Earlier today, the Nation reported that some of Thailand’s private hospitals are at odds with the government about receiving payment for the administration of emergency care.
According to Thailand’s healthcare reimbursement scheme, private hospitals should be able to provide emergency care to patients who fall under Thailand’s public health insurance plan, then bill the government for that care later on.
Many private hospitals signed up to receive reimbursements under such a plan on April 1 of last year.
However, Public Health Minister Pradit Sinthawanarong is now insisting that many of these private hospitals are still charging patients for emergency care, despite having signed up to receive government reimbursements.
According to the National Health Security Office (NHSO), as many as a quarter of private hospitals that have signed up for government reimbursements are still charging patients upfront for emergency care.
In an effort to combat this practice, the Public Health Ministry plans to set up a resource center for private hospitals to call in order to figure out whether or not patients qualify for government-funded healthcare.
