Little difference in death rates of Thai health scheme users: NHSO

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Little difference in death rates of health scheme users: NHSO
PRATCH RUJIVANAROM
THE NATION


Dr Athaporn Limpanyalerd

BANGKOK: -- THE NATIONAL Health Security Office has confirmed there is not an unusually high death rate among Universal Coverage (UC) scheme beneficiaries and no big difference in the death rate between UC and Civil Servant Medical Benefit Scheme (CSMBS) beneficiaries.

The NHSO also stressed there had been a transparent allocation of funds, medicines and medical equipment to hospitals, and UC patients received quality healthcare.

In response of the allegation that UC beneficiaries have a higher death rate than CSMBS beneficiaries, Dr Athaporn Limpanyalerd, a NHSO spokesman, said research revealed that the death rate ratio after first being admitting to hospital due to a stroke or ST segment elevation myocardial infarction among UC and CSMBS patients between 2009 to 2012 showed a steady decrease in the death rate in both beneficiary groups.

Athaporn said the death rate for UC patients compared to CSMBS patients was only a little higher.

He cited the findings of research conducted by Supol Limwattananon.

"We admit that the UC patients actually had a higher death rate compared to CSMBS patients, but there is an explanation for this," he said. "The statistics show that 24.3 per cent of UC beneficiaries were very poor while only 11.6 per cent were very rich compared to 51 per cent of CSMBS beneficiaries being very rich and only 5.9 very poor.

"For strokes, the rich patients who suffer paralysis will have a greater chance to receive better care such as a privately hired nurse, which will increase their survival rate, but most poorer patients do not have that chance."

In regard to the allegation that UC patients had limited access to medicines and that medical equipment for them was poor quality, he said the NHSO offered a large range from the National List of Medicines (NLEM) for all UC beneficiaries at a cheap cost.

"UC beneficiaries can access up to 30,000 medicines on the NLEM list freely according to the doctor's decision. But for rare or expensive medicines, NHSO also offers another 110 medicines. For example, the expensive medicines for cancer, Aids, vaccines and antidotes to cover the needs of the medicines which are not on the NLEM list," he explained.

'We select quality products'

He said the drugs were bought by the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation at wholesale prices directly through drug companies, while medical equipment such as a stent for heart disease patients or the peritoneal dialysis solution were also bought from the manufacturers at an inexpensive price.

"Even though we buy these medical products very cheap, we carefully select quality products. For example, before we order stents we let the experts from the Heart Association inspect the quality of the product first. Therefore, we ensure the quality of the equipment as well as the affordable price," he said.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Little-difference-in-death-rates-of-health-scheme--30263821.html


-- The Nation 2015-07-06

[Oziex1]

Why is it when I read the comments of an official telling us everything is transparent and above board, I don't believe a word of it.

[Toknarok]

There may not be a difference between members of both schemes at the moment, but should one of the schemes be scrapped or drastically altered there sure would be!

[rametindallas]

Rich people will always get better care and since the proportions of rich to poor are polar opposites in the two schemes, of course the group with more rich people will do better. It makes sense to me. It may not be fair but is does explain the slight discrepancy of outcomes. Posters should celebrate the fact that poor people have access to medical care now. I wonder what the discrepancy of outcomes was before UC. I'll bet it was worse. Can improvements be made? Maybe. Will they be made? Probably not. Still, Dr. Supol Limwattananon, PhD (Pharmaceutical Administration) is a highly respected outside researcher (that's where the transparency comes in).

Studies

Limwattananon S.

What Would Help Containing Costs of Drug Therapy: Demand-Side or Supply-Side Interventions.

Federations International Pharmacy. Singapore, September 2001(accepted)

Limwattananon S, Schondelmeyer SW.

Impact of State Restrictions in Drug Benefit Management Policy on Medicaid Drug Expenditures.

The National Council of State Governors, Washington DC, March 2000.

Schondelmeyer SW, Limwattananon S.

Trends in Medicaid Pharmaceutical Expenditures and Utilization.

The National Council of State Governors, Washington DC, March 2000.

Limwattananon S, Limwattananon C.

Drug Utilization Review of Third Generation Cephalosporin in Khon Kaen Hospital.

2nd Pan Pacific Pharmacy Conference, Bangkok, Thailand, July 1992.

Publication

Limwattananon S, Tangcharoensathien V, Pitayarangsarit S.

Financing Traffic Injury: Who Gain Who Loss, A Case Study in Khon Kaen Province. Sulyasart Wiwat (forthcoming)

Limwattananon C, Limwattananon S, Cheawchanwattana A, Prateeprawanich N.

U.S. clinical pharmacy: activities and impacts. Thai Clinical Pharmacy Journal (forthcoming).

Pacheerat O, Limwattananon S.

Bacterial endocarditis and patient survival. (In press)

Limwattananon S.

Traffic Accident Insurance. Book Chapter in Srithamrongswad S ed. "Health Insurance in Thailand",

Health Systems Research Institute, Bangkok, 2000. (In press).

http://www.med.nu.ac.th/chem/New%20Folder%20(2)/New%20Folder/PhD/staff/supol.htm

Here's an assessment by the World Bank: https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/3208/650190ESW0whit0Autonomy0in0Thailand.pdf?sequence=1

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Edited July 6, 2015 by rametindallas

[Bluespunk]

""For strokes, the rich patients who suffer paralysis will have a greater chance to receive better care such as a privately hired nurse, which will increase their survival rate, but most poorer patients do not have that chance."

Oh, well that's ok then.

[FangFerang]

The data is cherry picked. It never expresses the actual differences that are claimed to be similar, then goes on to say stroke victims at private or govt policy hospitals have significantly higher survival rates, and then spirals into obfuscation after that.

There are lies, damn lies...,and, you got it, statistics.

[Emster23]

Why do I feel this might be some sort of prep work for scrapping the 30 baht scheme? Am I paranoid?

They should have also noted "Most people only suffer one fatal illness or accident in their lives"