Health Insurance for a local Expat employee contract

By law the company must provide it but can deduct payment from salary for it. The insurance coverage in Malaysia is usually Hospitalisation Expenses and not general health management. The maximums may be very low, so top up insurance could be useful.

Hi John,
I agree with Gravitas. You basically have two options: a local health insurance policy via a local provider (should be provided) or an international health insurance policy. The former is really designed for locals and can be used in Malaysia only whereas an international policy will offer higher levels of care more akin to the west and is portable meaning that you can receive treatment around the world.

More on the differences can be found here - http://blog.brokerfish.com/2011/10/19/w … insurance/

Bear in mind that international policies are designed for the long term (12+ months minimum contract) so depending on the expected duration of your internship, it may or not make sense to check out the options. That said, even if your expected stay is less than 12 months, some insurers allow you to cancel the policy mid-term without much penalty.

This is interesting topic. We have had an travel insurance from Finland which we have been able to extend until now.  So will need to find new insurance. If taking local insurance into consideration, I have no clue where to look. Anyone willing to share some insight to local insurance companies?

Hi John

I have a friend who might be able to answer all your questions.  Once you are down here, give me a tinkle or a mail and we could meet up together for a chat.

Cheers
Sue

Not every insurance company offer local insurance at reasonable cost, doubling the premium compared to prices for Malaysians. The policies have very different coverage annual and total maximums so this needs to be examined. I personally liked what I read for Tokio Marine, as for an extra RM20 or included in the higher value policy, coverage is extended outside Malaysia. Usual candidates are Great Eastern, Prudential. PM me for contacts.