Episode Summary
In this episode of The Expat Files, Johnny Mueller explores the intersection of modern security measures, healthcare accessibility, and cultural dynamics in Latin America. From the implementation of biometric screening at airports to the affordability of medical care, Johnny shares his experiences and insights for expats navigating life in the region.
Johnny begins by discussing the increasing use of advanced security measures at Latin American airports, including fingerprinting, iris scans, and facial recognition. He attributes this shift to pressure from the U.S. State Department and TSA, noting that countries like Panama, Colombia, and Costa Rica have adopted these measures, while others, like Guatemala, have not. He also touches on the safety of air travel, highlighting that it is statistically safer than many everyday activities, yet people still tend to drink heavily before flights. He concludes by contrasting the modern, well-equipped airports in Latin America with the outdated 'chicken buses' used for local travel.
The podcast segment then explores the state of maintenance and equipment in Latin America, contrasting it with international standards. Johnny discusses the condition of airplanes, hospitals, and other technical equipment, noting that while some aspects like international airports and medical equipment are well-maintained due to service contracts, other areas like public transportation and government vehicles often lack proper maintenance. He also touches on the cultural and labor differences in the airline industry, highlighting the generally happier and more relaxed attitude of Latin flight crews compared to their first-world counterparts.
In this segment, Johnny Mueller discusses his experiences with pilots in Latin America, highlighting the contrast between the happiness of Latin pilots and the negative stereotypes about Eastern European pilots. He also touches on the economic conditions of Latin pilots, the issue of fuel dumping by airlines, and the lack of LGBTQ+ awareness and organizations in Latin American universities. The segment ends with a mention of an upcoming story about expat Eddie and a humorous anecdote about brainpower and headaches.
Johnny shares a story about a gringo expat who moved to Central America and signed up for a private medical insurance plan through a Latin American bank. The expat, despite having poor Spanish and being off the tourist trail, was able to access high-quality medical care, including a consultation with a vascular surgeon, an ultrasound, and a Doppler test, all at a low cost. The insurance plan offered coverage for pre-existing conditions after a year and a half, and the expat was able to get a specialist appointment within three days, which Johnny contrasts with the difficulty of getting such appointments in the United States.
In this segment, Johnny Mueller discusses the complexities of obtaining health insurance in Latin America, emphasizing the role of banks in offering insurance plans and the importance of understanding coverage limits and age restrictions. He highlights the generally low medical costs in the region and advises against being misled by high lifetime limits offered by private brokers, suggesting that these are often unnecessary and overkill. He also warns about the limitations of national health care systems in countries like Costa Rica, Colombia, and Ecuador, noting their poor service and long waiting times. Additionally, he provides examples of specific insurance plans and their costs, such as a plan in Guatemala that remains valid past age 65 with adjusted coverage limits.
Finally, Johnny discusses the financial implications of health insurance for expats in Latin America. He warns that initially low monthly premiums can quickly escalate into much higher costs, potentially resembling a 'vomit care' scenario. He also highlights the tendency of brokers to downplay these costs, especially for expats, and suggests that expats should be prepared for significantly higher monthly payments. He encourages listeners to take action by downloading a free questionnaire or enrolling in his course to develop a solid Plan B for their expat life.
