Job Discussion Forums

[phillipl]

The latest consular bulletin dated 05/09/03 from the Australian Embassy in Beijing contains this item:

4. SARS INSURANCE COVER IN CHINA
Foreign students and teachers in China are required to
purchase medical insurance with SARS coverage beginning
this September. Foreigners are required to purchase at least
400,000 RMB worth of coverage, which can be obtained either
in China or overseas. Approximately 24 Chinese companies
have been approved to offer SARS-related products and
coverage. Chinese universities and the Ministry of Education
have assisted foreign students in obtaining SARS coverage
with the Ping'an Insurance Company.

Does anyone have more information regarding this (it was news to me and the leaders of the Government school where I work)? I have emailed the embassy asking for a list of the 24 companies but as yet no reply.

[Roger]

Thanks for posting this news here.
As so often, the CHinese information chain has some weak links. We are the last to be informed. SOme schools have not been tipped off either. My current employer is offering medical coverage, but there was no mention of SARS.
ANd, it needs to be said: if you get quarantined for being suspected of carrying SARS, it is going to cost a handsome amount of dough.
Tell your FAO to contact PICC!

[ChinaLady]

before I came to China I was told that my university would provide me with medical insurance, by the university FAO.
however - after arriving - I was told that IF I was ill I should go to the university clinc. that was, and still is, my medical insurance. a school clinic that is staffed by, hummm, I am not sure, but believe me their medical training is NOT! as my Chinese collegues have told me - the best medical insurance is to stay healthy, i.e. up at 5am each morning for the morning exercise routine, bathing every third day, and do not see a dentist until your 35th birthday. one of the "situations" that is being discussed in the upper bureaus in Beijing is what to do about the welfare (including medical care) safety net that is failing for the ordinary people in China.
as for us non-Chinese, STAY HEALTHY is your best medical coverage.
as a note: some of the "over-the-counter" meds that the school clinic has given me are WONDERFUL! after a few days of their OTC meds, I feel FINE, VERY FINE, and noooo pain!

[dractalks]

Zhi shi shama?

[ChinaLady]

ah, sorry - pamprin? boring.
we are talking the Chinese "pirate" of prozac.
never, even when begging and groveling, have I ever gotten anything stronger than aspirin from a doc in a hospital.
the pharmacies are a "treasure trove" of goodies in China.
and, , and , , some of them have a small book (abeit under the counter) with a list in English alpha order of most generic drugs that is translated into Chinese. just wonderful what the Chinese consider "over the counter." last year my students gave me some "cough syrup" that was very nice. but it is now "behind the desk." ah, wait until cold season hits, it will be OTC.
but, , back to the original subject. I do wish that all the schools (public, private, and government) were REALLY under the obligation to cover us "foreign experts" for medical. the little colds and flus, the bumps and cuts I can handle but I really do shudder if I have a serious injury. like breaking a leg or an arm. this will get expensive - fast!
the nice words they put together when you are negotiating and the real stuff when you start working are sadly, with some institutions, not the same.