Health insurance system for four alien groups in Thailand

BANGKOK, March 17 (TNA) - The Public Health Ministry is preparing a draft on a health insurance system for four different groups of foreigners staying in Thailand and it will be submitted to the cabinet for its approval soon, said Public Health Minister Dr. Pradit Sintavanarong. He said the health insurance system is designed to cover four alien groups staying in the kingdom including Myanmar, Lao and Cambodian labourers, followers of the labourers, those taking treatment at hospitals near the border and tourists who do not have health insurance scheme. If approved, the aliens staying in Thailand will be covered with complete health insurance programme and could have an easy access to taking medical treatment while it could simultaneously reduce the problem of children having no nationality, said Dr. Pradit. It is estimated that there are up to three million of foreign workers who are officially registered and illegally staying in the kingdom presently of which approximately 1.6 million of them are female workers. Health examinations conducted by the Public Health Ministry in 2011 found that about one per cent out of the total Myanmar, Lao and Cambodian workers contracted diseases including malaria and tuberculosis while 18,355 women became pregnant, representing about 1.75 per cent out of the total women staying in Thailand. The ministry has projected that without any control, up to a maximum of 24,000 women would have become pregnant yearly of which around 20,000 would have given birth in Thailand. (TNA)