Topics
Airport security in Latin America, U.S. influence on Latin American policies, Safety of air travel, Local transportation in Latin America, Maintenance and equipment standards in Latin America, Comparison of international vs. Latin American airports, Cultural and labor differences in the airline industry, Medical equipment maintenance in Latin America, Pilots in Latin America, Economic conditions of Latin pilots, Fuel dumping by airlines, LGBTQ+ awareness in Latin American universities
Chapters
00:00:00 Opening 00:00:56 U.S. Influence on Latin American Airport Security 00:01:58 Why Some Latin Countries Avoid U.S.-Style Security 00:03:23 The Safety of Air Travel and Its Paradox 00:05:38 Condition of Airplanes in Latin America 00:05:42 Maintenance Issues with Airplanes 00:06:23 International Airport Standards 00:06:54 Maintenance Issues in Public Transportation 00:09:55 Cultural Differences in the Airline Industry 00:11:08 Negative Energy from Pilots 00:11:44 Economic Conditions of Latin Pilots 00:12:24 Fuel Dumping and Legal Consequences 00:13:45 LGBTQ+ Awareness in Latin American Universities 00:15:45 Gender Bender Designations and Discrimination 00:16:52 Insurance Plan and Coverage for Pre-Existing Conditions 00:21:48 Access to High-Quality Medical Care at Low Cost 00:22:07 Why Banks Are a Common Source for Health Insurance in Latin America 00:22:52 Insurance Typically Doesn't Cover Cosmetic Procedures Like Spider Veins 00:23:58 National Health Care Systems in Latin America Are Often Underfunded 00:25:16 Coverage Limits and Age Restrictions in Private Health Insurance Plans 00:26:00 Understanding Coverage Limits in Latin American Health Insurance 00:27:07 Initial Health Insurance Costs for Expats 00:27:09 Broker's Perspective on Expats' Insurance Needs 00:27:14 Expats as 'Gringos' and Their Insurance Requirements 00:27:17 Higher Insurance Costs for Expats 00:27:20 Warning Against Underestimating Insurance Costs 00:27:26 Rising Monthly Insurance Payments 00:27:33 Introduction to the Expat Files Podcast 00:27:35 Encouragement to Schedule a One-on-One Call
Transcript
Automatically transcribed from the original recording; names and wording may contain errors.
[00:00] South of the border down Mexico way That's where I fell in love when the stars above came out to play and now as I wonder Hello there all you expat wannabes I'm Johnny Mueller and you're listening to the expat files living in Latin America The show that tells you just what it's like to live work play and or retire down here in Latin America It's a mix of the good the bad the ugly and the great and it's all right here. So let's get started All right, you know how we talk about sometimes when you go through airports International airports and those in the states you get the third degree. Well, I told you what it's like here in Latin America You know, we've got 20 Latin countries and so far we've got Panama, Colombia and Costa Rica
[00:47] probing filing and stamping you now to that means fingerprints and iris scans and now new news from Captain Mango who just flew the states recently He had a layover at the Mexico City Airport and said now Mexico is doing it, too Even though he wasn't staying in Mexico at all Just on a layover connecting flight and who do you think is responsible for forcing all that crap on Latin American airports now, too? Why the US State Department in TSA, of course, yep They want to know exactly where their sheep are. It's like tagging a cow's ear So there you have it for five Latin countries that have fallen in line with all that crap Oh, and by the way, last time I flew just about a month and a half ago. Now. I had a layover in Panama I noticed that some of the technical equipment machines iris scanners and stuff had little metal labels on them
[01:33] Saying that they were donated by some official US agency. Can't remember which I mean really there's only 6,000 of them, right? So there you have it. Third world countries can't afford that kind of equipment at their airports So the US steps in and kindly donates all that crap So little by little if you travel you just can't escape getting tagged So that leaves around 15 other Latin American countries that don't stick probes up your keister Not yet Anyway, and a lot of them probably never will simply because in the countries that aren't gringo eyes yet You know the ones that international living hasn't been pumping up Why would they ever need facial recognition profiling and iris scans? In fact the last time I came into Guatemala's international airport, you know
[02:19] If the light turns red, they stop you and go through all your stuff and that's the plan And if it turns green, you just walk right on through Well, like I said, it was very recently about a month and a half ago and must have been around 930 or 10 at night. I think it was a Sunday and man There was almost no one at the airport the workers and the security people outnumbered everyone was getting off the plane Anyway came my turn to press the button turned red That means they're supposed to open up all your stuff and go through it with a fine-tooth comb But remember Guatemala is not a gringo eyes country. It is not on AARP or International Living's radar. Thank God Anyway, there were three immigration people just standing around talking to each other two ladies and a guy Smiling telling jokes sucking down coffee. The light turned red the buzzer went off
[03:08] They looked at me and they just smiled and waved me right through like he looks harmless Let them pass so much for protocol, huh? You gotta love it, man You gotta love it, you know, I can't even imagine something like that could ever happen up in the States Oh and speaking of flying Pretty much everyone knows by now. It's considered the safest means of travel by far I mean, you're more likely to get killed in your own home by your electric toothbrush or your washing machine Yeah, I looked it up something like three people a year died by electric toothbrush. What an embarrassing way to go, huh? Well, in fact, it's kind of gory. You see either the head falls off then the person swallows it and chokes or in some cases Persons way too aggressive with the thing punctures the back of his throat and well, you don't want another ass
[03:53] Hey, there are more noble ways to die, you know, so here's what I don't get I mean, I've done lots of traveling I'm one of those guys who've been through a lot of passports not because they expired but because the pages were too filled With stamps, but here's what I don't get if flying is by far the safest means of travel Why when you go to the airport if you check out the airport lounge bars all the seats are filled even at eight or nine? In the morning Why is it that most adults are pounding one or two down before they can get up the nerve to go to the boarding gate? So at first world people in the States Europe etc are slightly on edge about flying or somewhat skittish anyway Why would they be pounding down drinks at nine in the morning? You know, what about Latin American Airlines like taka abiateka?
