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Thanks, my main concern presently is health insurance and since I am 76 it seems beyond my budget actually. However, I am fit but could lose a little weight, and one pre-existing condition(asthma) that hasn't acted up in years now. My best option might be to just self-insure and try to play it safe there. I have my VA Health Care here in the states but that won't help my residing in Cambodia full time. However, I need to research if there are any options to continue. It seems to be a requirement to continue eligibility I must access no less than a two-year period to continue.
-@arthow1847

I hope you read this post carefully...

...Downside at your age is medical stuff - insurance will be pricey, so like most of us oldies we take our chances and try to stay healthy for as long as possible. Private clinics are expensive, although not in the same league as in the US, and if desperate there is always the local hospital where you can get real basic care for about $250 a week...-@hdgh29

You are 76, @arthow1847, overweight (you said it) with a history of asthma.

You are at the age where the first time you get sick with anything that settles into your upper respiratory tract, it's almost certain you will require medical intervention.

I'm not saying you shouldn't come to Southeast Asia, but just be realistic and know that you might not be able to afford getting the healthcare you need during a crisis.

Since you have VA healthcare, your best bet might be to stay in the Western hemisphere, probably in Mexico, either Rosarito, North Baja or the Mérida area on the Yucatan peninsula.

That way if your health goes bad, you can more easily medivac back to the states.

If the two year rule applies to you, you could arrange yearly appointments with your providers in San Diego, much easier now since the trolley now goes from the border at San Ysidro directly to the La Jolla VA (or the Chula Vista clinic if you prefer that).

If you decide on Rosarito or somewhere nearby, there are prepaid emergency ambulance services you can set up (out of your own pocket) that can coordinate an emergency response with the VA, getting you to the border crossing where you'll be transferred from your ambulance to an ambulance on the US side that will then take you to the VA.

If health care is a concern I looked into a health care package called AG Cambodia. You can look it up I decided against it in the end and do like others have said. I wanted thought to mention if you decide to go to Mexico instead that Merida should be considered. I lived there for 9 months. In 2021 and 2022. The city is very safe, has wonderful people and activities and you can reach houston Texas easily by air.

All this said, I came back after over a year. I just must live in Southeast Asia. It is in my spirit and soul I guess. I chose Siem Reap because I love the city and now doing what I love to do is easier.

I feel pretty healthy. Walk 5 miles or so each day. Do yoga. I also understand the risks. I enjoy life here in Siem Reap a lot. I’m a realist about things I guess and just accept some day who knows when I won’t be around. I just want the time between now and some day to be here. I have a relationship with someone I waited a long time for. She accepts things too.

those are my main points. Your decision is yours but match it against the good advice here.

take care.

Thanks for the good input.

@OceanBeach92107 First of all I am not that overweight actually nor obese. I am still pretty fit just need to slim down a bit. As for my asthma. I lived in Panama for a few years where it is mostly hot&humid and had no trouble with it there. It seems that the colder climate bothers me more with it. I spent several weeks in Viet Nam a few years back and had no problem with my health while there.

  I have considered Mexico but seems the present situation with the drug cartels fighting over turf has intensified and grown in many parts to give some Americans second thoughts. I fear things are not going to get any better for Mexico or the U.S. in the foreseeable future with the drug problems. President Lopez Obrador seems to be in complete denial even proclaiming "no fentanyl is produced in Mexico". which is to the contrary.  Also, many locations seem to be getting more expensive, and no comparison to the better apt rental deals in Siem Reap for just one example. Naturally, I should plan on a few weeks' visit to Siem Reap and perhaps even Koh Rong Island to get a feeling for things there and have some fun also.

@OceanBeach92107 First of all I am not that overweight actually nor obese. I am still pretty fit just need to slim down a bit. As for my asthma. I lived in Panama for a few years where it is mostly hot&humid and had no trouble with it there. It seems that the colder climate bothers me more with it. I spent several weeks in Viet Nam a few years back and had no problem with my health while there.
I have considered Mexico...many locations seem to be getting more expensive, and no comparison to the better apt rental deals in Siem Reap for just one example. Naturally, I should plan on a few weeks' visit to Siem Reap and perhaps even Koh Rong Island to get a feeling for things there and have some fun also.
-@arthow1847

Fair enough. Definitely don't let me rain on your travel plans. Visiting first sounds like a great & smart idea.

