Health4Us
Together for better health
30-baht scheme
The government has started the gold care, 30-baht scheme, to make people in Thailand access to healthcare easier. All patients could pay THB 30 fee for curing every illness. Moreover, the patients in emergency could also go to the nearest hospitals as fast as possible in order to get remedy in time. This program includes listed hospitals, but not limit to private hospital for emergency situation. The criteria for this scheme could only be applied to Thai nationality. In this case, Thai people also who does not received any government support such as social security scheme and civil servant medical benefit scheme. Thus, the office worker who normally received social security scheme are excluded.
Currently there are over 48 million people who received the right for the gold card. In 2012, the government has started to include some clinics into the 30-baht scheme program which increase the convenient of accessing to healthcare by far. However, the model is still in the initiation process and is developed according to feedback. Although the idea seems to be excellent to solve the healthcare accessibility problem, the government has currently shoulder a huge amount of debt from such scheme.
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Social Security Scheme
Social security scheme is mandatory for office worker. The office worker salary will automatically deduct for social security scheme and received the healthcare benefit within the specified range. Nevertheless, Thai people who are not mandatory could also participate in such scheme by choice as well. The social security scheme covers not only the healthcare benefit but also serve as a pension at the age of 60. This benefit has covered approximately 19% of Thai population.
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Civil Servant Medical Benefit Scheme
The civil servant recieves the benefit to cover the medical treatment for themselves, their parents, husband/wife and three children. They receive the free medical treatment in all of the public hospital, but not in the private hospital which could received only partial support in emergency situation.
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Support for Medical Education
The government has supported the study in medical department which promote Thai students to study and become doctors. All of the medical students are compulsary to receive the partial support for their study, but they have to work at the hospitals in the rural areas for 3 years in return. However, the students can choose to pay back 400,000 baht to the government to revoke the agreement..
There is also the scholarship named ODOD (One Doctor One District) which gives the scholoarship to the best students in each district within the rural area regardless of the national examination. The students will receive the additional support from normal doctors of 288,000 baht in the 6 years of education. However, the studetns have to work in the rural area according to the agreement for 12 years. The students who revoked this agreement have to pay back 2 million baht instead. This scholarship aims to increase the number of doctors in each rural area and to ensure that there are doctors in all of the areas of Thailand.
Reference:
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Province public health office
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Consortium of Thai medical school
