Thai doctors salaries not paid for 10 months

Healthcare budget not enough to cover all expenses, say institutions – Some salaries not paid for 10 months

More than half of the state hospitals are suffering from serious financial problems, with many of them having failed to pay their doctors’ salaries for up to 10 months.

Somdej Phraphutthalertla Hospi-tal’s medical specialist Dr Pongsak Nitikarun yesterday blamed the government’s decision that state hospitals use their budget to pay for medicines, utility fees, medical workers’ salaries and other expenses. The calculation of this budget is based on the number of people they have to take care of under the universal-healthcare scheme. Hospitals are given a flat rate of Bt2,800 per head per year.

“The subsidy does not reflect the actual costs,” Pongsak said at a seminar. “Because of budget constraints, the hospital has not paid its doctors and nurses for about 10 months now.”

The Nation