[04:40] Laksa, you know, many Latin countries have their own airlines Peru Mexico Argentina Columbia and of course they all buy first world planes Boeing and Airbus etc So they have the right equipment In fact these days when you're sitting around a Latin Airport, you can't help but admire They've got some brand new stuff right on the runway Of course, we're talking about for international flights now, but what about taking local flights in country flights puddle jumpers? So to speak, you know You hate to think it's kind of like retired school buses up in the States stand up as chicken buses here in Latin America How'd that happen a fate worse than death you would think hey now? That would be a great Disney animated movie an old American school bus ends up down in Honduras as a chicken bus
[05:27] I'd go see it, but it's not what you think chicken buses start out as fabulous pieces of machinery Of course, they get rebuilt and supercharged before they hit the roads down here, which is cool And they really are in perfect shape the day they hit the highway But after that, you know about Latin and maintenance right that just might be the first and last time that chicken bus ever saw an oil Change so you have to wonder where do all those thousands of 747s and old turbo props that flew the friendly skies in the 70s 80s and 90s end up. Yeah, and by the way, they can never use that slogan again, huh fly the friendly skies Well, just like cars they have auctions and scratch and dent sales on airplanes and jets too So then who buys those things?
[06:12] Well, most of them ended up in Central and South America kind of like the chicken bus thing doing local routes Holland Freight and probably left drugs But when you talk about international flights They do have the best equipment the same stuff you see in Houston Miami JFK and O'Hare field and you know When you buy a new airplane from Boeing or Airbus you get a maintenance contract. That's how they maintain international standards and certification to fly international routes They don't pay millions of dollars for these planes only to have them serviced by the best of the best of the chicken bus And tuk tuk mechanics. Alright, so that's true. But how do you get gringos to believe that? I mean they see the utter lack of maintenance with everything else here in Latin America Chicken buses cop cars and other government vehicles being great examples
[06:58] Not to mention the roads the bathrooms and the mail service Oh and regarding maintenance contracts people asked me about hospital equipment here in Latin America, too Sure, this stuff looks good standing there. But is it really in tip-top condition? Well, the fact is all those high-end first-world hospitals here in Latin America I have all the machines you'll see in hospitals up in the States and Most all of the companies that sell the big stuff like CAT scanners, NMRs, Dopplers, Lipotrope their machines Hmm. Try wrapping your tongue around that word after a couple of tequilas Anyway, those companies won't even sell a machine without a service contract Which is why you'll always see GE medical who makes most of the big stuff They'll have a service office in every big Latin City In fact, there's one Latin emergency room doc told me he said every couple of months
[07:44] The GE medical guy will come into the hospital and update all the firmware on all the GE medical equipment And then he pointed to an NMR machine that they had for I think it was two and a half years And he said it's already had seven software updates and he says no one has to call him up and pester him to come over They just show up and do it automatically. Hey, that's good to hear, right? So down here in Latin America when you're talking about expensive technical equipment Service contract is the way to go and at international airports It's mandatory or they won't get certified to allow flights coming in from other countries And you know, I've spent some time in airports with Xperirí. He's always good for a laugh as they say in Spanish Muy divertido. Yep He's one of those 9 in the morning airport lounge boozers and man
[08:31] Can he hold his booze and I remember one morning we were sitting in an airport lounge looking over Alaxa 767 that was getting refueled in Laxa is the Costa Rican airline and Eddie said hey look Johnny See those guys with the flak jackets walking around with tablets and clipboards Circling the plane checking things out. He said Johnny, you know, I wouldn't doubt that's his show They're doing it just for the gringos because they know Alaxa jet's gonna be filled to the brim with gringo tourists coming and going and a lot of them for the first time and they're Kind of nervous flying a Latin airline. So we watched for a while And you know a bunch of official looking mechanic guys going around the plane counting the engines You know 1 2 3 4 and then doing it twice kicking the tires and all that
