Buenos Aires in or out

[chris]

If Swiss is charging a Senior USD $600 a month other companies like OMINT which are costlier must be a lot more. This is the point I was trying to make. If you come here as a Senior retiree, you must pay a great deal for health insurance that you get in the US under Medicare. My mother pays under $200 for a supplemental plan that covers just about everything not covered by Medicare and she goes to some of the best hospitals in the United States and consults leading doctors. The expense of medical insurance for Seniors is a problem for anyone wanting to settle in Argentina who does not have a high income. It's a simple reality and needs to be pointed out to someone over 65 who is thinking about making the move.

 

[earlyretirement]

I'm not sure if that discount plan is still available through Medicus? Someone posted earlier it wasn't.

Regular insurers are far more expensive. I was paying around 1500 (pesos) a month for OSDE 310 at age 37.

Yeah, no kidding. Steve if you were/are only paying 600 pesos a month I've NEVER heard of anything like that! I doubt anyone can get anything even close to that.

I was on OSDE 410 as well as my wife and kids and we were paying far more than Citygirl.

The $624 US dollars a month sounds about write what they are charging seniors over 60. It's gotten quite expensive there for private health insurance.

My mother in law who is in her early 50's is on OSDE 310 and it's not cheap at all.

 

[earlyretirement]

The Medicus group plan for expats is still availabe, but it's actually Medicus coverage that is available though another expat group. There is a signup fee. PM me for details. I am only an individual who is very happy with the services provided by Medicus. I am not paid to refer others to enroll.

Wow. I've never heard of that kind of discounted rates before. Just out of curiosity Steve... how does Medicus stack up to top tier providers like OSDE?

Is it like OSDE with absolutely no deductible or co-payments?

OSDE was expensive but it was excellent! I was very happy with it and absolutely no complaints at all. We were on the 410 plan. We probably could have settled for the 310 plan as we're all very healthy and still fairly young but they really were wonderful.

If Medicus is that good like OSDE at those kinds of discounted rates it would be amazing!

 

[prunes61]

My policy not only costs US$6800 per year, but also has a US$5000 self retention. That means the insurance doesn't reimburse me for any medical costs until I first pay $5000 in covered expense. In effect my policy costs me 11,800. It is one of the reasons (not the main one) I am contemplating a relocation back to the US and only staying a few months per year in AR. For me personally the savings of about $9000 per year in combined medical and ins expense is a significant factor.

Relative to the cost of health insurance for aging retirees (like some of us carrying on this conversation) another factor to keep in mind is the extent of coverage when not in AR. My policy with BUPA now covers me anywhere in So Am, but not in my native US. If I am going to travel "home" even for a short time I need to get some kind of protection for medical expense not covered by Medicare (which now only covers hospital but not doctors' bills). A travel rider may or may not be available. If not, a travel policy of some kind will increase expense modestly.

 

[steveinbsas]

Wow. I've never heard of that kind of discounted rates before. Just out of curiosity Steve... how does Medicus stack up to top tier providers like OSDE?

Is it like OSDE with absolutely no deductible or co-payments?

OSDE was expensive but it was excellent! I was very happy with it and absolutely no complaints at all. We were on the 410 plan. We probably could have settled for the 310 plan as we're all very healthy and still fairly young but they really were wonderful.

If Medicus is that good like OSDE at those kinds of discounted rates it would be amazing!

My plan has no deductibles or co payments and I don't need to get pre-authorizations for doctor visits or general services prescribed by the doctor such as annual blood tests, xrays, ultrasound, etc. I just show my card and sign a form.

I Switched from Omint to Swiss (paying $600/month) in 2008 when Omint went up to $800 pesos per month and from Swiss to Medicus a few months later when I found the expat group discount and was paying Medicus $350 per month in late 2008. The rate has increased by 25% per year and is about to increase by that much again by the end of the year.


I liked the Medicus facilities in Recoleta and Belgano much more than Omint's Clinica Del Sol in Palermo....and I had the option to use hospital Aleman, Italia, or Britanico if needed.

Yeah, no kidding. Steve if you were/are only paying 600 pesos a month I've NEVER heard of anything like that! I doubt anyone can get anything even close to that.

The $624 US dollars a month sounds about write what they are charging seniors over 60. It's gotten quite expensive there for private health insurance.

Well, it's unfortunate that you haven't heard of anything like this before. I have posted about it several times on other threads.

