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Q: Do you think China will ever abolish the health check for foreigners?
It just seems pointless and doesn't even test for most things. It's over-expensive and a waste of time. Chinese abroad are not made do this, so why must we?
11 years 8 weeks ago in Health & Safety - China
I don't see that happening in the near future. Apart from the cost and the humiliation and the fact that China has so many health problems, I do think it makes sense to try to protect a nation from disease. The irony here is that a lot of disease spread worldwide originate from China (SARS, HxNx) and China hasn't managed to stop things like TB and Polio. The health check should be done when leaving China.
Yes, of course the day will come when foreigner health checks are abolished. That day will coincide with the day that there are no more foreigners left in China to have a health check.
I am stunned at the hypocrisy, that the Chinese government tells its citizens that diseases are brought into China by dirty foreigners. This was certainly the message being spread with the SARS outbreak in 2003, and many on my plane from Australia were quarantined for bird flu in 2009.
The irony was that the suspect in 2009 was a Chinese national, but those sitting near him, mostly Australians, were singled out as the infectious ones, made to wear face masks, and physically marched out by men in white overalls. The suspect was not subjected to this humiliation.
Traveler:
Further stupidity on the plane quarantine: The suspect was in a window seat, but everybody in that row, including the other window seat, were quarantined, along with everybody three rows in front and three rows behind. That's 56 passengers in total, as well as all cabin staff, quarantined for 2 weeks, over one suspect.
Scandinavian:
actually. on a plane, if you suspect an airborne infection, due to the air conditioning on planes, it will very effectively spread a virus all through the cabin. It does make sense to lock up all passengers. If the actual case is sensible, I cannot comment on. If it was indeed an infectious lethal disease, annoying a few people for the greater good makes sense. I think in the post SARS world you can find examples of people being quarantined from all over the world. I've never heard of any such cases where it after the fact, turned out to be needed.
I dont know if its policy for every country. But if you are going to have a work/study visa in any country, i think it should be a necessary step.
As for stories like the one traveler just mentiond. The whole save face and point fingers thing is always stupid.
the schools dont want to pay for your health problems so its to protect china from your health care cost, anybody who believes you actually have health insurance that is stated in your contract is naive and foolish, i have never been given a copy of an insurance policy for any school i have worked at and when my friend tried to get insurance from his motorcycle coverage to pay medical bills, the school would not provide proof of taxes paid for the foreigner and the school paid the bills in cash, imagine that, perhaps tier 1 teachers really have insurance but i doubt this based on first hand knowledge.
when i worked at a university, they said you have to use the university clinic first for health problems, what we are already paying for, not your own doctor or hospital.
the medical check is to keep out a school inheriting your huge medical liability and costs, i seriously doubt disease spreading is even a consideration, maybe an after thought or excuse for the true intention. intelligent unhealthy folks, stay to hell out of my country should be put on the visa application for complete transparency.
Scandinavian:
not everyone works at a school. the medical check is also required if you apply for residence permit based on marriage.
Saying other countries don't ask for them, maybe a bit uninformed?
A Medical Certificate is required for any non resident or non citizen who has not been living in a developed country for the last 12 or 24 months to be granted a visa of any kind that lasts longer than six months in New Zealand.
I can't speak for other countries but NZ is known to be pretty relaxed on immigration, one of the easier countries to get into, so much so that many wait out the five years there to get a passport to make it easier for them to permantly move to Aus, USA or Canada.
So if medicals are required there, then I find it hard to believe that other, stricter countries don't see the need.
The difference is that one time is usually enough, unless they are applying for permanent residency or citizenship at which point they will usually have to do another check (unless they have submitted one in a previous application within 24 months).
