NeonHippy

I never managed to get a reply to my email enquiry but at Putrajaya today the clerk behind the counter could not have been clearer in telling me that I need not have bothered with medical insurance as I am 60. Wish I had taken more heed of IVV and saved myself some money but I didn't want to risk coming to KL with something missing.

In fact my wife turns 60 on Saturday. If I had waited a few more days......

Kjarkata

Thank you NeonHippy.

I am planning to be at Kuala Lumpur early june and the information you provided will certainly help me.

If possible, can you tell me how long did it take to open a bank account?

NeonHippy

Hi Kjarkata, I went into the bank one day to fill in all the paperwork and returned the next day to collect our account details and debit cards etc. One slight delay was that I had not made arrangements in the UK to be a premier customer or to have access to HSBC one view. As a result it took a few days to clear my money from the UK to pay the MM2H fixed deposit and a top up FD to qualify as a premier customer. If you are planning to travel on a tight schedule you might want to either make some arrangement with your bank in advance or allow time for your funds to clear. This is because you will require letters from the bank to give to MOTAC which will only be released once your money has been deposited into the FD. All in I think it took me about 5 working days but as I've explained you can cut this right down with a bit of planning.

roystevenung

If the main purpose of getting health insurance is to get the MM2H, even a rejection letter is good.

However if getting it for the purpose of settlement of the much juicier medical bills, then you may want to apply for one before hitting 70.

The last entry age for any medical insurance in Malaysia is 70.

Do bring along any medical reports history as you will ve required to declare.

Malaysian insurer, even those international brands like AIA, Allianz or Prudential does not cover any pre existing illness, nor does it cover dental (unless it is necessitated by an accidental injury).

You may also want to decide on the coverage term, for instance cover until age 80, 90 or up to 100.

The reason is once you hit 70 of age, you are not able to upgrade or even get a new Malaysian class insurance policy. This is why some of the insurance brochure reads (renewal only) after certain age band.

These days medical insurance starts from Rm1m, Rm1.5m and Rm2m with or without excess.

JC3

Hi,

Roy is clearly very knowledgeable about Medical Insurance in Malaysia, and for basic 'Malaysia Only' policies I suspect 70 really is the last entry age.

That said, if you are over 70, and struggling to find an insurer to accept you, there are still some options available to you.

For example, according to the blurb on Axa's Malaysia website:
Axa’s InternationalExclusive health insurance policy has an entry age up to 80.

Depending on where in the world you reside, travel to or wish to receive treatment there are three geographical areas of cover designed to suit your needs, including Asia, Worldwide excluding USA, and Worldwide. Whichever area of cover is selected, you can receive medical treatment not only in your country of residence, but also in any other country within the chosen area of cover.

See more info here: International Healthcare Insurance :: AXA Affin General Insurance Bhd


Or go to a broker such as: http://www.brokerfish.com/internatio...alth-insurance (run from KL) which is simple to use, and will give you an instant online quote without requiring you to input much data. More about brokerfish here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/heal...insurance.html

Or try International health insurance made simple | Medibroker, who can trawl the UK market for International PMI for you, but requires more personal data upfront.

JC3

JC3

If you have an MM2H visa and an MM2H fixed deposit (FD), and want to self-insure rather than buy Medical Insurance, don't forget you can use your FD for medical expenses.

If you are seriously ill, your FD may not stretch far enough of course.

JC3

bakedbean

You can only partially use the FD. See limits here:
Widthdrawal Requirements - MM2H Official Portal

roystevenung

If no insurance, seriously ill or coma and the bank FD is under a joint name, then it should be ok to withdraw by the spouse.

Otherwise please do a living trust and appoint a trust company to manage.

You may do it under Rockwills or Public Trustee (for example).

asteward

Hello All
I recently emailed one of the insurance companies for some info as I have my MM2H and want to get a policy before I hit the magic 65 next March. I haven't moved to Penang yet, and the response from AIA was that I had to be resident for six months before they would insure me. Is this correct? I hadn't heard or read about a waiting period before. Also, any recommendations for a good insurance agent in Penang. I'll be visiting this week and would like to get something lined up if possible. Thanks in advance.

JC3

Hi Asteward,
I can recommend the AIA representative we use (he's an AIA employee, and a very helpful man). If you do two more posts on British Expats, we can communicate via this forum's Private Message system and I will give you his contact details - he's based in AIA's George Town office.

Replying to this post will also increase your post count

JC3

bakedbean

Hi Asteward and welcome to the forum

This doesn't make a lot of sense AIA saying you have to be resident for six months. Did they say that to you too JC3 ?

We went with Allianz and they did insurance for us after getting the conditional approval letter. Not particularly recommending them though they are ok and have paid out, albeit moving the goalposts a bit...but was a cheapy insurance. I am sure there must be plenty of other companies who will insure MM2Hers. Maybe others would comment?

roystevenung

Hi asteward, since you already have MM2H you do not need to reside here for six months before the insurer is able to insure you. However, you need to be here physically to sign the application form.

The last entry age for a Malaysian class insurance policy is 70 and it is able to provide coverage till age 100 (if you plan to stay here for that long). Once your application is approved, I do suggest you keep it as it will get extremely difficult to get insured at older age as our health deteriorates.

What is more of a concern for the insurer is the state of your health & wealth during the application of the insurance. For the wealth, you will need to do a simple declaration (due to the Anti-Money Laundering Act) as to whether you file a tax return to the USA.

For the health, due to your age, you are required to undergo a Medical Exam (ME - with urine test & resting ECG) at a clinic nearby you. The AIDs/HIV blood test may be necessary if you are from a high risk country, eg, Pakistan

Prior going for the medical checkup, you need to be completely rested, a few good night rest is recommended, and stay away from coffee/tea which is known to elevate the blood pressure. Instead drink lots of warm water.

It is highly recommended that you go early in the morning for the medical checkup, not after a heavy lunch. If blood test is required, you are required to fast for at least 12 hours. No sex please, otherwise your urine may have some weird stuffs swimming in it

Once the Medical Exam is submitted to the insurer, the Underwriting team will then assess and determine whether coverage can be given.

There would be 3 types of outcome based on the ME results.
1. Accepted
2. Accepted with Exclusion & loading (eg, exclusion due to a pre-existing condition)
3. Decline

Most insurer do not cover "Pre-existing Illnesses", meaning, anything prior to the inception of the policy is not covered. For example if you had a metal implanted (due to an accident) and wants it to be removed after getting insurance, that is not covered.

As for the Waiting Period, they are as follows:-
Accidental injury (no waiting period - immediate cover)
30 days (common ailment, including dengue)
60 days (heart attack, coronary artery disease, cancer)
120 days (Specified Illness)



Do ask the agent to explain to you the Exclusions (of what is not covered).

JC3

Hi BB (and Asteward),

No, AIA didn't. As MM2H'ers AIA covered us straight away. With certain exclusions for previous conditions as you would expect made in the same way as explained by Roy in his post above.

But just to be sure, I emailed a copy of Asteward's question to my AIA representative this morning. His response was, quote:

"Please note there is no waiting period for AIA insurance application for MM2H residents".



JC3

asteward

Thanks. I suspected this. It was probably a computer-generated reply to my initial request!
Looking forward to being in Penang tomorrow evening.

asteward

Maybe they figured I was from Norwich and marked me down as NFN!