Bangkok: Chaiwat Sathavorawichit, a candidate for Bangkok Governor from the People’s Party, has identified referral slips as a significant bottleneck in Bangkok’s healthcare system. He proposes increasing the quota for universal healthcare coverage and emphasizes the importance of referral hospitals as central hubs in the system.
According to Thai News Agency, Mr. Chaiwat, alongside Ms. Pattaraporn Kengrungruangchai, candidate for Bangkok City Council member from Bang Sue district, and Ms. Patsarin Ramwong, Bangkok MP for District 7, visited the Wat Suttharam community. Their visit aimed to gather feedback from residents utilizing the universal healthcare scheme in the area.
Mr. Chaiwat pointed out that despite Bangkok’s relatively abundant healthcare resources, many residents encounter difficulties in accessing treatment. Referral slips, essential for those with universal healthcare coverage, are a common issue. Patients often face lengthy waits for these slips from primary care units or clinics, which may delay hospital appointments and impact their health and income.
He explained that the delay in issuing referral letters is due to “Warm Clinics” becoming a bottleneck. These clinics manage over 3.5 million National Health Insurance beneficiaries in Bangkok, leading to long queues. The system design does not support efficient service delivery, as increased referral letters lead to higher costs for clinics. Moreover, the lack of a clear main agency overseeing healthcare for Bangkok residents exacerbates the problem.
Mr. Chaiwat advocates for increasing the quota of eligible recipients under the Universal Health Coverage scheme from 800,000 to 1 million. This initiative would include additional budget, resources, and medical personnel to ease the burden on healthcare workers and improve care.
The People’s Party also suggests that Bangkok’s main hospitals act as hubs for managing the universal healthcare system, collaborating with public health centers and primary care units. This approach aims to optimize the per capita budget allocated by the National Health Security Office. They propose adjusting the payment system to ensure “warm clinics” receive adequate income to prevent losses from issuing referral slips, a measure that can be implemented through Bangkok Metropolitan Administration hospitals currently serving over 1.3 million universal healthcare beneficiaries.
Chaiwat concluded that addressing the root causes of the healthcare system’s issues is crucial for making Bangkok a city that prioritizes its people’s welfare. He emphasized the need for a systematic approach, highlighting the People’s Party’s commitment to public health issues and readiness to improve healthcare access in Bangkok.