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pauldavidmena
Super Nomad
Posts: 1694
Registered: 5-23-2013
Location: Centerville, MA, USA
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Healthcare options on a Visitante visa
Our retirement plans continue to evolve, but given that my wife owns her own business and doesn't plan to retire when I do (about 5 years from now),
chances are that we won't seek a Residente Temporal or Residente Permanente visa any time soon. If I'm reading correctly, this would rule out Seguro
Popular. Apart from cash at a private hospital (e.g. St. Luke's in Todos Santos), what are the healthcare options in the event of an emergency?
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monoloco
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There are many companies that sell health insurance for international travel including Blue Cross.
"The future ain't what it used to be"
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pauldavidmena
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I have Blue Cross / Blue Shield now, and I know that they will reimburse for expenses incurred internationally. What I don't know is 1) whether they
will pre-authorize payment directly from the insurer or require $ up front from the insured (me), and 2) whether I can continue to afford this type of
coverage after I hang up my shingle at work.
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EnsenadaDr
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Mood: Move on. It is just a chapter in the past, but don't close the book- just turn the page
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why would you not obtain a visa especially when it's the law in Mexico?
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EnsenadaDr
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Mood: Move on. It is just a chapter in the past, but don't close the book- just turn the page
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You will have to pay up front off your credit card and they won't let you out of the hospital if you don't pay. | Quote: | Originally posted by pauldavidmena
I have Blue Cross / Blue Shield now, and I know that they will reimburse for expenses incurred internationally. What I don't know is 1) whether they
will pre-authorize payment directly from the insurer or require $ up front from the insured (me), and 2) whether I can continue to afford this type of
coverage after I hang up my shingle at work. |
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rhintransit
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Posts: 1588
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it's cash or credit card before you leave the hospital. depending on where you are, prices for care can be surprisingly low, or surprisingly high.
get itemized copies of the bill (good luck) and present them to BC/BS for reimbursement (good luck).
whether you can continue to afford BC/BS after you retire is a question for that insurer, and yourself. becoming a temporary or permanent resident
makes the most sense as you can then apply for one of the low cost insurance policies here. however I use those as emergency back ups and would head
for the USA asap. for years I kept up my BC/BS for that possibility, never needed fortunately.
reality\'s never been of much use out here...
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pauldavidmena
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Location: Centerville, MA, USA
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Thanks very much for the informative feedback. Here's my current situation: a few years ago we seemed on track to retire to Baja in the 2020
timeframe. Once we started looking into some of the logistics - for example my wife's U.S. based company - it seemed to make sense to split our time
between Baja and the States. Now my wife is getting cold feet about actually living in Mexico and is thinking more along the lines of being based in
the U.S. and taking lengthy vacations to Baja. Not to belabor the issue, but that's why the Temporary and Permanent visas are not in play.
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EnsenadaDr
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Mood: Move on. It is just a chapter in the past, but don't close the book- just turn the page
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The temporary visa you get when crossing the border into Mexico is only for 30 days. Anyone that does not have at least a $20,000 credit line on
their credit card is playing a huge crap shoot to come into Mexico with no healthcare coverage. Like many have attested to, you will not be released
from the hospital without paying your bill, and the bill can be cheap up to thousands of dollars, depending on the problem. Don't gamble with your
pocketbook. Get Seguro Popular in Mexico, and if needed, transported to the US later. All insurances from the States I know of need to be paid out
of pocket first and are not guaranteed. The DAN insurance for transportation to the States appears to be a good deal, at least the best deal I have
seen since an ambulance only 80 miles south of the border will cost you at least $1200 to be transported to the US.
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pauldavidmena
Super Nomad
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Location: Centerville, MA, USA
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| Quote: | Originally posted by EnsenadaDr
The temporary visa you get when crossing the border into Mexico is only for 30 days. Anyone that does not have at least a $20,000 credit line on
their credit card is playing a huge crap shoot to come into Mexico with no healthcare coverage. Like many have attested to, you will not be released
from the hospital without paying your bill, and the bill can be cheap up to thousands of dollars, depending on the problem. Don't gamble with your
pocketbook. Get Seguro Popular in Mexico, and if needed, transported to the US later. All insurances from the States I know of need to be paid out
of pocket first and are not guaranteed. The DAN insurance for transportation to the States appears to be a good deal, at least the best deal I have
seen since an ambulance only 80 miles south of the border will cost you at least $1200 to be transported to the US. |
Only 30 days? For some reason I thought it was 6 months. If that's the case, and we spend more than 30 days here at a time, I completely agree it
makes sense to get Seguro Popular. I've never been a gambling man...
