Healthcare system in need of changes to survive, say experts

“It is going to be an extremely challenging but unavoidable mission to adjust this scheme. We have to find a way to ensure that the adjustment will not hurt patients’ rights and that it will allow the public-health sector to stay afloat on a sustainable basis,” Medical Council of Thailand member Dr Cherdchoo Ariyasriwattana said recently. 
Another member of the council, Prof Dr Apiwat Mutirangura, said a researcher found two years ago that hospitals had incurred financial losses of more than Bt10 billion because of the universal coverage healthcare scheme. 
“At the same time, it was found that the National Health Security Office [NHSO], which manages the scheme, has spent about Bt10 billion on activities not directly related to medical treatments,” Apiwat said. 
At present, the NHSO has managed the universal healthcare scheme but the scheme’s operations are mainly handled by the Public Health Ministry’s medical facilities. A number of medical workers at state hospitals have complained about the huge workloads and other issues related to the scheme. 
Apiwat said the budget for the universal coverage healthcare scheme had also increased by 4 per cent each year. “If we continue at this rate over the next 10 years, the scheme’s budget will be equivalent to 25 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product,” he said. 
However, Ekawat Suwantaroj, a freelance designer, had lots of praise for the universal coverage healthcare scheme that had changed his life for the better. 
“The scheme has provided free medication and a more efficient system for haemophilia patients like me. Instead of having to rush to a hospital when I start bleeding, I am now prescribed medication that I can inject into myself to stop bleeding at an early stage. The longer the time passes, the more blood patients lose. So, this is a good scheme,” he said. 
Sudawadee Chuasingto, 59, said that she would have died if the universal coverage healthcare scheme was not in place. 
“Years ago, I needed a heart surgery that cost Bt380,000. I didn’t have that much money but fortunately, the scheme offered me free surgery,” she said. 
Happy about the help she has received, Sudawadee is now a volunteer offering a free hair wash, haircut and singing services to patients at state hospitals.