Supplementary health insurance

Supplemental health insurance costs/month

  • $0
  • $0 ~ $5,000
  • $5,000 ~ $10,000
  • $10,000

0 voters

I’m wondering what others are paying for supplemental health insurance. I’ve been topping up since having my gall bladder out and having kids.

At the moment, I think we’re getting fairly comprehensive coverage for two adults and two kids, and forking out close to NT$9,000/month. Strikes me as excessive.

Anyone particularly pleased with their coverage/company?

I pay NT$4600 per month and it covers hospitalization, surgery, chemo, transplants, dialysis, medicine, x-rays, CAT scans, etc. to a certain limit.

They also pay me for missed work time. If I’m hospitalized for a week, I get a week’s pay.

I’ve only used it once, for a broken toe. My broker came to the hospital as I arrived, organized prompt attention for me and sorted all the bills (over and above the NHI and the basic NT200 that I had to pay). I was off work for three days, and my missed hours were reimbursed the next month by the insurance company.

I don’t think that $9000 is excessive for a family of four.

Someone I used to know was paying around 35K a year.
He said after 15 years it is for life and that he can do it anywhere in the world.
I think it was Prudential?

Anyone familiar with something like that? That was 5 years ago - so I would be into year 6 now. :frowning:

Does this supplemental health insurance provide coverage when outside of Taiwan? And, if so, will it pay the cost of the care in that country or just equivalent to what the cost would be in Taiwan (which I think is how the Taiwan National Health Ins does)?

I pay 27000NT a year for mine, it covers surgery, hospital stays and some other stuff.

I haven’t had to use it yet.

I frigging hate having to pay my health insurance. I mean, what am I going to do - say “Hooray! I am in hospital. It finally pays off.” But it’s a necessary evil, what with all the nicotine and DEHP I have taken in.

I have the same one as jimipresley, at the same price. Haven’t used it yet. It’s not the best coverage possible, and is therefore not the most expensive. I think I need to keep paying it for life if I want to have all the benefits; if I stop paying after 20 years, I retain some of the coverage, but not all.

I think NT$ 9 000 a month for 4 people is a decent deal.

Where does one get the Supplementary insurance?
We are moving to TW soon ( a family of 3), after we get NHI coverage, how can you get the additional insurance?
What do you think is better, carry NHI+supplementary insurance or have Expat insurance from an overseas insurance company?

Thanks

1 Like

I’m curious Jabs: How much of your gall bladder operation did NIH cover? I would have thought that necessary surgery would fall under it’s umbrella.

Short version: It was covered (just in time): cost me something like NT$6,000.

Long version: There was some confusion regarding my status in the months before that, thanks to changing jobs, taking a position that was full-time by one system of reckoning, part-time contract by another, yadda yadda yadda… the upshot of which is that thanks to a mess up in the office and unfamiliarity with the bureaucracy and (ultimately needless) worries about having the contract reviewed, I was without NHI coverage for something like a year. During that time my guts were in open revolt, landing me in the ER at least a dozen times. And because I wasn’t enrolled in the NHI, each visit came directly out of my pocket, so I didn’t go unless I absolutely had to, and thus needlessly endured a LOT of severe pain and sleepless nights. I still wasn’t covered when things came to a head and the ER doc said, “No, I don’t think you’ve been properly diagnosed at your previous visits. I think you may need an operation, today, or you could die.”

So, now, we’re careful to make sure we’re covered.

Yeah, I was just wondering since it was my impression that virtually all necessary procedures are covered.

I had this conversation with a Prudential agent in TW a year or so back where she was trying to sell me a $50k a year policy including health, death, accident and all the usual bells and whistles. We got into a discussion about why I may need so much medical as opposed to a lesser amount and her answer basically amounted to, " You will get to stay in a private room."

I tried to look it up, but the English document on the NHI website uses some pretty broad definitions about what is and is not covered. Basically says that everything non-elective, cosmetic or prosthetic is.

The information that I received a while ago was that a lot of companies have moved away from whole life policies recently; a lot of the policies promise a significant payout at the end of term or when the policy holder reaches a certain age and it seems that companies no longer find this a viable return.