[09:16] Oh and one thing about tires, you know, they look under inflated slightly flat and that's normal They develop tremendous heat when they go down the runway and thus expand So it is really necessary for people to run around the plane and kick them, right? That should calm any idiot gringo who's got a case of the nerves, huh? Yeah, but they really did look professional and serious while they were doing it. Anyway, that's when Eddie said something like Johnny Look at those guys They're not doing dick the D word being one of Eddie's favorite replacements for the S word as in poop with an S Oh and another thing if you've been around Latin airports as much as I have you'll notice all the Latin flight crews are pint-sized But definitely the Azafatas that's the stewardesses are always better looking than their first-world counterparts
[10:02] How'd that happen? It's lag time man and lots of it You know up in the states airlines have to follow all the first world labor regulations They can't get rid of you when you're no longer young and attractive. You can keep the job until you retire Whereas down here Latin America is still a lot like the way it was back in the 60s 70s and 80s back in the states Back then every young guy had this stereotypical impression that stewardesses were all young attractive and untouchable Yep, and back then they did call him stewardesses But all that changed when airlines started allowing men to do that job to talk about job discrimination against straight guys, huh? Hmm. So in the Latin airline industry lag time strikes again Anyway, as mentioned if you happen to be hanging around an airport here in Latin America You'll certainly notice that flight crew members are generally much happier than their first world counterparts
[10:53] And they're often well over four and a half feet tall and it's true There really is a difference between Latin and first world flight crews. Yep. They're joking and talking and having a good old time They're happy. Hey, you know, it's good when your pilots happy, right? I mean, come on who wants to be a passenger in a plane of an evil-looking pilot calling a lot of negative energy around with him Hey, I've seen a few of those in my time Especially on Eastern European flights and by the way, the pilots are all chain smokers. Their fingers are yellow and Russian pilots are even worse I'm sure they all have a few stiff ones before they get on the plane and maybe while they're in the plane, too Now, where were we? Oh, yeah talking about happy upbeat Latin pilots and flight attendants who aren't putting on an act
[11:38] All right You might think that's part of the Latin happiness thing, you know, but I kind of think it's more than that You see Latin pilots who do mostly all Latin routes make between 30 and 50k a year I mean really that's about what a glorified bank teller makes in the States in Cleveland That's barely middle-class. But remember as compared to where they came from Colombia Guatemala, El Salvador Bolivia That's about ten times the minimum wage besides they get a spiffy uniform They put them up in nice first-class hotels. They get a food and laundry allowance They can save practically all that dough. So really I can understand why they're so happy and again always remember There's nothing like a happy pilot even better a happy pilot who's sober
[12:24] Oh in regards to flying just one more thing that's never made sense to me now If you ever talked to an airline pilot, he'll tell you that once in a while They have to dump some fuel for whatever reason if you look it up You'll find that each day there are over a hundred and two thousand air flights So every day somewhere at some time someone's dumping fuel Every pilot will admit that for whatever reason ballast weather conditions who knows now look if you or I Were driving our cars and we happen to pull over and dump or even accidentally spill just a pint of gas or oil alongside the road in the weeds whatever or If you're changing your oil and you don't put it in the right container and dispose of it properly Well, if caught you'd be looking at at least a $500 fine. Certainly. You'd be labeled an eco terrorist
[13:12] Don't you think there's something wrong with that picture? Oh and speaking of labels the other day I was talking to a bunch of college kids here in Latin America. They were going to one of those big public universities That's virtually free and you know, you get what you pay for like this show And their English really sucked but they did try it on me. Yep Even though they all were enrolled in English classes at the college man Did their English suck? In fact, one of them told me his teacher had never been to this days Nor did his teacher have any gringos to talk to. Oh, man, that's a hell of a way to learn a language, huh? Which is why it's not working out so well for them Anyway, we got to talk about this LGBTQ T Whatever it is stuff because I wanted to know if they had any of those organizations on campus because this particular group I was talking to go to public university in Guatemala in which the stats say believe it or not. There are over a
