Government spends Bt2.5bn promoting Thai traditional medicines

BANGKOK: -- Thailand's Ministry of Public Health has initiated five-year programme starting this year, to promote Thai traditional medicine and treatments for which it will spend nearly Bt2.5 billion, Deputy Public Health Minister Morakot Kornkasem said.

The programme, approved earlier by the cabinet, will concentrate on providing better knowledge to practitioners during its first three years. The ministry is committed to raising the standards of Thai traditional medicines and treatments so that they will have standards equal to those of western-based medical practice by the end of the five-year program, Dr. Morakot said.

Most importantly, the ministry will also raise manufacturing standards of Thai traditional and herbal medicines during the programme and aims at raising the consumption of traditional medicines to at least 25 per cent of total use, to reduce Thailand's dependence on imported medications, he said.

Dr. Morakot said the ministry has budgeted to spend about Bt2.4 billion during the programme.

Most Thai patients now depend on western-oriented medical services and that Thailand must now spend about Bt333.8 billion on imported medicines and technology -- equivalent to 6 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2002.

Newly developed medicines are likely to be protected longer by patents -- to 25 years from the present 20 year period -- and such medicines will unavoidably be marketed at comparatively high prices, Dr. Morakot said, which provides an opportunity more modestly-priced traditional medications and services to be marketed.

--TNA 2007-06-24

Abbott'ss responce should be interesting .........................

Abbott'ss responce should be interesting .........................

the rest of the medicine manufactorers in the world must be shaking in there boots

2 billion baht spent on rattles and bones