Healthcare in Thailand on the agenda of the United Nations
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Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha recently spoke at the United Nations about Thailand's success in providing public health services within the framework of a general health policy. Prayut gave a speech about the high level of general health insurance in Thailand.
He said Thailand's success in providing basic public health services was based on the Kingdom's universal health system, which covers nearly 100 percent of the population. Prayut said the Thai government is investing in people's health now and in the future for the good of the country. He said that healthy people are the engine for the development of the country and lead to prosperity.
Thai universal health care is based on three principles.
The first equality. Prayut said that the Thai government is developing a system of universal health care so that all groups of people have access to quality health services, including promotion of better health support and disease prevention and treatment of costly chronic diseases. Thailand will increase the number of HIV medicines on October 1 to prevent the further spread of this disease.
According to Prayut, the second part is efficient. The Thai government wants to improve the efficiency of its general health care system by increasing the budget for the health fund by 15 percent.
The third principle is participation. Prayut told the United Nations that the heart of success is the participation of all sectors in health promotion, in line with government policies.
The prime minister also assured the UN that Thailand will continue its universal health services so that all populations, especially in remote border areas, will have access to health care. The government will also rely on technology and innovation to further develop healthcare.
Many words little wool! There will be a long way to go in Thailand before, for example, the first point on equality in Thailand will be reached.
Source: Wochenblitz
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Abundant ambition, many words on the international platform. In practice?? Local hospitals for a headache, a bone fracture, the flu, etc. are accessible. If you want to go to the specialist, Isaan is the loser. Everything is then for the account of the patient or his parents and family. It's the rates it's the transportation. That costs several thousand baths just like that. Then to think that in Isaan most of the poor Thai struggle to keep their heads above water. Do 75% of the Thai earn no less than 10,000 baht per month?
The specialist, just like the "general practitioner", medicines and, for example, physiotherapy, simply fall under the 30 baht scheme.
Even a reference to a university hospital falls under this.
It is important that the "general practitioner" also refers you to the specialist, and the specialist refers you to the university.
The 30 baht scheme was indeed introduced by Thaksin with the realization that the costs could not actually be borne, but populist inventions that were prohibitively expensive were no stranger to him.
All subsequent governments after him have been saddled with high costs, growing waiting times.
Add to that the rising prices and staff overburdening of private, ehhhh, health care.
But all in all, it works.
What the improvements will bring in the future will have to be proven by this government of Prime Minister Prayut.
The current 30 Baht insurance system, whereby every Thai is entitled to at least basic care, is still one of the achievements of former ex-premier Thaksin, who lived in exile.
As long as many Thais are still dependent on much more expensive private hospitals for better quality, the current Prime Minister Prayut is still very much "showing off someone else's feathers".
The future will show what he can really show off.
I think the 30 Baht scheme only applies to people who are employed. So not for every Thai.
Dear Rene.chiangmai, Then you are not well informed about the 30 Baht regulation.
The scheme has been introduced for every Thai and is independent of whether they work or are employed elsewhere.
Thais who have a normal permanent job (a minority) are insured through Social Security and do not need the 30 baht scheme at all.
i have my wife and her niece sitting next to me and they both work and that 30 baht scheme is for people who are NOT working, they and their employer pay 500 baht a month for health insurance and if they go to hospital they only have to show ID and bill signs.
Dear jokeshake, I think you may have misunderstood your wife and niece.
In their case, it may all be true that they are already insured through their work, but the introduction of the 30 Baht system was, and is, in principle, intended for every Thai.
If someone is already insured through his work, he does not have to use this RIGHT what he/she would have as a Thai in any case, logically speaking.
Moreover, a very large group of Thais who keep their heads above water with occasional work, are still working, while without this 30 Baht scheme they would not have had any health insurance in any way.
Isn't Prayut showing off Thaksin's feathers.
Was it not Thaksin who gave the Thai people some form of medical aid through the 30 bath regulation.
Jan Beute.
It should be noted that the plans for this had been developed by others years earlier, so Thaksin showed off other people's feathers in a very populist way.
Dear HansNL, it is not the eternal planners who change something in a country, but rather those who actually put these plans into action.
That is why I think that this merit can clearly be attributed to former Prime Minister Thaksin, and not to the previous governments that only with empty promises and planning, which in my view had at least such a populist character, while they themselves have done nothing about these plans converted.
I am surprised to read this piece.
I myself have very different experiences than Mr. Prayut claims here.
First and foremost, not all groups of people have access to quality health services.
About 2 weeks ago my Thai partner had severe abdominal pains that persisted (after eating somtam). My partner has good health insurance from the employer and we decided to go to the hospital.
Once we arrived at the hospital, it turned out that we did not have the insurance card with us. Result was that absolutely nothing happened before they could check the card/insurance to make sure the bill would be paid.
When it became clear that everything was right, it suddenly all went very smoothly.
My partner stayed in the hospital for 2 days. Just before he was allowed to go home, they wanted to do another endoscopy.
My partner was already feeling much better at that time and we saw no reason for an additional examination.
The doctor said it was better to do that examination because the insurance company would pay for everything anyway. My partner and I looked at each other with wide eyes.
It then became very clear that it is all about money and nothing else, no money/no card/no insurance = no health care
If you do have money or insurance, almost everything will be done to earn as much as possible from you.
A while ago there was a post here on this blog that Thailand ranks 6th in the world health care rankings. I must say that my partner was very well looked after. Every hour someone from the nursing staff came to check. On the first floor, I saw that there were no less than 9 nurses behind the counter, in stark contrast to Belgium, where you sometimes have to look for a nurse and sometimes have to be patient before someone comes.
Gert 🙂
HansNl says claims that Thaksin shows off other people's feathers I think is not justified.
Thaksin has introduced what previous governments may have worked out but did nothing about.
If you put the things that Thaksin has done (good and bad) on a scale, scales might be in balance.
Ben