Before you start

Comprehensive private health insurance with explicit medical evacuation cover
Confirmation that your policy is valid despite your government's travel advisory
A stock of any prescription medication you depend on
The insurer's 24-hour assistance number saved offline

Step-by-step

1
Check the advisory exclusion before you buy anything
Many policies exclude cover for travel against a government advisory, and several Western governments advise against travel to Myanmar. Get written confirmation from the insurer that cover — and specifically evacuation — applies to you in Myanmar. Without that, everything else here is theoretical.
OnlineWho: YouBefore you moveFree to ask; specialist policies cost more
2
Buy evacuation cover with a named provider and destination
The policy should name an assistance company, state Bangkok or Singapore as the treatment destination, and not require a pre-authorisation you could not obtain while incapacitated. This is the single most important purchase you will make for a Myanmar posting.
OnlineWho: YouA few days to underwriteSpecialist cover — see totals
3
Register at a Yangon private hospital
Register while you are well at one of the city's private hospitals used by the foreign community, find out whether your insurer bills them directly, and learn where the emergency entrance is. Ask specifically about their generator capacity and blood-bank availability.
In personWho: You~30–60 minFree to register
4
Bring your own medication supply
Import restrictions, foreign-exchange constraints and supply disruption mean specific medicines are not reliably available. Bring a supply of anything you depend on, with a doctor's letter, and establish a resupply route through a colleague or a regional pharmacy before you run low.
In personWho: YouBefore arrival, then ongoingVaries
5
Keep vaccinations and a medical summary current
Keep your own record: diagnoses, medications with generic names, allergies, blood group and recent results. Because your care may end up split between a Yangon hospital and a Bangkok one, nobody else holds a complete file on you.
Mobile appWho: YouOngoingFree
6
Have a plan for getting to the airport
Evacuation depends on flights, and Yangon's international connections are fewer than they were. Know which airlines currently operate, and understand that a medical evacuation is a logistical exercise as much as a clinical one. Your assistance provider should be able to describe the plan before you need it.
OnlineWho: YouBefore you need itFree to plan

Documents you’ll need

Insurance certificate with written confirmation of Myanmar cover
Insurer's 24-hour assistance number, saved offline
Passport with valid stay permit — evacuation is an international departure
Your own medical summary and medication list with generic names
Doctor's letter for any medication you import

Things most newcomers don’t know

Some insurers will not cover Myanmar at all, and that is the first thing to find out.

Because several Western governments advise against all or all-but-essential travel, mainstream travel and expatriate policies frequently exclude Myanmar outright or void cover for travel against advisory. Specialist expatriate and high-risk insurers do write this business, at a price. Establishing who will actually cover you should precede every other decision about moving here.

Source: consular travel advisories; insurer policy wording

Electricity rationing reaches hospitals too.

Yangon has been under grid rationing since early 2025, with power delivered in short blocks and actual supply often below the announced schedule. Hospitals run on generators, which depend on fuel supply and maintenance. When choosing where to register, generator and fuel resilience is a legitimate clinical question, not a facilities one.

Source: Yangon electricity rationing reports; community-reported

Bring your medication and plan the resupply.

Import restrictions, foreign-exchange constraints and supply-chain disruption mean particular medicines are intermittently unavailable in Myanmar, and substitution is not always possible. Arrive with a supply and a doctor's letter, and work out a resupply route — usually a colleague travelling in, or a Bangkok pharmacy — before you are down to your last month.

Source: community-reported; WHO regional supply reporting

Evacuation is a logistics problem as much as a medical one.

Getting a patient out of Yangon requires an available flight, a functioning airport, a receiving hospital and paperwork, in a country with fewer international connections than it had five years ago. A policy that says 'evacuation included' without naming an assistance provider that can actually execute here is not much use. Ask the provider to describe the plan while you are healthy.

Source: insurer and assistance-provider policy documentation

Common mistakes to avoid

Buying a standard policy that voids cover for travel against a government advisory
Assuming 'evacuation included' means an assistance provider that can actually operate in Myanmar
Arriving without a supply of essential medication and no resupply route
Choosing a hospital without asking about generator and fuel resilience
Letting a policy renew without re-reading the Myanmar-specific clauses

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.