[14:01] 100,000 kids enrolled and what these guys actually was three guys and two girls. They all kind of looked at each other Like they didn't know what I was talking about when I mentioned the LGBTQ T thing and I said, you mean the gays and lesbians And genderbenders don't have any kind of organizations at all They said well, maybe they do but we haven't heard about it And remember we're talking about a campus of a hundred thousand kids By the way public university campuses in Latin America do not have dormitories Everyone comes in from home kind of like junior colleges up in the states commuter colleges Basically and almost every one of the kids that goes to these crappy public universities works a job because you see they absolutely have to Anyway back to this LGBTQ T thing Whatever now get this when I told them that up in the states there aren't just five genders anymore
[14:49] You know male female gay lesbian and transsexual I guess and you can look this up that there's actually by Last count 51 different gender bender options So after I said that they thought I was telling a joke and we're waiting for a punchline So there was a pregnant pause and one of them said e which means and in Spanish But there wasn't one which made them feel even worse about their crappy English skills So lag time effect here in Latin America on a LGBTQ T Whatever front seems to be a non-starter believe me if you can't find gender bender activist groups on a public campus of 100,000 people they've got a long way to go and some say that's a good thing Latin say it's a good thing and why not there are a million more important things to think about and you know not so long ago
[15:36] I actually took a look at that list of 51 gender bender designations or options I noticed they seem to have forgotten one designation. That would be One bald midget albino cross dressers. I'm bringing that up because I believe that's a group that's generally been heavily Discriminated against if not ignored altogether. And you know, the thing is if they've been intentionally left off the list I say time for a class-action lawsuit I'm sure you're with me on that which reminds me of a saying I picked up from expat Eddie He says life sucks, especially if you're stupid and my mom used to say the more, you know The more you worry and the flip side of that no brains No headaches though. I have to admit over the years. I've met a lot of people with great brain power Though most of them seem to be operating with the wrong users manual But I digress as usual. Where were we? Oh and for all you listeners waiting for that sex drugs and rock and roll expats Eddie's story
[16:28] That I have been promising to tell you I'll get to it I'll get to it it almost rolled out today But other things either got in the way or took precedence We'll get to it because I wanted to tell you this boots on the ground story first just a few days ago I got a call from a gringo when the lady who came to a previous expat insider seminar and she's moved here to Central America She's off the gringo tourist trail her Spanish sucks But she's smart creative and a good listener So she's signed up for one of those big Latin bank affiliated medical health insurance plans that you hear me talk about once in a while That's the stuff by the way We go into great detail on and the expat insider seminar So she's been on the plan a year and a half now and that means a pre-existing condition thing doesn't exist for her anymore It's usually a six month to a year
[17:13] Waiting period on that stuff with any insurance company So she's paying slightly under a hundred bucks a month for a really nice first world like insurance plan She said it for a year and a half and hasn't used it at all Till this week and that's why she called me She wanted me to help her make the appointment because in this particular plan you dial a number you get a call center And they'll make appointments for you, etc So I dialed this four-digit hotline number and I got through to the call center in two rings And of course, it's all in Spanish. Isn't it funny? There's none of that press two for English crap. Yeah, I get you thinking, huh? By the way, these hospital plan call centers are right inside the hospital. Nope. They don't farm it out. They keep it in-house That's a good thing So often if you're walking through a hospital you'll come across a room where you'll see six or seven people work in the phones
[18:03] But back to our gringo lady looking to get an appointment She really doesn't have any serious medical problems But she says she has some unsightly spider veins on her legs And she's heard and read that you could have injections or laser treatments and eliminate them completely So I made her appointment over the phone with what the call center guy said was a phlebotomist Alright so far so good. That was about a week ago. Then yesterday. I got a call from that lady She said Johnny I got to tell you a story She says my appointment was five in the afternoon on a Monday at a big nice Hospital where there was a suite of rooms with little plaques listing specialties on each door There were maybe 15 chairs in the waiting room and only three people there then she said in her own words at exactly five ten I'm admitted into the room with a doctor now on my way to the office