I'm just attempting to help you think through the options you mentioned in the OP you posted from your other profile:

I am retired, single, presently living in San Diego,76, fit and active. I would like to consider my options presently with a monthly budget of $1500 per month for retirement living in Seam Reap. Also, what my medical options also may be there? I hope to be able my first-time visit later this year... Arthur Howard -@Arthur Howard

I'm a San Diego native and I was just back there (2021-22) splitting my time between Linda Vista & Rosarito.

So without meaning to assume too much, I'm guessing you don't have your own apartment now, or you have some sort of rooming/roommate/family situation?

Because the average low-quality studio is currently renting for about $1,600 USD a month (less, of course if you've been in the same place for a long time).

Or maybe your monthly income is more than $1,500?

I ask because you also suggested the option of "self insuring", and depending on your resources (assets & income; not necessarily the same thing as your "budget") that's probably your best option at your age in most places in Southeast Asia.

if you are going to have a lot of cash left over when you make this transition and you are not simply planning on living on the edge, you shouldn't have to worry much about routine costs such as prescription drugs or urgent care either.

The main risks will be a major accident or a new health crisis (serious infection, major trauma, heart attack, etc) requiring complicated medical intervention & intensive nursing care for an extended period of time.

If you are going to be in Southeast Asia for less than a year and won't be "officially" moving here, then you should be able to get travel insurance that will help buffer your emergency expenditures AND provide emergency return evacuation travel to the USA, when certified as necessary by your doctor.

If you are moving here but might want to return stateside for long-term care, an emergency travel fund (savings) is always a good idea.

In any case, IF you are going to have a lot more disposable cash, it's probably a good idea to also build up a medical/emergency fund for out-of-the-ordinary expenses, in addition to the emergency travel fund.

Many expats can tell you very sad stories of foreigners who lived comfortably in Southeast Asia for years, but were left destitute when they suffered a major tragedy and had zero backup funds set aside.

Sincere good luck to you and best wishes for a successful and satisfying expat experience.

Footnote:

Your ability to access your funds will go hand-in-hand with planning for medical/healthcare expenses.

It can make a big difference if you are able to maintain a US address.

Some of the best international banking features are available in domestic accounts such as Schwab One.

Give up your USA address and some banks will close your account.

Also, Social Security & some other pension sources become somewhat more problematic if you change your address to another country, especially if you change direct deposits to Southeast Asia banks.

It wouldn't be impossible, but advanced planning to maintain a USA address "might" serve your financial needs better in the long run.

Thanks for the input, presently I live in affordable senior housing here in San Diego, have a one-bedroom apt rent is one-third of my income, and my place is rather nice and cozy. However, the homeless population has become a real concern here and a blight on the city. San Diego's weather as you know is a Mediterranean-type climate if not better. Actually, I find it kind of a boring lifestyle but that could be due that some wonder lust seems to be in my genes. I am originally from Boston but no longer miss the long winters there plus the cost of living either. I also have an option of relocating to Palm Springs, Ca but the summers there can be very harsh. Of course, no place is perfect. I figure I have at least a year to make any move but I don't usually fade on my mindset when it comes to adventures,ect. For the healthcare item, I will have to figure out my own the best course to take.

Thanks for the input, presently I live in affordable senior housing here in San Diego, have a one-bedroom apt rent is one-third of my income, and my place is rather nice and cozy. However, the homeless population has become a real concern here and a blight on the city.
-@arthow1847

When they built those complexes around Midway & Sports Arena Blvd decades ago, they were great places to live (we had a family member in one).

But as you say, those who have nowhere else that they want to live have turned it into a ghetto for seniors, many of whom never come out of their places and walk the "neighborhood", lest the very aggressive transient panhandlers accost them at every turn.

I know firsthand: I was homeless at the veterans tent near Midway & Rosecrans back in 2004/2005, and I witnessed a lot of horrible stuff happening in the Midway district even back then.

Hopefully you'll be able to avoid the beg-packers of Southeast Asia.

Yes, those "beg packers" remind me in someway's of the homeless and they seem to be everywhere, especially in international hot spots. I couldn't live or travel like that and fortunately haven't been homeless. Some have made some bad choices in their lives and I have made a few myself but no one to blame other than I. However, many just have bad luck and misfortune "there by the grace of god go I".Glad you seem to have your life back for years now. Bet you could write a book as I could. The strange thing about life is the older we get the wiser and then we die, what a waste.