Published on Friday, April 03rd, 2009

Great article from Shelter Offshore:

http://www.shelteroffshore.com/index.php/health/more/essential-health-advice-expats-living-panama-10377/

Last year around 20,000 Brits joined the 1.2 million people who decided to visit or live in Panama.

Located in Central America, Panama offers a tropical paradise of Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea beaches alongside cool mountain highlands. It is home to the Panama Canal, often described as one of the wonders of the modern world, and it is becoming a very popular place to retire or relocate to.

It’s always advisable to visit your doctor or a travel health clinic 4-8 weeks before setting off on your journey. Current governmental health advice given for travel or relocation to Panama recommends the following immunizations: Hepatitis A and B are recommended for all travelers over the age of 1, as is the typhoid vaccine. If you’re planning to explore Panama and travel outside of Panama City, the Canal Zone or the San Blas islands you’ll need a yellow fever vaccination too, and if you’re entering Panama from a yellow fever infected country you’ll need to have an international yellow fever vaccination certificate.

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Here is an excellent article by my good friend Derek Sambrook of Trust Services, S.A. http://www.trustserv.com/ about the importance of Offshore Estate Planning:

In centuries past the Catholic church amassed a fortune from wills which left money for prayers to be said for the souls of the departed. John Shakespeare, William’s father, for example, died in 1601, the year that Hamlet was written, and left a plea, along with a spiritual, if not an actual, last will and testament, that his relatives should pray for his salvation. In today’s world, salvation can concern temporal matters as well, and needs the intercession of not just prayer if one has assets offshore.
A lot of personal wealth is held in companies registered offshore, but what happens to the assets when the owner dies? Although Plato contends that nothing in the affairs of men is worthy of great anxiety, I can guarantee that not getting your affairs in order before your rendezvous with death can cause great anxiety for those left behind.

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Interesting article from the Miami Herald:

BY JOHN DORSCHNER
jdorschner@MiamiHerald.com
Trying to buy health insurance on your own and have gallstones? You'll automatically be denied coverage. Rheumatoid arthritis? Automatic denial. Severe acne? Probably denied. Do you take metformin, a popular drug for diabetes? Denied. Use the anti-clotting drug Plavix or Seroquel, prescribed for anti-psychotic or sleep problems? Forget about it.

This confidential information on some insurers' practices is available on the Web -- if you know where to look.

What's more, you can discover that if you lie to an insurer about your medical history and drug use, you will be rejected because data-mining companies sell information to insurers about your health, including detailed usage of prescription drugs.

These issues are moving to the forefront as the Obama administration and Congress gear up for discussions about how to reform the healthcare system so that Americans won't be rejected for insurance.
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Good article from PG "Be aware of your surroundings"!

DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - I received the following today from Kristin (snip). She narrowly avoided becoming the next victim of an "express kidnapping" in Panama City just yesterday afternoon. While playing poker at the Veneto last night I was told of yet another expat who wasn't so lucky as Kristin. He hopped into a taxi on Via España near the Blockbuster. The taxi driver picked him up and then drove just half a block where three more men quickly jumped into the cab. The drove him all over town, forced him to pull as much money as possible out of an ATM, stole all of his possessions (watch, rings, wallet, etc.) and then left him without a dime out behind the Roberto Duran stadium. He was unharmed, and both of these people were very lucky. Please read the following story and LEARN from the experiences of others. If you continue to wander around with an "it can't happen to me" attitude, then you might just as well paint a big, fat target on your forehead. Anyway, please read on... (more)

Hello Kevin,
Thanks again for all the help you gave us during the trauma with the van. It was a difficult time for me and you were a rock, which I know helped us through many tough spots. I am sorry when there was confusion. A lot of people were involved in coordinating the fix-it job on my end also. But it all worked out and everyone performed well. I have attached a note with some of my thoughts about the process. More.........

Carmen and Kevin,

I want to thank you for your help regarding the accident I had in Chitre in July of this year.

With your help and the excellent service of the insurance company I had absolutely no problem regarding this accident.

I had to go to a hearing before a Judge as to fault ( this is the procedure in Panama I understand ) and was treated very well and did not feel ill at ease being a "gringo". The fact that the insurance company provided an attorney for me at no expense is a tremendous benefit of your company. The other party ( Panamanian taxi driver ) was found to be at fault by the Judge even though he was a " local ".

Although this was not a pleasant experience you and the insurance company you represent made it as painless as possible.

Once again thank you for the excellent service,

Hugh C. Avis

With the heavy rains and serious flooding this week in Chriqui and Bocas del Toro, it is important that you check your fire insurance policy to make sure that is contains coverage for flood and water damage.

Fire Insurance policies for structures in the Republic of Panama are similar to those issued in the USA, Canada and Europe. The basic fire policy usually includes "extended coverage" for occurrences other than fire. This extended coverage should include Flood & Water damage, Explosion, Earthquake, Windstorm, Lightning, Smoke damage, Falling Objects and Debris Removal after an incident.

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Bupa is one of the most experienced insurers providing health insurance products to residents of Latin America and the Caribbean.

With more than 30 years of experience in the market, Amedex and International Health Insurance danmark now join Bupa’s strength and expertise to create one of the largest specialist insurers for the region, with more than 175,000 members from more than 42 countries across Latin America and the Caribbean.

Bupa offers an excellent service proposition to its members in Latin America and the Caribbean, who have access to our doctor-led 24-hour helpline, USA Medical Services. This team helps arrange every aspect of a claim, whether it is a relatively simple day-patient procedure or a major emergency needing an air ambulance. The USA Medical Team can also answer any questions you or your family may have about your condition and planned treatment.

Their main office, based in Miami, is staffed by a highly experienced and professional multilingual team, managing all aspects of the claim process.

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This article is by David Young from La Estrella Online newspaper, 18 December, 2007.

My staff, clients and I have moved to L.R. Ducruet y Hijos, effective August 1, 2007.

A company - where honor and service walk hand in hand

Breakfast in a private room at a five star hotel may not be a big deal for a jet-hopping business executive, but it's an event to be savoured when your role in the company could be office cleaner or coffee room supervisor. Especially when the meeting is sans departmental managers, but includes the company president.
For Luis "Tito" Ducruet, who heads one of Panama's leading insurance brokers, it's a bi-monthly event when he sits down with his grass roots employees to listen to their concerns and suggestions and to share with them his plans and dreams for the future. The meetings are fruitful and have produced many innovative approaches to management, and underline the cooperative philosophy of a company that has expanded its business by 800 percent in the past six years.
It also gives the company the opportunity to reinforce its commitment to the statment that sits on a plinth in front of the company headquarters, a commitment to honor.

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Buenos Dias Kevin, Carmen, and Rosita,

Dan and I wish to extend our heartfelt THANKS to all of you for helping us through the incident with the crazy lady at Price Smart who accused us of hitting her car. Kevin, you went way out of your way to assist us by coming to our aide in person. And Carmen and Rosita, your prompt response to my frantic phone call with policy number information was also greatly appreciated. And will you all please convey to Giovanni our "thanks" for staying with us throughout the whole ordeal? Additionally, please do tell Giovanni's employer that this young man is extremely professional, competent, and courteous.

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