[18:51] I went through the parking lot everyone spoke Spanish. She said went to the receptionist. She spoke Spanish She directed me down the hall I got lost and I asked other people where I was supposed to go and they spoke Spanish and finally being I'm a gringo I got there early at five o'clock. That was at the door I was let in the lady doctor around I'd say 35 37 years old Instantly started speaking to me in English her English was very good I'd say about 90% first thing she said after introducing herself was oh, I'm so glad we can speak in English I never get to practice my English and this is a real treat for me And then the lady gringo patient said well, where'd you learn your English? She says I attended great school and high school at the Austrian school in Guatemala
[19:37] Now you heard me saying pastures there are all kinds of upscale private helicopter schools They've got the English school the American school French school the Italian school Montessori and any number of other schools and some of those schools Like the French Italian Austrian and German schools are trilingual They teach in English Spanish and their country of origins language So this lady doctor spoke Spanish English and German and then the gringo lady asked her What's it take to be a phlebotomist? She said oh, that's just what they call us In fact, I'm an MD and a vascular surgeon. I took my specialty in Madrid, Spain Then my gringo friend said you won't believe it Johnny We sat down and she went over a complete history of my health the whole works
[20:23] I was in her office for an hour and she said Johnny I gotta tell you where I come from on the East Coast I don't think I've ever had a doctor's appointment where he spent more than seven minutes with me Then she did an ultrasound on my legs Then she explained about leg veins and arteries and circulation and all that and in the end She said to determine which method to use to get rid of those veins She ordered another test at Doppler tests I never heard of that and she made me an appointment the following Friday to go to one of the bigger Hospitals in the group where they have those particular machines Oh and get this when I set up that appointment for with the call center It was a Thursday and I said when's as soon as you can get her in they said well Where does she live because we have a total of nine clinics and hospitals where we can set her up with an appointment in the hospital
[21:11] She picked closest to her place They didn't have an appointment with a so-called phlebotomist for a week and a half and I said well anything sooner and they told Me yes Monday, but at another location about five miles farther out, which was fine with her But the point is she was able to call and get an appointment at a specialist in three days How's that stack up to trying to get a specialist appointment up in the States? You know what I'm talking about anyway, she had an hour with not a phlebotomist but a vascular surgeon and she did an ultrasound and Her total copayment for that experience 11 bucks. Oh and two bucks for parking So that's the kind of coverage she gets from one of those private medical plans Obtained through one of the bigger banks here in Latin America But you know if you were to come down and try to hook up with one of those bank plans yourself believe me
[22:01] It's very confusing because probably ten banks offer such plans. They're not the only good plans, too Though they're sometimes the easiest for gringos a nice place to get on when they first come down. Why banks? Well, because they're the underwriters and since every middle and upper class Latin has a bank account That's an easy marketing scheme when you come in and do some business. Hey want to buy some insurance We've got it right here at the bank and we can do direct deductions every month You know this game just like up in the States or maybe it isn't I wouldn't know At any rate We'll be following up on the case of the spider veins what the costs and the treatments will be and how it pans out Should be interesting and a nice take on a first-time hospital doctor visit for gringa Well off the tourist trail whose Spanish sucks my take on this is something you might not have thought of I'm thinking hey
[22:49] With this spider vein thing that's cosmetic and insurance Generally doesn't pay for such things right almost none of them do even in the first world So we'll be tracking that too and see how much the insurance pays or doesn't pay and how much she has to pay out Of her pocket so stay tuned for that Oh, and by the way one thing you really have to look out for when you're shopping for health care insurance in whatever Latin Country, of course, you should never be sucked in by the promises of the national health care systems Even though you'll hear people in Costa Rica, Colombia and Ecuador telling you how great they are Well, the services are spotty at best. You'll have terribly long waiting times The hospitals are scruffy look kind of like dungeons I mean, what do you expect those things are run by the government, right? Anyway, I always say those are the stops of last resort If you get an accent in front of a public hospital by all means go into the emergency room. That's one thing
