plan you have chosen (only inpatient treatments, or inpatient treatment care + outpatient treatments) and the limitation of coverage. The major medical risk, and therefore what must be covered in priority, obviously concerns the case of hospitalization, a cover of at least 500,000 USD is a minimum in order to protect against the worst scenarios.
Warning: many insurers do not cover if the disease is considered an epidemic. As the epidemic character of Covid19 has been proven, the insurer may oppose the exclusion clause and refuse to cover. Several insurers have confirmed to us that they will not cover as long as the situation is under the control of the authorities and there is no treatment. Download thai gouvernemt requirement for Covid19.
Why these exclusions?
In the event of an epidemic, the insurer, which insures hundreds or even thousands of people in the concerned area, would not have the financial capacity to suddenly cover a large population of travelers and tourists, nor to organize their repatriations simultaneously. This is why we find the exclusion of epidemics in almost all travel insurances.
Most often, as we can see now, it is the States and international public health authorities that take control (border closures, international flight controls, curfews, etc.). In such a situation, no insurer can organize medical evacuation or repatriation.
In conclusion, carefully read your insurance contract, the definitions and conditions, the coverage limit and especially the list of exclusions.
And for those who are soon to come to Thailand, contact us to make sure the insurer will agree to issue you a certificate with mention of USD 100,000 Covid19 coverage. Contact us for personalized support and advice.
