Israeli health insurance for student with preexisting condit

amother

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 10:06 am

My son is going to Israel to learn and he will be in a yeshiva where they figure out the logistical stuff on their own. I understand that once they are there, the boys usually are able to sign up for Israeli health insurance. He has a preexisting condition which shouldn't be a problem medically but we don't know if he will be able to get on the Israeli insurance. Does anyone know how this works or have experience with this type of situation?
Thanks!

amother

Buttercup

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 10:26 am

Not sure with isreali insurance but I have a son with a med. condition who went to isreal and just had to be moniterd. Since the condition was pre existing the insurance would only cover if Ch''v an emergency happened. Medication we got a 3 month supply from here and had him (or someone else take it ) take it there. Labs we had to pay out of pocket (I think we got a discounted price bec. we had this insurance). B''h there were no emergencies and everyhting went well. The name of the insurance is A.I.M. (they speak english). They also had to know before hand what the condition was so that if (non emergency) a doctor had to be seen there they could arrange an appointment for us. B''h we didn't need any appointments. (the labs we took were sent to his doctor in america)

Hatzlacha

Mollie

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 10:29 am

They will charge you extra to be covered for the pre existing condition. If it’s well controlled, you can choose not to include it and pay out of pocket if he needs to be treated for it.

amother

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 10:39 am

Mollie wrote:

They will charge you extra to be covered for the pre existing condition. If it’s well controlled, you can choose not to include it and pay out of pocket if he needs to be treated for it.

You mean the Israeli insurance will charge extra? I'm not looking for them to cover him, I would like to know if he will be able to get standard coverage there and what sort of information he needs to bring with him.

amother

Pear

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 10:44 am

The form will ask him to report the condition. My son needed a letter form his American doctor stating that it was well-controlled. Even with that, it took a few extra visits to set it up. If he is going to the Mir and working with Meuchedet, it is usually better to show up than to try to call. The Mir has a liason that can be helpful. And he doesn't have final confirmation that he has insurance until he gets a card.

amother

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 10:44 am

[quote="amother [ Buttercup ]The name of the insurance is A.I.M. (they speak english). They also had to know before hand what the condition was so that if (non emergency) a doctor had to be seen there they could arrange an appointment for us. B''h we didn't need any appointments. (the labs we took were sent to his doctor in america)

Hatzlacha[/quote]

Is this an American insurance or Israeli? My son shouldn't need any followup there but he does need regular medical coverage when he's there.

amother

Rainbow

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 11:01 am

Definitely pay extra to be on an Israeli kupa, if that's an option. (Maccabi and Meuchedet are most widespread in Jerusalem and have lots of English speaking doctors.)

It's far better than being on private insurance, where every lab test is a hassle.

You can apply to Meuchedet or Maccabi online even before arriving. At the very least, you can speak to them and find out what they're willing to cover.

amother

Buttercup

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 11:11 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Is this an American insurance or Israeli? My son shouldn't need any followup there but he does need regular medical coverage when he's there.

I'm not sure exactly what you mean. The insurance base is in israel and they have their own doctors for regular checkups. They speak english though. They would do free reg. checkups if needed (height weight blood pressure,not feeling well) The cost of the insurance though I think is around 800 dollars per year. I think the isreali insurance are cheaper. The reason I picked this place was because I as a worried mom (I know have to work on it) wanted to be able to talk to them if I had any problems/questions on how my son was doing.

Mollie

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 11:22 am

amother [ Buttercup ] wrote:

Which yeshiva is he going to? Usually they recommend which insurance to sign up with and they are on top of it.

800 dollars sounds like alot

amother

Cinnamon

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 1:08 pm

I have two kids in Israel now - a son in yeshiva and a daughter in seminary. My son has a Meuhedet plan (because there is a kuppah right down the block from him and was recommended by the yeshiva) and my daughter has Maccabi (because the seminary arranges a student plan through them). When signing up for the insurance, both asked for details of any preexisting conditions. My daughter has one, for which she takes medication, and there was no problem with her joining the plan, although they did increase the premium above the base rate. It was about $300 for the school year. My son's Meuhedet plan costs about $40/month. His was in place before my daughter went to seminary - otherwise we may have shopped around a little better.

Both of them have been to doctors in Israel for various standard reasons - strep, a twisted ankle, etc. and had no problem with the coverage or with finding English speaking doctors.

amother

Buttercup

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 1:28 pm

amother [ Cinnamon ] wrote:

Did they have any specialists in case ch''v was needed ?

amother

Cinnamon

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 1:30 pm

My daughter went to an orthopedist when she hurt her leg. She BH did not need to go to any specialist related to her preexisting condition, but I don't think it would have been a problem.

LovesHashem

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 1:32 pm

Mollie wrote:

Which yeshiva is he going to? Usually they recommend which insurance to sign up with and they are on top of it.

800 dollars sounds like alot

For private English speaking insurance 800 isnt bad.

amother

Buttercup

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 1:40 pm

LovesHashem wrote:

For private English speaking insurance 800 isnt bad.

Just looked online and saw it's $700. But I guess it's more expensive. Any ways I am happy that B''h no specialist appointments were needed bec. ohterwise they would cost 250 dollars each.

WitchKitty

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 1:46 pm

Israeli insurance shouldn't be much of a problem to get on (unless he is a total invalid)though it might be more expensive. (And still probably cheaper than any private insurance).

amother

Moccasin

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 3:13 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

We had the exact same scenario with my son last year. He needed a letter from his Dr. stating that his condition was stable and he would not be needing medical care for it. Meuchedet (the Israeli insurance) then gave him coverage excluding any care that would be associated with his pre-existing condition. Did not pay a penny extra.

amother

Cherry

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 3:28 pm

amother [ Buttercup ] wrote:

Did they have any specialists in case ch''v was needed ?

It's hard to be definite without knowing which experts but the medical coverage here is excellent. The doctors are good, some kupot are easier with getting appointments than others. There are both Meuchedet and Leumit clinics by the Mir which have English speaking doctors if you need. All types of specialists are available on all kupot but sometimes it can take time to get an appointment.

If you need more detailed info, call up Chaim V'chesed and you can ask anonymously for exact information.

amother

Clematis

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 3:29 pm

There is a branch of meuhedet near the Mir in beis yisroel and they are very helpful in registering all yeshiva students regardless of the yeshiva (once registered you can use any branch of meuhedet).
We registered at that branch when we lived there for a bit after we got married and the guy at the branch said that I shouldn’t state my minor pre-existing condition and then tell the doctor the first time I have an appointment about it and then it would be covered under the normal plan. I’m not sure if that was cheating.

amother

Moccasin

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 3:35 pm

amother [ Clematis ] wrote:

This is the branch my son went to as he is a student in the Mir. We did not think his pre-existing condition would be an issue because he is symptom free and would not need to see a Dr. for it while he was in Israel. But they would not cover him until we got the letter from the Dr., and only with the exclusion.

Sesame

Mon, Apr 25 2022, 3:57 pm

amother [ Clematis ] wrote:

It’s a known thing that if you ask the secretary they may give you permission to exclude it in the form. It’s totally fine if you ask permission and they allow it and isn’t cheating. They themselves said you didn’t have to declare it, so I wouldn’t think it’s cheating even if this wasn’t a known thing.