Pradit says he'll sue over vaccine-plant delay

Public Health Minister Pradit Sinthawanarong will file a civil lawsuit against officials allegedly involved in delaying construction of the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation (GPO)’s flu-vaccine plant in Saraburi province’s Kaeng Khoi district.

Meanwhile, the Rural Doctors Society and its allies have vowed to organise a massive demonstration against Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra if their demands that she fire Pradit and that the GPO’s executive board be removed are not responded to by the government. They also demanded the Cabinet revoke its resolution to force the ministry to pay allowances for medical workers based on the pay for performance (P4P) principle, as they believe their wages will be cut.

Before the negotiations start this week at the Rama Garden Hotel, and the final round on June 6 at Government House – which will be chaired by Yingluck – both sides have deployed all manpower and documents to challenge each other.

Today, Pradit will call high-ranking officials to brainstorm at the Public Health Ministry. He is also scheduled to meet the National Health Security Office’s executive board on the same day.

Meanwhile, a group of rural doctors and health advocates have spread their concern through social media about the negotiations. Some said the government might promise to accept all of their demands except the removal of Pradit from his ministerial position. They said firing Pradit was the only answer they wanted.

The Rural Doctors Society and its alliance including a network of people living with HIV/Aids, a network of patients with kidney disease, a network of consumers, and the GPO’s labour union are demanding the government stop enforcing the P4P scheme and allow hospitals to voluntarily implement it. They also want Pradit to stop intervening in the National Health Security Fund and the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation.

Previously they had planned to storm Yingluck’s house on June 6 but postponed it. It seemed their voices grew louder as a group of at least 500 medical workers in Chiang Mai province gathered together at the hotel and raised their strong opposition to Pradit.

Their movement has been supported by prominent health advocates including Dr Prawes Wasi, former public health minister Dr Mongkol Na Songkla, and Dr Wichai Chokewiwat. All of them have expressed their support through newspapers and social media.

But Pradit is not stepping back, as he believes his policy is based on good intentions to improve the efficiency of the public health system.

“I have never said in the public space that I will privatise the state drug maker and I have no plans to do that. Will GPO’s labour union take responsibility if this accusation does not take place in the next seven years?” he asked.