Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

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Gaybutton
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Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by Gaybutton »

Dodger wrote: Thu Sep 05, 2019 7:05 pm It sounds like your experience in that large waiting room is what turned you sour
That and the way his boyfriend was treated. Thai nurses are usually very friendly and try to be helpful, no matter where you go, even when the patient behaves badly. I wonder why that particular nurse acted that way. Maybe she was having a bad day, but that's no excuse to take it out on patients or people who come with patients.
Up2u

Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by Up2u »

Gaybutton wrote: Thu Sep 05, 2019 7:29 pm
Dodger wrote: Thu Sep 05, 2019 7:05 pm It sounds like your experience in that large waiting room is what turned you sour
That and the way his boyfriend was treated. Thai nurses are usually very friendly and try to be helpful, no matter where you go, even when the patient behaves badly. I wonder why that particular nurse acted that way. Maybe she was having a bad day, but that's no excuse to take it out on patients or people who come with patients.
Bf is from Sakaeo and the nurse asked him why he was there. He lives with me in Pattaya had a referral but the nurse was trying to tell him to go Sakaeo.
Ever notice when you go to BHP that the vast majority of patients are Thai. You see farangs, many with their wives, girlfriends or boyfriends but mostly the patients are Thai. Even when I was in ICU most the patients were Thai (to a lesser extent). When I asked why, the answer was superior and fast service that meet international standards. As Thailand’s middle class grows Thais can afford better medical care.
I also look forward to the BHP opening on Sukumvit (near Chic Republic)
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Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by Gaybutton »

Up2u wrote: Thu Sep 05, 2019 8:22 pm the nurse was trying to tell him to go Sakaeo.
He should have told the nurse where to go . . .
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Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by Dodger »

Up2u wrote: Thu Sep 05, 2019 8:22 pm
Gaybutton wrote: Thu Sep 05, 2019 7:29 pm
Dodger wrote: Thu Sep 05, 2019 7:05 pm It sounds like your experience in that large waiting room is what turned you sour
That and the way his boyfriend was treated. Thai nurses are usually very friendly and try to be helpful, no matter where you go, even when the patient behaves badly. I wonder why that particular nurse acted that way. Maybe she was having a bad day, but that's no excuse to take it out on patients or people who come with patients.
Bf is from Sakaeo and the nurse asked him why he was there. He lives with me in Pattaya had a referral but the nurse was trying to tell him to go Sakaeo.
Up2u,

Was your boyfriend also requesting medical services during your visit, or was he just there to help you along?

The reason I'm asking is because Queen Sirikit does not provide services to Military personnel, Thai nationals, or foreigners unless they are stationed in, or residing in, Chonburi Province. Sakaeo Province is home to the Crown Prince Government Hospital where your boyfriend would have to go for treatment unless it was an emergency. If your boyfriend was just with you that day as an assist to you, then they would have no reason to question his place of residence.
Up2u

Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by Up2u »

Dodger wrote: Fri Sep 06, 2019 9:40 am Was your boyfriend also requesting medical services during your visit, or was he just there to help you along?
He was with me to buy meds for him but had a referral from a doctor from BHP. I don't know what the policy was at that time, but yes to receive treatment under the 30 baht scheme a Thai has to has to go his "home" hospital. A Thai cannot be denied treatment at a government hospital (neither can a foreigner for that matter).
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Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by Gaybutton »

Up2u wrote: Fri Sep 06, 2019 10:32 am to receive treatment under the 30 baht scheme a Thai has to has to go his "home" hospital. A Thai cannot be denied treatment at a government hospital (neither can a foreigner for that matter).
Just to be sure everyone understands, only Thais are eligible for the 30 baht scheme. Farang are required to pay the full amount for treatment.

If a farang cannot pay, hospitals are required only to handle life-threatening emergencies and try to stabilize the patient. Once stabilized, that ends the hospital's requirement and the patient will be sent home.

It is my understanding that requirement holds true at all hospitals, not only government hospitals.

Some of you remember Monty. When he became ill and had no money, he was placed in a ward at Sirikit Hospital. He was there for weeks. When he died and still had not paid any part of the bill, the hospital demanded payment from his family. His body was kept in the hospital morgue for a limited period of time. If the bill was not paid by the time the limit was up, the body would be disposed of. I don't know how long the limit was.

I never did find out whether the bill was ever paid and I have no idea what became of Monty's body - cremated, used as a cadaver, or whatever.
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Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by fountainhall »

There was also the case of John Booth aka HeyGay and LMTU who posted on gaythailand and probably other boards as well. He had some form of cancer and wrote of his delight at his treatment at Chulalongkorn hospital which he informed readers was cheaper than others because it was a teaching hospital. But then the cancer returned, his insurance had run out and he had virtually no savings. Soon he could not even afford the fare to return to the UK for treatment. No hospital would take him in and he died on the sofa of friends who had agreed to look after him.

Re the Bt. 30 scheme for Thais. This was one of the achievements of the first Thaksin government and understandably hugely popular. But why has that fee not been raised in the 16 or so years since then? Medical inflation has been high during this period. Private hospitals are now charging almost double what they were in the early 2000s. The Thai universal coverage scheme actually covers 70% of Thais and is managed by the National Health Security Office with a budget of 172 billion baht. The present budget allows each hospital only Bt. 3,197 per individual patient per annum. That has to cover everything from a sore throat to open heart surgery. Worse, civil servants have a virtually open-ended scheme with access to the most expensive drugs. Last April, the Federation of Physicians and Nurses released a table showing 18 state hospitals were suffering deficits. For instance, Pranangklao Hospital had a deficit of 355 million baht, Saraburi Hospital was 322 million baht in the red, and Uttaradit Hospital had a deficit of 277 million baht.

Clearly the rise in fees for expats is an attempt to cover these shortfalls.

https://www.todayonline.com/world/asia/ ... al-trouble
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Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by Dodger »

fountainhall wrote: Fri Sep 06, 2019 12:12 pm
Last April, the Federation of Physicians and Nurses released a table showing 18 state hospitals were suffering deficits. For instance, Pranangklao Hospital had a deficit of 355 million baht, Saraburi Hospital was 322 million baht in the red, and Uttaradit Hospital had a deficit of 277 million baht.
As far as I'm concerned, those reported deficits are almost laughable. Last year there were tens of billions of baht reported by a long list of hospitals as deficits attributed to foreigners not paying their hospital bills, which couldn't be farther from the truth. As far as I'm concerned, this is Thailand. Money always disappears and ends up getting classified as justifiable deficits in fudged accounting reports. Then what happens? Farang are required to pay more money to keep the wheel turning.





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Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by Gaybutton »

Dodger wrote: Fri Sep 06, 2019 3:45 pm Then what happens? Farang are required to pay more money to keep the wheel turning.
And we also find ourselves subject to these immigration policies.
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Re: Dual pricing to begin for farang at Thai government hospitals

Post by Undaunted »

I would like to see some western countries that Thais enjoy visiting such as the U.K. impose the same rules for visas and separate pricing for medical services on all Thai nationals.
"In the land of the blind the one eyed man is king"
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