Thailand Faces THB277 Million in Unpaid Healthcare Costs from Cambodian Border Patients in 2024

 

Thailand is grappling with a significant financial strain from uncollected healthcare fees for foreign nationals, particularly those from neighbouring Cambodia.

 

On Monday, Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin addressed concerns, firmly denying rumours that the Cambodian government was instructing its citizens to avoid Thai hospitals.

 

He underscored the continued demand for Thai healthcare among Cambodians, citing the high quality of medical professionals and facilities in the kingdom.

 

However, Somsak acknowledged the persistent challenge of outstanding medical bills, revealing that the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) is actively working to resolve the issue.

 

He pointed to a large influx of migrant workers and other foreign nationals seeking treatment, many of whom lack proper registration or are not covered by health insurance schemes, making cost recovery exceptionally difficult.

 

The Minister highlighted an existing Cabinet resolution on managing foreign patients that has not been fully implemented.

 

The MOPH is now pushing for more comprehensive enforcement of this policy to safeguard hospital finances and ensure the long-term sustainability of the healthcare system.

 

A key part of this strategy involves systematically establishing patient records and health insurance provisions for this unregistered workforce.
 

 

Somsak stressed that uncollected medical fees aren't unique to Cambodian nationals but also include patients from Myanmar and other countries, potentially numbering over a million due to inadequate registration.

 

He warned that any foreign national found illegally accessing Thailand's universal healthcare or "gold card" scheme would face prosecution.

 

Commenting on recent border skirmishes, Somsak described the situation as "temporary" and assured that border hospitals are well-prepared to manage any immediate fallout.

 

"If clashes occur, they are temporary. Border hospitals can continue operations as usual. I believe this issue should conclude this week," he added.

 

According to a report for Q4 2024 and the full fiscal year 2024 by the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC), people from Thailand's three border neighbours – Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia – heavily utilise Thai medical services.

 

In fiscal year 2024, foreign nationals accessed public health services in border areas a staggering 870,000 times.

 

 

The report detailed the payment breakdown:

• 19.3% had private health insurance or paid themselves.
• 16.8% used funds for individuals with problematic status or stateless persons.
• 6.8% were covered by the Social Security Fund.
• Only 4.3% used dedicated foreign national or migrant worker health insurance funds.
• A substantial 52.8% of foreign nationals either paid only partially, couldn't pay at all, or had unspecified eligibility.

 

Analysis of uncollected healthcare expenses from foreign nationals in Thai border regions revealed a total of 2,315 million baht in fiscal year 2024, a 12.6% increase from the previous year.

 

The vast majority of this burden, 76.3%, stemmed from the Thai-Myanmar border, reflecting the highest volume of foreign patient admissions in that region.

 

Specifically, the uncollected healthcare expenses by border, as per MOPH data referenced by NESDC (as of 28 February 2025), show:

• Thai-Myanmar Border: 76.3% of total uncollected costs, from 570,000 service encounters, amounting to 1.8 billion baht in uncollected expenses.
• Thai-Cambodian Border: 12% of total uncollected costs, from 160,000 service encounters, amounting to 277 million baht in uncollected expenses.
• Thai-Lao Border: 7.8% of total uncollected costs, from 100,000 service encounters, amounting to 180 million baht in uncollected expenses.
• Thai-Malaysian Border: 4% of total uncollected costs, from 41,000 service encounters, amounting to 93 million baht in uncollected expenses.