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monoloco
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| Quote: | Originally posted by pauldavidmena
| Quote: | Originally posted by EnsenadaDr
The temporary visa you get when crossing the border into Mexico is only for 30 days. Anyone that does not have at least a $20,000 credit line on
their credit card is playing a huge crap shoot to come into Mexico with no healthcare coverage. Like many have attested to, you will not be released
from the hospital without paying your bill, and the bill can be cheap up to thousands of dollars, depending on the problem. Don't gamble with your
pocketbook. Get Seguro Popular in Mexico, and if needed, transported to the US later. All insurances from the States I know of need to be paid out
of pocket first and are not guaranteed. The DAN insurance for transportation to the States appears to be a good deal, at least the best deal I have
seen since an ambulance only 80 miles south of the border will cost you at least $1200 to be transported to the US. |
Only 30 days? For some reason I thought it was 6 months. If that's the case, and we spend more than 30 days here at a time, I completely agree it
makes sense to get Seguro Popular. I've never been a gambling man... |
A tourist visa is good for up to 6
months.
"The future ain't what it used to be"
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rhintransit
Super Nomad
Posts: 1588
Registered: 9-4-2006
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FMM (old tourist visa) is good for 180 days. looks like your options are just like traveling to any other foreign country. maintain your US
insurance, get travel insurance, and pay out of pocket and hope for reimbursement.
reality\'s never been of much use out here...
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EnsenadaDr
Banned
Posts: 5027
Registered: 9-12-2011
Location: Baja California
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Mood: Move on. It is just a chapter in the past, but don't close the book- just turn the page
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The problem also being if you leave and come back to the States your visa is no longer valid. I think because I left Mexico after 30 days the visa
was no longer valid and has to be renewed. | Quote: | Originally posted by monoloco
| Quote: | Originally posted by pauldavidmena
| Quote: | Originally posted by EnsenadaDr
The temporary visa you get when crossing the border into Mexico is only for 30 days. Anyone that does not have at least a $20,000 credit line on
their credit card is playing a huge crap shoot to come into Mexico with no healthcare coverage. Like many have attested to, you will not be released
from the hospital without paying your bill, and the bill can be cheap up to thousands of dollars, depending on the problem. Don't gamble with your
pocketbook. Get Seguro Popular in Mexico, and if needed, transported to the US later. All insurances from the States I know of need to be paid out
of pocket first and are not guaranteed. The DAN insurance for transportation to the States appears to be a good deal, at least the best deal I have
seen since an ambulance only 80 miles south of the border will cost you at least $1200 to be transported to the US. |
Only 30 days? For some reason I thought it was 6 months. If that's the case, and we spend more than 30 days here at a time, I completely agree it
makes sense to get Seguro Popular. I've never been a gambling man... |
A tourist visa is good for up to 6
months. |
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pauldavidmena
Super Nomad
Posts: 1694
Registered: 5-23-2013
Location: Centerville, MA, USA
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| Quote: | Originally posted by rhintransit
FMM (old tourist visa) is good for 180 days. looks like your options are just like traveling to any other foreign country. maintain your US
insurance, get travel insurance, and pay out of pocket and hope for reimbursement. |
Truth be told, it's nice just thinking about traveling to Baja for more than infrequent, one-week visits. 
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rhintransit
Super Nomad
Posts: 1588
Registered: 9-4-2006
Location: Loreto
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| Quote: | Originally posted by pauldavidmena
| Quote: | Originally posted by rhintransit
FMM (old tourist visa) is good for 180 days. looks like your options are just like traveling to any other foreign country. maintain your US
insurance, get travel insurance, and pay out of pocket and hope for reimbursement. |
Truth be told, it's nice just thinking about traveling to Baja for more than infrequent, one-week visits. |
yep, and if your wife has developed cold feet about living in Mexico part time, the insurance thing could be another excuse for her to say no long
trips south of border.
reality\'s never been of much use out here...
