Extreme overcharging in hospitals in Rayong.Is it similar elsewhere?

[thecyclist]

A month ago, while still in Vietnam, I posted a query on this forum about cataract surgery in Thailand in order to compare rates in Vietnam and Thailand to help me decide where to undergo this procedure. During the last week I inquired at 3 hospitals in the Rayong/Pattaya area about prices. at the Rayong provincial hospital  a monofocal lens will set you(if you are a farang like me) back 60000Baht. When I protested that this is almost as much as at  private hospital she started ignoring me by sorting paperwork of other patients. Next up was the Sattahip military Sirikit hospital, where I was once 20 years ago(I still had my card from that visit), and which back then I found very cheap. Not anymore:50000Baht. I asked whether this is the farang price ,and she said yes. I replied in Thai that in this case I would have it done in Vietnam as over there they are not as "kee kong" as in Thailand. The last stop was the Banglamung hospital (pattaya area),where they were much friendlier than their Rayong counterparts.They said there is a 2 year waiting period for cataract surgery at their hospital . and they referred me to the Sri Racha Somdech hospital. I won't have the time to visit there on this trip. Anybody familiar with this hospital. Any chance that this Farang gouging on steroids is a Rayong thing? In my 30 years in Thailand I have never encountered medical racism like this .I thought the trend was towards abandoning 2 tier pricing. Vietnam seems to be way ahead of Thailand in this respect.

Edited April 1, 2023 by thecyclist
misprint

[scubascuba3]

2 tier pricing seems to be getting more widespread. People should explore India as an option, apparently cheap to get there and cheap medical costs, English speaking doctors standard

[ikke1959]

Normal as a a judge in Hua Hin some time back approved the overcharging for a Dutch  National for the same treatment as Thai, with the reason that foreigners have more money....So if you can't fight this kind of discrimination, you have to accept or go to another country. But in the meanwhile Thailand wants to be promoted as the hub of healthcare... 

[mikebike]

Just got mine done at the new Surat Eye Hospital 45,000, mono focal, same price for everyone. 

 

Yes, I could have gone to a govt hospital and saved 5-10,000 baht (depending on distance, time spent, and accoms) but why? Easy drive for me (1 hr), superior Drs & equipment. 

 

Super happy with the outcome. No brainer for me. 

 

Edited April 1, 2023 by mikebike

[Yellowtail]

I just checked Bangkok Hospital and Bumrungrad and it is the same price for Thais and non-Thais. 

 

 

[Salerno]

53 minutes ago, thecyclist said:

In my 30 years in Thailand I have never encountered medical racism like this .I thought the trend was towards abandoning 2 tier pricing.

https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/thai-public-hospitals-ordered-to-implement-dual-pricing-for-foreigners/

[Tom H]

Boobs cost per piece 40k.

So cateract is cheaper:).

[couchpotato]

I have mentioned in another thread, that Jomtien Hospital is 39,000 baht per eye.

Same doctors as BHP....

[Yellowtail]

5 minutes ago, Salerno said:

https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/thai-public-hospitals-ordered-to-implement-dual-pricing-for-foreigners/

I think it's refreshing that they try to keep the cost down for the citizens. 

[scubascuba3]

17 minutes ago, Tom H said:

Boobs cost per piece 40k.

So cateract is cheaper:).

Hopefully cataract turns out better than the fake tits

[mikebike]

14 minutes ago, couchpotato said:

I have mentioned in another thread, that Jomtien Hospital is 39,000 baht per eye.

Same doctors as BHP....

Same equipment too? 

[mikebike]

2 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

Hopefully cataract turns out better than the fake tits

That might depend on the customer. There is "enhancement", then there is "why the <deleted> did you think that would look good? " It's not the Drs that make that decision... 

[Yellowtail]

No have cataract, have rincon continental... 

[BigStar]

1 hour ago, thecyclist said:

I replied in Thai that in this case I would have it done in Vietnam as over there they are not as "kee kong" as in Thailand.

Should have raised the price another B10,000 for you.

 

Reminds me of idiot farang arguing at bars or restos that they can buy beer much cheaper at 7/11. Pity the staff who have to deal with them.

 

 

[ningnong]

2 hours ago, thecyclist said:

I asked whether this is the farang price ,and she said yes. I replied in Thai that in this case I would have it done in Vietnam as over there they are not as "kee kong" as in Thailand.