The rates I quoted above included a basic dental plan as well as travel insurance for emergencies. As previously posted the rate will increase next month by 15% and later this year by an additional 10%. All ages to 70 pay the same rate, and anyone under 68 and one half years of age can enroll. I enrolled at age 58 and my premiums have increased by the same amount as everyone else in the plan...even if they are twenty, thirty, or forty yeas younger than I am.

 

[earlyretirement]

My plan has no deductibles or co payments and I don't need to get pre-authorizatio0ns for doctor visits or general services prescribed by the doctor such as annual blood tests, xrays, ultrasound, etc. I just show my card and sign a form.

I Switched from Omint to Swiss (paying $600/month) in 2008 when Omint went up to $800 pesos per month and from Swiss to Medicus a few months later when I found the expat group discount and was paying Medicus $350 per month in late 2008. The rate has increased by 25% per year and is about to increase by that much again by the end of the year.


I liked the Medicus facilities in Recoleta and Belgano much more than Omint's Clinica Del Sol in Palermo....and I had the option to use hospital Alemania, Italia, or Britanica if needed.





Well, it's unfortunate that you haven't heard of anything like this before. I have posted about it several times on other threads.

The rates I quoted above included a basic dental plan as well as travel insurance for emergencies. As previously posted the rate will increase next month by 15% and later this year by an additional 10%. All ages to 70 pay the same rate, and anyone under 68 and one half years of age can enroll. I enrolled at age 58 and my premiums have increased by the same amount as everyone else in the plan...even if they are twenty, thirty, or forty yeas younger than I am.

Thanks so much Steve for taking the time to post this again. I have to be honest, I didn't really pay attention to many posts before. I signed up a few years ago on this board but didn't pay too much attention until recently.

I think the board is much better now and balanced. A few years ago there were a lot of "love it or leave it" types that thought CFK was the greatest thing since sliced bread!

But now it seems like people are very rational and realistic so the board is much better to me and I'm paying attention to more posts now.

Thanks again for sharing the information and taking the time to PM me back. I've always enjoyed your posts.

 

[Ceviche]

I concur "steveinbsas" is one of the most reliable, polite, knowledgable posters on this forum

 

[trennod]

ER I was strictly speaking from an economic point of view. And I am not at all talking about quality of life.

Bradleyhale I said originally that there is no point to compare Argentina with Europe and USA economically speaking, but that was a little strong. My only point is I dont agree with any economic arguments that claim Argentinas economy is going okay, because its not as bad as USA and parts of Europe. Argentina has a different structure and I am saying if you want to compare it to any first world economy, it should be similar commodity / agricultural based economies, ie Australia and Canada.

Argentinas economy is largely being flattened by government policy, in addition to external factors.

I wouldnt for one minute suggest Argentina is a threat, for quality of life (based on economic factors) ever between European countries (bar a couple in eastern europe perhaps) and USA. There is simple no competition.

 

[chris]

In reference to what someone posted about OMINT, depending on your plan they offer more than Clinica del Sol. For example, I can go to IADT (Instituto Argentno de Diagnostico y Tratamiento) for just about anything, Mater Dei etc.

Regarding the expat MEDICUS plan, maybe Steve can clarify this however my understanding is that it is NOT actually offered directly by MEDICUS but by another company that works through MEDICUS. This makes me nervous as it seems to me that under this plan you don't have the same backing you would have as a regular MEDICUS subscriber. What happens if some day the company sponsoring the expat plan closes down for whatever reason?

 

[steveinbsas]

In reference to what someone posted about OMINT, depending on your plan they offer more than Clinica del Sol. For example, I can go to IADT (Instituto Argentno de Diagnostico y Tratamiento) for just about anything, Mater Dei etc.

Regarding the expat MEDICUS plan, maybe Steve can clarify this however my understanding is that it is NOT actually offered directly by MEDICUS but by another company that works through MEDICUS. This makes me nervous as it seems to me that under this plan you don't have the same backing you would have as a regular MEDICUS subscriber. What happens if some day the company sponsoring the expat plan closes down for whatever reason?

This is a great question. I will ask the individual who deals with expats in the grroup. She has been vey helpful whenever I had a question or concern. I have never had a problem with Medicus and when I pay by telephone and am asked if I am paying as an individual I always select that option.

I don't think there is any reason for the "business" to go out of business. I am not sure exactly how the Medicus group plan was established. I am obviously not an employee so that is not an issue. If this is a cyber business, that is, an expat group that is privately owned (just like this site) it's not likely to go out of business as lonng as it maintains their website.