[23:36] They're good at that's where they take all the motorcycle crash victims Yes, trauma medicine is their specialty not much else now You know in the last couple years a lot of gringos and expats have run to Ecuador because international living and such said how great their New revised and revamped public national health care system is only to find out not so long ago a couple months ago That it's completely bankrupt. In fact, it's a couple of billion dollars in debt So is that the kind of system you want to get into anyway? We were saying you gotta look out for one particular thing when shopping for health care insurance in any Latin country in many many cases You'll find if you're at a certain age. You can no longer enroll That's not to say for example, if you enroll at 55, you can't go to age a hundred But it's that enrollment age point that you got to worry about take Colombia. For example
[24:27] They've got a lot of private health care options in Colombia But almost all the plans I've ever seen will not let you enroll if you're over 62 years old But again, like I said, if you're under that age and enroll as long as you keep up the payments You can roll to a hundred, but that's not always the case either There's lots of insurance plans private insurance plans where there is an age cutoff limit So for example when you hit 70, hey, you're off the plan that sucks So those are the things you have to know about and you have to look out for when you're shopping around However, for example in Guatemala one of the very good health insurance plans that's one of those bank owned and operated jobs It's very cheap. Maybe 75 bucks a month for a single and a hundred and ten dollars for a family But once you hit age 65, it's not over it. It don't kick you off It's just that some of the benefit limits are lowered for example instead of a yearly coverage limit of let's say
[25:16] $50,000 when you hit 65, it's 25,000 now Normally the premiums don't change just the limits of coverage drop a bit. Oh and another thing that's really important to know I know I've mentioned this before but you have to let this sink in suppose You're looking at a nice private health insurance plan It's a hundred bucks a month or whatever, but it's only got a lifetime payout limit of let's say $250,000 or $200,000. Well, you know in the States if you have a big operation You could easily go over a hundred grand and then you'd pretty much wipe out that policy right up in the States Yes, but not down here in Latin America because remember medical costs are a six to one-tenth of what they are up in the states So I always tell people when you look at the limit on a policy that's being offered always multiply that by five or six to get a general idea of what that policy would compare to if you were up in
[26:07] The states so for example, if there's a two hundred thousand dollars lifetime limit on the payout Multiplied by let's say five and two million dollars and that would be an equivalent amount of coverage if it were up in the states You get the idea. So in the end don't let a small Lifetime limit or a yearly limit they have those two, you know scare you don't think you'll be way under-insured because the limits are low Remember the amazingly low medical costs are one of the huge advantages to living here in Latin America On the other hand, don't let the broker or whoever oversell you that is try to sell you a lifetime limit That's up there in the millions. I know you're accustomed to having that in the states, but it's never necessary here Talk about overkill by the way, only private brokers will try to oversell you and it's always because you're a gringo
[26:54] And they think you want a gigantic limit if you get one of those insurance policies through a bank They'll never oversell you because they're set up for the average Latino And as an example if you were to select a plan with a two hundred fifty thousand dollar lifetime limit You might pay a hundred or hundred twenty five bucks a month Whatever and then of course the broker just might say I've heard this scenario many times But of course, you're a gringo a first real person So you might want to have five hundred thousand or a million or more Well, don't let them a second punch you with that because suddenly that hundred hundred twenty five dollar a month policies Are gonna turn into three four of five hundred bucks a month and those kind of monthly payments start looking a lot like Oh vomit care You've been listening to the expat files living in Latin America If you need some help with your own plan B, you can schedule a one-on-one phone call with me
[27:40] But first download my free plan B questionnaire at www.thenewexpat.com Better yet if you want to get your plan B going from right up there in the states Just sign up for my 9-hour expat essentials course get the perfect plan B blueprint by going to the expat files.com Academy