The International Schools Review Forum

I have never had a health plan at any international school nor have any of my friends who, like me, have years in American public schools AND international schools, that was better (or even close to) what is offered at public schools in the U.S.

What international schools have the best - or worst - health insurance plans and how much is covered by the schools.

This is, unfortunately, one benefit that too many of us don't seem to think is too important - compared to salary, housing, settling in allowance, etc. - but we should.

I think the biggest headache I have with health insurance as an IT is the bureaucracy and paperwork needed to get almost anything done. That combined with the pathetic billing offices (we are consistently being billed for services we received 3-4 years and 1-2 insurers ago) of the local expat hospitals here in Shanghai is enough to drive one to drink.

Having said that, when the chips were down there was no question of them paying for an emergency night in the hospital when I needed it. Of all the insurance companies that SAS has used I would say that CIGNA seems to be the best. We have worldwide coverage and the deductible isn't outrageous, $200 per person, and depending on which hospitals you use the co-pay varies between 0 and 20%.

Senator, I'm not sure how forthcoming posters are going to be about this topic, as many of us desire anonymity when posting here and are hesitant about posting about specific schools. However I'll post my 2 cents, without naming any names.

During my 2 year stint in China at a 3rd tier, the health care sucked. I only had very basic coverage and my non-teaching spouse was offered no coverage at all. Plus, the hospitals in China were a nightmare. When interviewing for my next job I made sure to ask about health care - it was one of my dealbreakers. The school I'm at in Thailand offers fantastic healthcare - the best I've had in 10 years in Asia. My wife and daughter both get full coverage even though I'm the only one teaching. So far we have used the plan to cover hospital visits, medicine, minor local surgery, and a birth. It's for this reason (and a few others) that I doubt we will ever leave.

Hope this helps.

[quote="durianfan"]Senator, I'm not sure how forthcoming posters are going to be about this topic, as many of us desire anonymity when posting here and are hesitant about posting about specific schools. However I'll post my 2 cents, without naming any names.

During my 2 year stint in China at a 3rd tier, the health care sucked. I only had very basic coverage and my non-teaching spouse was offered no coverage at all. Plus, the hospitals in China were a nightmare. When interviewing for my next job I made sure to ask about health care - it was one of my dealbreakers. The school I'm at in Thailand offers fantastic healthcare - the best I've had in 10 years in Asia. My wife and daughter both get full coverage even though I'm the only one teaching. So far we have used the plan to cover hospital visits, medicine, minor local surgery, and a birth. It's for this reason (and a few others) that I doubt we will ever leave.

Hope this helps.[/quote]

In Beijing, the health coverage for the top 5 schools (or so) was generally all very good to excellent. We had an excellent plan that let us use the hospital that had western trained doctors and very good facilities. I went through some fairly significant issues there and was very happy with the services and doctors.

We did pay extra for a family plan (employees were fully covered). Also, at that time, many school were looking towards adding a higher co-pay if you used the more expensive western friendly hospital.

Our school plan is pretty comprehensive, complete with sending people out if necessary, with paid accompaniment. Free checkups and some dental stuff included.

Not bad - not the best but not the worst.