My wife made me get supp health insurance. She tells me that it is so I can get the “good” medicine. Basically I hear its like a menu. Oh, you want morphine for that leg with 16 compound fractures? Ok, extra NT $ 6000 then.

Maybe I am exaggerating, but she is convinced that you need to pay extra for the good stuff, whether it is drug’s for chemo, infection etc.

Don’t know how true it is and don’t wanna find out. Think I pay 36k a year for 20 years and then free for life. Also get $ 5000 back each year I don’t claim. Just got my first check.

Hello all,

I was reading this thread with a lot of interest. Basically I was wondering the advantages of getting an extra insurance on top of the NHI. Most of Taiwanese told me that NHI is sufficient and redirect me to the NHI website to check the coverage policy. Needless to say that I prefer t get a practical opinion over a list of what is covered / what is not.

On top of this, do some of you have recommendation for supplementary health insurance and budgetary ideas ? I read that the insurance landscape in Taiwan has changed a lot for the last two/three years with a lot of foreign companies (Prudential, Zurich, Aegon…) which pulled out the Taiwanese market.

Thanks a lot.

I’ll recommend having a supplementary health insurance here, although I don’t know which insurance company will offer a better coverage.

The NHI only covers 90% of the total pay during hospital stay, if I weren’t wrong. But yes, it offers basic need for almost any condition. However, many new treatment or drugs, especially expensive ones, are not covered by NHI. Among these, some can be applied by the doctors in advance and granted by the department of health, but some have to be paid totally by the patients themselves. These additional conditions could probably be included in a supplementary health insurance, according to their clauses or related regulations.

For example, to remove the gall bladder is covered by the NHI and could be done smoothly here. But if you need a private room, a personal caretaker or a better control of pain (ex. PCA, patient controlled analgesia), an extra fee is unavoidable. Some insurance companies will offer you a certain amount of refund after each hospital stay and only receipts or certificates are needed.

I think the latter is the answer, referring to the bureau of national health insurance.
nhi.gov.tw/English/webdata/w … ta_id=3185

Are the supplementary health insurance plans similar to short term plans? I can see how 10% of a hospital bill could be a lot of money. Does the supplementary plan cover the entire 10% of the plan?

oO

The defacto standard for group health insurance in the USA is 80% coverage with a 20% copay - after you hit your deductible that is usually at least $3000 usd.

I have a household of 3, and have individual health insurance for families (not a group policy), and my policy covers 70/30 with $5000 deductible per person. It only allows for 3 doctors visits annually for anything, doesn’t cover maternity or mental health, and has a separate $500 (per person) deductible on medicines before it pays a dime.

The NHI sounds pretty sweet, without adding anything else.

Hi folks,

I’d like to bring this thread back. I am starting questioning the benefits of NHI. Example: my wife will deliver a baby here, in Tai’an hospital. I am shocked by the price list. For a non-comfort cesarean section you need to pay like double, where does this come from ? Does it mean that bigger the treatment is, higher you pay ? I am wondering if NHI really suffice.

So… I’d like to bring it up: I’d like to take a supplementary health insurance. Any recommendation please…

Thanks.

I pay US$100 a month for expat insurance through IHC in London (broker). Basically NHI if it’s not serious, and off to Bangkok if it is.

Reviving an old thread here. Do any current members have extra health insurance on top of NHI? What treatments are not covered by NHI (and how much would they cost out of pocket?)? I have read in a few places that chemo isn’t covered? How much can we expect to pay for the supplemental insurance?

Chemo is covered ,and should be good quality ( depends on individual Doctor) but I suppose there may be exceptions. What you tend to find is that most things are included at a basic level , but there are higher quality treatments/materials etc available …but at extra cost.
E.G. I had plates and pins in my hand …choice of “normal metal” free , or Titanium extra 90,000 ntd.or maybe more …can’t remember.
Heart Stents …normal type free…coated special ones 35,000 each extra.,maybe more
One thing that may be an advantage is a private room . Cheaper than most western countries but probably 4000- 10000 a day , depending.
They also charge for some neck or back braces etc, should you need them .
Dental … Fillings /root canal etc covered but crowns/veneers etc not .

1 Like