# Philcare



## fruitcop2 (Sep 1, 2016)

Hi, I haven't gotten to the Philippines yet, but was reading on the IRS page that most Insurance that one purchases from Foreign Government Health Plans would not meet the requirements of the "Affordable Care Act". How are the expats dealing with this? Does Philcare quality for an exemption?

Hopefully Trump will get rid of this abomination

Thanks


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## fmartin_gila (May 15, 2011)

Kinda depends on your situation, age, and your plans for the future. I rather doubt that PhilHealth qualifies as to the requirements of obamacare. Why not sit on it awhile and see what the new administration does, unless that doesn't fit your agenda. Depends somewhat on your plans & timeframe. 

Fred


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## Ram1957 (Oct 14, 2014)

fruitcop2 said:


> Hi, I haven't gotten to the Philippines yet, but was reading on the IRS page that most Insurance that one purchases from Foreign Government Health Plans would not meet the requirements of the "Affordable Care Act". How are the expats dealing with this? Does Philcare quality for an exemption?
> 
> Hopefully Trump will get rid of this abomination
> 
> Thanks


Not required. If you file your taxes in the Philippines and use the foreign address you won't be penalized. Also if you have medicare its worthless here.
Obamacare and Americans Living Abroad | US Expat Tax Help


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## Tukaram (Dec 18, 2014)

I live here full time so the ACA does not apply to me. I think over 330 days out of the country and you are not required to participate. Although, I am lucky enough to be a disabled vet, so in the US I used the VA exclusively for years. It covers the ACA requirement. 

Now, PhilHealth on the other hand, is a bargain. It does not cover everything, but for p2,400 a year - anything it covers is great!


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## Asian Spirit (Mar 1, 2010)

Basically, If you are living outside of the US and your living and mailing address is outside the US, you are exempt from Omamacare as well as paying into Medicare. However, if you are earning an income and filing US taxes, this might be different; this I am unsure on.
Good part is that the Obummercare will soon be gone most likely and no one will have to worry about that any longer.

There is Phil health here that you can pay into or if married can be added by your spouse if she has it. It's pretty good if an in-patient at a hospital. For doctor visits etc it is not usable at all. Exception to this is for same-day-surgeries such as cataract surgeries. Then it is usable. It only covers a small portion and is not the equivalent of Obamacare. Also, living here, you would need to bill and be reimbursed as insurance companies here will usually not bill for you. Cash on the barrel-head is the name of the game here.

Another major consideration is when moving here from any country, bring with you a complete set of your medical records and any current X-rays. Doctors here will not request your records as is usually done between doctors at home.


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