Hey all -

I'm an American moving to Madrid in a few months. I will be staying as little as 2 months, or as much as a year or two. As I'm quitting my job, I'm losing my health insurance here and have been researching Spanish health insurance companies that might provide individual medical coverage to someone (note, i will most likely be working illegally, so I'm not sure how I fit -- as a tourist?) I've looked at MAPRFRE and Sanitas - sanitas seems to have good coverage but is quoting me roughly 200 euros/month for their plan that covers me if i go back to the US for a few weeks. Anyone have personal experience with this? I'd appreciate some insight into which companies provide the most affordable foreigner's health insurance (just need basic med coverage. nothing fancy.)

Thanks!

MadidMan what's your opinion on this question?
i'm also interested to find out what type of health insurance spain offers. by the way Hi, so glad to be in this forum.nice of you to make it

I'm afraid I don't have any personal opinions on this matter. Spain has socialized medical care (thank god) so all residents get free health care. It's free because of the higher taxes they pay. The additional health coverage offered by Sanitas is for more personal, more...what... more specialized/personalized health care coverage, I believe.

If sincopated quits his/her job, I believe that health care provider is required to continue coverage for (at least) 30days after termination of employment. He/She MAY be able to extend it for some additional fee. It's rather problematic to have health care coverage in one country and to use it effectively/efficiently/cost-effectively in another country. So what's left? Hopefully sincopated will get a great job by a company and start paying into the social security system and then (s)he'll be able to get socialized medical care, I think. But.... we all know here how difficult (nearly impossible) it is to get meaningful employment in Spain if you're a foreigner (or even if you're Spanish!)

I know there's a thread on healthcare for foreigners on the message board somewhere. Might warrant a SEARCH.

(begin Forrest Gump accent here...) And that's about all I've got to say about that. (end Forrest Gump voice)

Saludos, MadridMan

Free medical assitance to all spainards and to those whose countries have agreements USED to be good. Nowadays, after 7 years of destroying it bny the past government is simply horrible: standardads of quality keep on being good, but waiting lists are innaceptable but for first aid or family doctor.

Even the worse urgencies (you have to go to hospital) are usually saturated and beds in halls, and so on. That is because people with need urgent assistance that could have been attended in one or two days have to wait one, two, or even six months, so they go to URGENCIAS and saturate it.

Besides, people from countries (like USA) who don't have an agreement with Seguridad Social, are given assistance but charge it later (or they try, at least) to the insurance of the attended or to him if he hasn't any.

Hello Ninas Good luck to you on you're venture to Spain. I have always purchased additional insurance hen Iam traveling. I am also privately insured here in the US. If you are a tourist then you will have a limit. Working illegally, well that seems to be against the LAW. Well in any case I hope you will succeed in you're dreams.
To Ignacio I have just a few word.: At first I was impressed by you're language skills, then disturbed by your hatred to the American People, now I am so bored with you getting in you're stabs LIKE USA that I am logging out of this Board. I consider you a SPANISH REDNECK being of little actual real knowledge and I hope sincerely that others will not judge the Spanish People by you and your CONTRIBUTION to this board. I am sure Madridman has been glad of your contribution because it has created a lot of traffic on this website including me. But now Adios. May you find peace. With warm South Carolina Greetings to all the great contributing people on this board a warm Dezember and Peace to all.

Mecky:

I wonder what has made you become so sour. I remember when you hit the board, and we had some phone conversations when you were trying to learn some spanish (I still have some photos of you). You seemed a pleasant person, which I now know you aren't.

But also, it's precisely you the one with very limited knowledge and mind and you like to show it once and again.

- First, I hate american foreign policy and dislike american pure capitalist system (as opposed to Welfare State capitalism) deeply. But I never said I hate americans, and I don't. I "hate" or dislike deeply or whichever way you want to explain it, the conservative fundamentalist rural american. That's all. I respect the urban, ilustrated open-minded american.

- Then, I must tell you that I don't care at all if you are bored or not. If you are, you can always turn on the TV, it's not my responsability. I find your posts sour and rather offensive and don't complain, you know.

As for my contribution to the board, you can see this makes my 1144 message, most of which have been answers trying to help foreigners on vacation at Spain, although the longer and more noticed are the social - political ones.

I can count 79 of yours in which you have helped or intellectually stimulated us ... let me think... NONE!

So, I think you should not complain on my contributions, when yours are so poor or unexistant.

I also hope people in the States are not like you, although I am afraid there are too many of those.

MM has showed publically and privately his opposition to me, and he even banned me (maybe unadvertedly) some time ago, which made me re-enter the board for some weeks under the nickname of "Censored" (my posts are there if you make a search), so don't acuse him of the old game of generating hot arguments to generate traffic, because that's bullsh*t, you know.

To end, I wonder if you actually read what people write, because in this thread there was nothing bad about the USA that could have possibly made you trigger your anger again.

Good job Ignacio, man you can't stay out of trouble. How is your back feeling?

He he. There is people who can not stand differnt opinions and put you in their "rogues" list, and fires at you at the lesser possibility.

My back is better these days, although some days ago it was real bad. But now it´s over.

Mecky wrote: Mecky, you've been around long enough to know we don't tolerate Name-Calling around here. Opposition to one's opinions is fine if expressed in a mature manner but this posting of yours is not acceptable. You've been warned.

We've lost a number of members because of their opposition or criticism of Spain, USA, presidents, politics, & cultures OR BECAUSE they opposed the expression of such things by OTHER members. We don't have ABSOLUTE free speech here. There are limits to what one can say. Ignacio and I have had SERIOUS conflicts in the past but it seems we've more-or-less fixed them - or at least come to an understanding of what's expected of the other.

Now, let's get on with the current topic, please.

Saludos, MadridMan

OOOH NOO Mecky I was interested in this question because of the health insurance part, not the part where i want to illegaly work in spain, i want to visit spain. That part of the question pertained to 'SINCOPATED'.