She just told you the facts, she did not create the business model for billing foreigners at a higher rate. Yet you felt it necessary to claim that Thailand, Thai people, are bigger cheaters "kee kong" than in Vietnam. Very charming.

[Dart12]

Pattaya Memorial will answer you via FB messenger on what their price is usually within few hours..  And answer email in about 24 hours.

No need to drive to it.

They are pretty fair (for the going rates) on services.

BKK Pattaya answers LINE app quickly as well.  But their prices are 3-4x PMH.

[Sheryl]

Cataract op for one eye mono lends is around 25k in government hospitals Thai price AFAIK. 

 

Some government hospitals implement dual pricing, some do not.

 

They ones that do not tend to be located in areas with comparatively few foreigners. Your problem of course is that these will be far from where you live. Any friends or relatives upcountry? You will need to be able to stick around a bit, need follow up next day then after about 1 week etc

 

And are you sure the price your were quoted at Rayong was per eye as opposed to for both?

[Sheryl]

1 hour ago, mikebike said:

Just got mine done at the new Surat Eye Hospital 45,000, mono focal, same price for everyone. 

 

Yes, I could have gone to a govt hospital and saved 5-10,000 baht (depending on distance, time spent, and accoms) but why? Easy drive for me (1 hr), superior Drs & equipment. 

 

Super happy with the outcome. No brainer for me. 

 

Are you referriing to this place:

 

https://surateyehospital.com/contact/  ?

[mikebike]

2 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

Are you referriing to this place:

 

https://surateyehospital.com/contact/  ?

Yes. I kinda thought that would be obvious... ????‍♂️

Edited April 1, 2023 by mikebike

[nigelforbes]

A specialist eye hospital that has a gmail email address and also does dentistry, how unique! And from the looks of the staff, most appear to be specialists who have consulting privilege's rather than being staff, It appears to me this is a small family run and staffed hospital, the top tier all having the same family name. I have to admit it wouldn't be my first choice to have someone operate on my eyes but I'm happy it worked out for you.

 

 

 

[mikebike]

8 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

A specialist eye hospital that has a gmail email address and also does dentistry, how unique! And from the looks of the staff, most appear to be specialists who have consulting privilege's rather than being staff, It appears to me this is a small family run and staffed hospital, the top tier all having the same family name. I have to admit it wouldn't be my first choice to have someone operate on my eyes but I'm happy it worked out for you.

 

 

 

The senior Dr is 65-ish and has practiced for decades. My wife had cataract surgery at his "old" clinic 7 yrs ago. 

 

Maybe you should not depend on "blurbs" from advertising pages or self promotion and trust those who have been in a place for decades. 

 

Your assumptions could not be further from the truth. 

 

They also do prenatal care and many other services... Are you gonna disparage everything without a whit of actual on-the-ground knowledge? 

Edited April 1, 2023 by mikebike

[treetops]

1 hour ago, couchpotato said:

I have mentioned in another thread, that Jomtien Hospital is 39,000 baht per eye.

Same doctors as BHP....

Is that offer still available?  It disappeared from their ":Packages and Promotions" page a month or so ago.

 

44 minutes ago, Dart12 said:

Pattaya Memorial will answer you via FB messenger on what their price is usually within few hours..  And answer email in about 24 hours.

But they currently don't offer cataract surgery.

[couchpotato]

19 minutes ago, treetops said:

 

.

Is that offer still available?  It disappeared from their ":Packages and Promotions" page a month or so ago.

 

The promotion was about 32,000 baht. The normal price now at Jomtien Hospital(as of last Thursday) is 39k per eye. They have their own eye center, but the doctors rotate from BHP.

 

Edited April 1, 2023 by couchpotato

[JoseThailand]

1 hour ago, Sheryl said:

Some government hospitals implement dual pricing, some do not.

I think most of them do. So basically the foreigner price at a government hospital would be comparable to that at a private hospital.

