Group Fights Thai Govt On Bt30 Fee For Health Services

[webfact]

Group fights Govt on Bt30 fee for health services

THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- The pro-universal healthcare scheme group yesterday objected to a government plan to collect Bt30 from healthcare service users, saying it wasn't worthwhile and would create an unfair burden on poor people.

Citing survey results, including one that stated 68 per cent of people disagreed with the Bt30 fee collection, the group said it would soon present the survey data to Public Health Minister Wittaya Buranasiri.

At a press conference held by the group yesterday, Dr Usawadi Maleewong said the government claimed the Bt30 fee was necessary because hospitals already had high expenses and the lack of a fee would lead to more people seeking treatment.

Citing many surveys and further analysis, she said the claim of an increased burden on hospitals was true but it resulted from personnel payment hikes. These had risen from 13 per cent for community hospitals, 10 per cent for centres and 10 per cent for general hospitals in 2007 - to 17 per cent, 14 per cent and 13 per cent in 2011. Other expenses such as medical tools had dropped and medicine costs were only slightly higher.

Another survey about the creation of subscribers' unnecessary use of hospital services was conducted on 589 "gold card" holders in Bangkok from February 10-15.

It found many subscribers were poor and going to hospital could cost them about Bt200 in transport and meals as well as lost income. Many earned about Bt181 per day, so they chose not to go to hospital if they were not seriously ill and bought over-counter medicine, she said.

"It's unfair for 'gold card' holders - some 4 million poor people - to pay Bt30 to reduce the expenses of hospitals meant to serve all people," Usawadi said, urging the government scrap this plan and promote equity among the country's three healthcare funds.

Kachanuch Saengthalaeng from the Foundation for Consumers gave further details of the survey, conducted by the foundation and the Bangkok universal healthcare coordination centre. It found that 40.4 per cent of hospital visitors were labourers, followed by vendors at 27.2 per cent, housewives/househusbands at 9 per cent and unemployed persons at 8.3 per cent.

Some 47 per cent travelled by taxi and 38 per cent were taken by relatives or others, the survey found, and 13.5 per cent said a hospital visit took the entire day.

They said seeking out-patient treatment would cost Bt113 in transport, Bt59 in food, as well as Bt181 in lost income. Seeking in-patient treatment would cost them Bt157 in transport, Bt101 in food as well as the loss of Bt461 in income over that period.

About 68 per cent of the respondents disagreed with the Bt30 fee collection and 61.5 per cent group said it would cause them more money, she said.

Only 32 per cent agreed with the fee collection and 24.1 per cent of this agreeing group said it would improve hospital services.

-- The Nation 2012-02-23

[Buchholz]

Add yet another group opposing the change to the 30 baht health care scheme away from the current Free health care scheme.

Inspired by Thailand's successful universal healthcare scheme, the World Health Organisation (WHO) is planning to encourage a similar model worldwide.

WHO may first wish to contact the Rural Doctors Society who are today urging hospitals to boycott the 30 baht health scam.

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[thequietman]

this is a difficult one. while, yes, it can be expensive to get to the hospital, thais must learn to use the emergency call out service. the number of times stroke victims or appendix victims in my village are running around trying to get someome to take them to hospital is a lot. they never think to ring the ambulance number, never. they end up paying some heartless bast::#d to take them for 500 baht.

i can only speak for the thai population in and around my village but they all appear to be hypercondriac's. tablets for simple headaches, attending the doctor for simple colds and aches and it goes on.

its difficult to know whether to charge a small amount like 30 baht but it will stop these people from clogging up hospitals and waiting rooms for assistance for these simple ailments. hospitals are for the sick. it would be an interesting development however, if the government introduced a rule that in the event of an accident, if you were not wearing a helmet, you would be treated but when you got better you would be required to pay your bill or else work it off helping in the hospital. (cleaning duties and such)

hit them in the pockets to get results. seems to be the only effective way to get thais to listen.

[barrybankruad]

I fully approved of the 30baht scheme when it was first introduced. It was a huge relief to the rural poor. It also got rid of the 'quack' doctors travelling around the villages dispensing fake medcines often by injection with dirty syringes. Iwas not so sure that the complete abolition of the fee was such a good idea. I tend to see now in my rural area people attending hospital for any reason, simple things like colds and flu for which there really is no cure. I see far too many antibioticsbeing dispensed, it's no wonder the medical world is worried about resistance to these medcines.

The restoration of the 30baht fee (apart for children) IMO would not be such a bad thing it it would deter some people from visiting hospital unnecessarily.

[bushwacker]

If it is free then people place no value on it .... simple economics and behavior. If it is 30b then although it is not free, it is almost the same thing and treated the same way. Any visit to a local hospital proves the point. Although it should be subsidized, giving it away only results in waste and clogging up the system. IMHO!

[pomchop]

and meantime over in big powerful rich America over 44 MILLION americans have ZERO health insurance...good luck getting some treatment for 30 baht...even if you have health insurance there will always be lots and lots of fees...

and yes i know that american health care standards are much higher BUT...would you rather have some not so great health care or have NO healthcare?

