Bt2,895 per person earmarked for health
The National Health Security Office (NHSO)'s executive board has approved a budget of Bt141 billion for the next fiscal year to provide healthcare services for subscribers and cover medical workers' allowances.
The green light for the next fiscal year stemmed from yesterday’s meeting of the NHSO’s executive board.
NHSO secretary-general Dr Winai Sawasdivorn said the NHSO was given a budget calculated on Bt2,895.09 per head – or about Bt141 billion – from the government to provide medical services for over 48 million subscribers for the next fiscal year starting from this October.
Last fiscal year, the government allocated Bt2,755.60 per head to provide medical services for subscribers.
The NHSO’s executive board has also approved Bt2.94 million to support medical treatment for people living with HIV/Aids; Bt5.1 million for patients with chronic kidney disease; and Bt801 million for health-care prevention programmes for diabetes and high blood pressure.
The board also agreed to provide Bt900 million to improve the efficiency of the health care unit and Bt3 billion for medical workers’ additional allowances.
Under the Bt2,895.09 per head, Bt1,056.96 is allocated to support medical services for in-patients and Bt271.33 for health-care promotion and prevention schemes. Some Bt383.61 will support the medical rehabilitation programme and Bt8.19 per head is for traditional medicine; Bt128.69 per head goes to the health care unit’s maintenance.
The executive board has okayed Bt3.32 for compensation of patients who affected by medical errors and Bt0.10 for medical workers. Of the Bt3 billion allocated for additional allowances for medical workers, Bt2 billion will go to additional allowanc-es based on remoteness and risk areas of medical workers, and Bt1 billion will be based on the pay-for-performance system (P4P).
Winai said the NHSO’s budgetary allocations were based on needs and efficiency of public health services.
Meanwhile, Public Health Minister Pradit Sinthawanarong said he has instructed the NHSO’s financial development sub-panel to monitor the efficiency of NHSO’s budget management.