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pauldavidmena
Super Nomad
Posts: 1694
Registered: 5-23-2013
Location: Centerville, MA, USA
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| Quote: | Originally posted by rhintransit
| Quote: | Originally posted by pauldavidmena
| Quote: | Originally posted by rhintransit
FMM (old tourist visa) is good for 180 days. looks like your options are just like traveling to any other foreign country. maintain your US
insurance, get travel insurance, and pay out of pocket and hope for reimbursement. |
Truth be told, it's nice just thinking about traveling to Baja for more than infrequent, one-week visits. |
yep, and if your wife has developed cold feet about living in Mexico part time, the insurance thing could be another excuse for her to say no long
trips south of border. |
That's part of it, even though both of us are in good health and in our mid-50s. She read this article in MarketWatch (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/5-reasons-not-to-retire-abr...), and it's had more of an impact than I expected. On the other hand, it's been a
few months since our last snow storm. If we get whacked again like we did last winter, she might be whistling a different tune... 
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Mulegena
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Posts: 2412
Registered: 11-7-2006
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My experience:
To get Seguro Popular you need:
1) proof of residency (such as a current electric bill, rental receipt from a landlord).
2) a Mexican visa of some sort (I don't know if an FMM (tourist visa of 180 days would suffice).
3) CURP Card with Number
4) Application form provided by Seguro Popular
Immigration does issue a CURP number which is printed on your Residency Visa, Temporary or Permanent. You can ask them for a print-out of the CURP
Card, too.
There may be another way of a foreigner obtaining a CURP Card or Seguro Popular. Perhaps someone else has experience? And again, the process of
enrolling in Seguro Popular may differ from locale to locale, i.e. Baja Norte may-- in practice-- have different requirements from Baja Sur.
Perhaps the best way is to check with the Seguro Popular office which is closest to where you'll be living. They can tell you more definitively what
you'll need to qualify.
"Raise your words, not your voice. It's rain that grows flowers, not thunder." ~Rumi
"It's the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." ~ Aristotle
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Alm
Ultra Nomad
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Registered: 5-10-2011
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Technically, tourist permit is a single-entry, and you must return it on your way back North, but Mexicans don't care and tourists use that 180 days
permit again and again until it expires.
SEGURO with no other status but a tourist permit - don't know if anybody was able to get it. For visitor, whose status is by definition a temporary
one and a very short-term at that, to claim that he has a "permanent address" in Mexico - sounds like a legal oxymarooon. Though, if worse comes to
worse and they "blow your cover"  , you don't have much to lose. SEGURO only
works in public hospitals, not private, and cost of a major surgery in a public hospital with a few days stay is normally below 20K. I'm sure you can
afford this.
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pauldavidmena
Super Nomad
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Location: Centerville, MA, USA
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Realistically, we're talking about extending our current one-week visits to trips of a month or two in the next few years. We're both in good health
and should be able to defer anything other than a medical emergency to when we've returned to the States.
Should things change and we start thinking about some sort of residency (complete with permanent address), then it makes perfect sense to get Seguro
Popular.
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Pescador
Ultra Nomad
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Location: Baja California Sur
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Okay, here we go again.
First, A tourist card is good for 180 days. If you are driving down it is good for 180 days from the day of issue. If you fly, you will surrender
when you board the plane.
Second. You will need a water, phone, or electric bill to show you are living or renting in Mexico. Most offices do not require a Visa but as with
all things in Mexico, some of the offices may ask for it. I have helped a friend get a Seguro Popular card with only a Tourist Visa.
You will be required to get a CURP card and that is usually done in a major city. In Santa Rosalia, it is a one stop process and they issue you the
number on the same day you apply. For awhile we needed a CURP number to get a phone.
Now, it may be a good idea to have a Seguro Popular card ifyou are spending any time down here but you may be better off investing in an Evacuation
Plan that will fly you home in the event of a medical problem. Depending on your particular plan with Blue Cross, Blue Shield you are normally
covered for anything that is life or limb threatening, but you are normally required to pay the bill and then turn in for reimbursement. You have to
make that determination and if you were a client, I would assist you in making that determination on a financial basis. In other words, if you could
afford to put up to $25,000 on a credit card and get reimbursed when you returned home, it is different than if you could only put $5,000.
You also need to do a medical history evaluation and see if you have any things like high blood pressure, diabetes, genetic pre-disposition towards
any illnesses that would cause you worry.
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CaboMagic
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My ten pesos of experience: (thanks Mulegena!)
Request your visa to be good for 180 days .. the immigration 'agent' might 'assume' 30 days ..
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