[Nacho]

I am assuming all the posts that are opposed to the free health care are Americans or from another country that doesn't have universal health care.

Anyone who comes from a country with a universal health care system loves the fact that in times of health crisis they will be looked after no matter what.

There might be more people using the hospitals because they are free, but they are going there because they have a health issue, that could turn out to be something major if left untreated. No one goes to the hospital for just a fun day out. Come on.

[WackySomchai]

This is just another way for the Puea Thaksin government to rob the Thai people, 30 baht at a time ...

[barrybankruad]

This is just another way for the Puea Thaksin government to rob the Thai people, 30 baht at a time ...

Absolute <deleted> nonsense! Why some people on this forum have only one eye, (and that eye is severely blinkered) amazes me! I remember the time BEFORE the 30baht scheme ( I wonder how many posters today do?) when on numerous occasions I would lend money to poor rural peasants to get treatment. A typical case is a woman from my village who was haevily pregnant with her first child. She was small in stature and the medics told her that unless sge shelled out 1000baht (a fortune in those days) she would have to have a natural birth that could have killed her.

I leant her the money, she had a caesarian and every time is see her son (now aged about 12) i realise that the Amaart in this country don't really give a stuff about the rural peasant. For someone to post that Thaksin's mob are stealing from the poor beggars belief. Get real you Bangkok lounge lizards and come and live here for a while, come and see what life is REALLY like in the rural areas, not what you read in the Nation or on most posts in Thaivisa.

[noitom]

This Usawadi said "it is unfair for 4 million "gold card" holders to have to pay 30 baht when it is used mainly by the poor. What a boob, and a pompous, arrogant, superior remark. As if the wealthy have no moral and social responsibility to give back and contribute, although most of their wealth was accumulated off the back of the poor.

[lockman]

and meantime over in big powerful rich America over 44 MILLION americans have ZERO health insurance...good luck getting some treatment for 30 baht...even if you have health insurance there will always be lots and lots of fees...

and yes i know that american health care standards are much higher BUT...would you rather have some not so great health care or have NO healthcare?

Try suing in Thailand for poor health care. That's the real problem in America.

[OzMick]

Thaksin's scheme is universally known as the B30 scheme. Free hospital visits were introduced by the Democrats. Reportedly the B30 collected doesn't match the beurocracy required to collect it, but economics is a distant also-ran to political perception.

B30 is a very small amount of money, until you don't have it.

Edited February 23, 2012 by OzMick

[PoorSucker]

This is just another way for the Puea Thaksin government to rob the Thai people, 30 baht at a time ...

Absolute <deleted> nonsense! Why some people on this forum have only one eye, (and that eye is severely blinkered) amazes me! I remember the time BEFORE the 30baht scheme ( I wonder how many posters today do?) when on numerous occasions I would lend money to poor rural peasants to get treatment. A typical case is a woman from my village who was haevily pregnant with her first child. She was small in stature and the medics told her that unless sge shelled out 1000baht (a fortune in those days) she would have to have a natural birth that could have killed her.

I leant her the money, she had a caesarian and every time is see her son (now aged about 12) i realise that the Amaart in this country don't really give a stuff about the rural peasant. For someone to post that Thaksin's mob are stealing from the poor beggars belief. Get real you Bangkok lounge lizards and come and live here for a while, come and see what life is REALLY like in the rural areas, not what you read in the Nation or on most posts in Thaivisa.

So why get back to 30 baht , from FREE.

The bureaucracy costs 70 baht.

Many bureaucrats also need to get paid?

[barrybankruad]

This is just another way for the Puea Thaksin government to rob the Thai people, 30 baht at a time ...

Absolute <deleted> nonsense! Why some people on this forum have only one eye, (and that eye is severely blinkered) amazes me! I remember the time BEFORE the 30baht scheme ( I wonder how many posters today do?) when on numerous occasions I would lend money to poor rural peasants to get treatment. A typical case is a woman from my village who was haevily pregnant with her first child. She was small in stature and the medics told her that unless sge shelled out 1000baht (a fortune in those days) she would have to have a natural birth that could have killed her.

I leant her the money, she had a caesarian and every time is see her son (now aged about 12) i realise that the Amaart in this country don't really give a stuff about the rural peasant. For someone to post that Thaksin's mob are stealing from the poor beggars belief. Get real you Bangkok lounge lizards and come and live here for a while, come and see what life is REALLY like in the rural areas, not what you read in the Nation or on most posts in Thaivisa.

So why get back to 30 baht , from FREE.

The bureaucracy costs 70 baht.

Many bureaucrats also need to get paid?

Read my post #4.

[DP25]

They're unlikely to back off on returning the 30 baht fee regardless of any negative impact on health care. In red propaganda 30 baht health care is a gift from Thaksin and they told people that Abhisit abolished it because he hated poor people, and left out that it was made free. The fact that it is another fee on top of what poor people have to pay just to get to the hospital is irrelevant. For propaganda reasons the poor must pay so a billionaire can get paid.