[JoseThailand]

3 hours ago, thecyclist said:

A month ago, while still in Vietnam, I posted a query on this forum about cataract surgery in Thailand in order to compare rates in Vietnam and Thailand to help me decide where to undergo this procedure. During the last week I inquired at 3 hospitals in the Rayong/Pattaya area about prices. at the Rayong provincial hospital  a monofocal lens will set you(if you are a farang like me) back 60000Baht. When I protested that this is almost as much as at  private hospital she started ignoring me by sorting paperwork of other patients. Next up was the Sattahip military Sirikit hospital, where I was once 20 years ago(I still had my card from that visit), and which back then I found very cheap. Not anymore:50000Baht. I asked whether this is the farang price ,and she said yes. I replied in Thai that in this case I would have it done in Vietnam as over there they are not as "kee kong" as in Thailand. The last stop was the Banglamung hospital (pattaya area),where they were much friendlier than their Rayong counterparts.They said there is a 2 year waiting period for cataract surgery at their hospital . and they referred me to the Sri Racha Somdech hospital. I won't have the time to visit there on this trip. Anybody familiar with this hospital. Any chance that this Farang gouging on steroids is a Rayong thing? In my 30 years in Thailand I have never encountered medical racism like this .I thought the trend was towards abandoning 2 tier pricing. Vietnam seems to be way ahead of Thailand in this respect.

Interestingly, this price is cheaper than a comprehensive one-year medical insurance in Thailand

[nigelforbes]

1 hour ago, mikebike said:

The senior Dr is 65-ish and has practiced for decades. My wife had cataract surgery at his "old" clinic 7 yrs ago. 

 

Maybe you should not depend on "blurbs" from advertising pages or self promotion and trust those who have been in a place for decades. 

 

Your assumptions could not be further from the truth. 

 

They also do prenatal care and many other services... Are you gonna disparage everything without a whit of actual on-the-ground knowledge? 

I haven't assumed anything, I've taken the information or blurbs as you put it, from the "hospital" web site, four of the first doctors shown are from the same family. And I haven't disparaged anything, I've merely made some observations from the information from the link you provided, eg, the hospital uses a gmail email address.

 

Once again, I'm happy that it worked out for you. My personal starting point for these things however is to research the best doctor or specialist I can find in a given field and to consult with them wherever they work. I live in the North of Thailand, last year suffered a torn retina that had to be lasered. I  found a professor of Ophthalmology and retinal specialist to do the work. When complications arose I travelled to Bangkok to see Dr Roy at the Rutnin, arguably one of the top five ophthalmic surgeons in the country and western educated and trained.

 

As part of that journey I first consulted with an ophthalmologist locally at a small private eye hospital here, the advice I was given was hugely inappropriate to the point of being unprofessional and very scary! That doctor wanted to perform 360 degree laser surgery on both eyes, which turned out subsequently to be totally unnecessary. The point here is that also was a small private eye hospital that somebody else recommended on a social network forum.

[Tropicalevo]

To the OP - yes, medical procedure prices are through the roof in lots of places in Thailand.

Mono-focal lens replacement for cataracts in Bangkok Phuket hospital are 79,000 baht each. (Tri-focal are 109,000 each.)

[couchpotato]

2 hours ago, mikebike said:

Yes. I kinda thought that would be obvious... ????‍♂️

Mmmm--only 12 hours driving away from Rayong/Pattaya.

Kinda obvious not useful.

[mikebike]

21 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

I haven't assumed anything, I've taken the information or blurbs as you put it, from the "hospital" web site, four of the first doctors shown are from the same family. And I haven't disparaged anything, I've merely made some observations from the information from the link you provided, eg, the hospital uses a gmail email address.

 

Once again, I'm happy that it worked out for you. My personal starting point for these things however is to research the best doctor or specialist I can find in a given field and to consult with them wherever they work. I live in the North of Thailand, last year suffered a torn retina that had to be lasered. I  found a professor of Ophthalmology and retinal specialist to do the work. When complications arose I travelled to Bangkok to see Dr Roy at the Rutnin, arguably one of the top five ophthalmic surgeons in the country and western educated and trained.

 

As part of that journey I first consulted with an ophthalmologist locally at a small private eye hospital here, the advice I was given was hugely inappropriate to the point of being unprofessional and very scary! That doctor wanted to perform 360 degree laser surgery on both eyes, which turned out subsequently to be totally unnecessary. The point here is that also was a small private eye hospital that somebody else recommended on a social network forum.

WTF... still ladden with assumptions. Do you think we didn't do our research? Why would you assume that? Do you think that our Dr is not the best in a 300km radius? Why would you assume that? 

 

Nice try, but you are grasping at straws to bolster your previous assumptions. 

 

Plz try again. 

[nigelforbes]

1 minute ago, mikebike said:

WTF... still ladden with assumptions. Do you think we didn't do our research? Why would you assume that? Do you think that our Dr is not the best in a 300km radius? Why would you assume that? 

 

Nice try, but you are grasping at straws to bolster your previous assumptions. 

 

Plz try again. 

Goodbye and welcome to my ignore list.