Health

Prime Minister Prayut’s Reforms “Could End Universal Healthcare in Thailand”

BANGKOK – Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha Military installed government the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) hostility towards universal health coverage is planning reforms that could weaken the health security of Thai citizens, health experts warn.

Though there has been no drastic change to the health system under four years of National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) rule, experts worry that universal coverage is set to be degraded to cover the poorest members of society only.

The junta’s hostile attitude was only part of the problem, academics and activists said. The health security of Thais was also threatened by the huge disparity between the three main health security schemes, while urgent action was needed to secure the sustainability of the current system.

Nimit Tien-udom, a rights defender from the People’s Health System Movement, said Thailand’s globally renowned public health system is under major threat from the NCPO’s reform plans. It was the public’s duty to protect this fine policy, he added.

“Our health security, especially the Universal Health Coverage (UC) scheme, is a highly beneficial system that stops people from going bankrupt through health expenses while allowing all citizens access to adequate and affordable healthcare,” Nimit said.

“However, as this regime has a military-bureaucratic background, they hold a hostile view of the system, especially the UC scheme which they see as a drain on the national budget. So they seek to weaken it.”

He revealed that the government was trying to amend the National Health Security Office (NHSO) Act and draft a bill to establish a National Health Policy Board. These reforms to healthcare would lead to more centralization that would reduce public sector participation in health policy planning.

Prime Minister General Prayut has repeatedly said his government has no intention of revoking universal healthcare, but added that reform was needed to curb the increasing expense of the system.

Budget reform plans include restricting universal healthcare to the 14 million citizens registered as poor, and enforcing co-payment by patients.

Nimit cautioned that these changes would destroy the original intention to provide access to proper healthcare for all citizens and turn the system into humanitarian health assistance for the poorest 14 million, while in reality more than 48 million people currently depend on the UC scheme.

While co-payment was not an entirely bad idea, he added, patients should not be made to pay for care after getting sick, since this could cause them sudden financial crisis.

This year, the NHSO has received a Bt111.179-billion budget for the UC scheme, or Bt3,197 for each beneficiary. The Cabinet has approved next year’s budget of Bt166.445 billion, or Bt3,426 per head.

Ammar Siamwalla, senior health security researcher at the Thailand Development Research Institute, said reform was necessary to ensure the sustainability of the system.

However, Ammar said reform needed to prioritize lowering the disparity between our three main health schemes and ensure that all citizens, especially the middle class, benefit from the system.

If the government restricts health security only to the poor, the expense and quality of healthcare would be kept to the minimum, he said. But if all citizens, including the politically active middle class, were covered, they could play a powerful role in campaigning for the system’s improvement and ensuring good and affordable healthcare for all.

By Pratch Rujivanarom
The Nation

Initiated by the Thaksin Shinawatra government in 2001, the scheme was first known as the 30-baht health scheme – so-called because those who could afford it paid a flat 30 baht per consultation – and ostensibly opened access to medical treatment for all.

It was developed by a rural doctor Sa-nguan Nittayarampong, who convinced the Thaksin administration to pilot and fund the programme in 2001, despite objections from the previous government because the economy was still recovering after the 1997 financial crisis.

UC covers healthcare for more than 48 million Thais. The NHSO’s executive board makes decisions on how to run the UC scheme. The board consists of representatives of patients and civil society, government agencies, hospital operators and professional doctors.

For years, rural doctors have pushed the idea of universal health coverage, but it did not gain traction until Thaksin came to power. It became one of his major policies that won grassroots support across the country.

Patients paid only 30 baht for medical services at state hospitals. The NHSO was established using the government Budget to fund medical fees.

After the 2006 Military coup, the 30-baht healthcare was revoked. The scheme was renamed “gold card” or UC by the interim government.

The renaming of the universal scheme was seen as an attempt to eliminate the image of Thaksin as icon of the scheme.

Resistance to UC comes from many players, including state administrators who could not exercise power over the NHSO board, civil servants who lost their hold on health funding, and doctors whose status is threatened by the emerging voice of patients.

After Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha 2014 Military coup, the threat against healthcare have gone up…… Read Full Story…

Health

Report Causes Pfizer Stock to Climb Approximately $1 Billion Acquired by Starboard

(VOR News) – According to a rumor that activist investor Pfizer Starboard Value has taken a holding in the struggling pharmaceutical business that is expected to be worth around one billion dollars, the stock of Pfizer (PFE) is on the increase in premarket trading on Monday.

This comes after the report was made public. The report was made available to the general public following this. Starboard Value was successful in moving forward with the acquisition of the position.

Starboard is said to have approached Ian Read, a former chief executive officer of Pfizer, and Frank D’Amelio, a former chief financial officer, in order to seek assistance with its goals of boosting the performance of the company, according to the Wall Street Journal. Read and D’Amelio are both former Pfizer executives.

The purpose of this is to facilitate the accomplishment of its objectives, which include enhancing the overall performance of the firm.

In their previous jobs, D’Amelio and Read were chief financial officers.

It is stated in the report that the hedge fund is of the opinion that Pfizer, which is currently being managed by Albert Bourla, who succeeded Read as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in 2019, does not demonstrate the same level of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) discipline that Read did. Bourla took over for Read in 2019. Read was succeeded by Bourla in the year 2019.

Pfizer, a multinational pharmaceutical conglomerate, has made substantial investments in the acquisition of more companies that are involved in the research and development of cancer medicines.

These businesses have been acquired for billions of dollars. The biotechnology company Seagen, which was acquired by Pfizer in the previous year for a price of $43 billion, is included in this category. One of the businesses that can be classified as belonging to this category is Seagen.

In spite of the fact that the S&P 500 Index experienced a 21% increase in 2024.

No major trading occurred in Pfizer stock that year.

Due to the fact that the demand for Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccines fell after the firm reached its pandemic peak in 2021, the share price of the corporation has decreased by over fifty percent since that time.

This drop has occurred ever since the company’s shares reached their maximum peak, which was during the time that this decline occurred. Not only have they not changed at all, but they have also remained essentially stable. This is in contrast to the S&P 500, which has gained 21% since the beginning of this year.

Recently, the corporation was forced to take a hit when it decided to recall all of the sickle cell illness medications that it had distributed all over the world.

Fears that the prescription could lead patients to experience severe agony and possibly even death were the impetus for the decision to recall the product. In spite of the fact that Pfizer’s stock is increasing by almost three percent as a result of the news that followed the company’s decision, this is the circumstance that has come about.

SOURCE: IPN

Health

New Study Reveals Drinking Soda Pop Increases the Risk of Stroke

If you drink too much soda, fruit juice and coffee, beware!

A recent report from global research indicates that excessive consumption of coffee or soda pop is associated with an increased risk of stroke, although the intake of black and green tea is correlated with a reduced risk. Excessive consumption of soda pop or coffee warrants caution!

Recent research indicates that it may substantially elevate the risk of stroke.

Consuming four cups of coffee daily elevates the risk of stroke, according to studies, although ingesting 3-4 cups of black or green tea daily typically offers protection against stroke. Additionally, consume more coffee; it may reduce your risk of mortality.

Recent findings from global research studies co-led by the University of Galway and McMaster University, alongside an international consortium of stroke researchers, indicate that soda, encompassing both sugar-sweetened and artificially sweetened variants such as diet or zero sugar, is associated with a 22 percent heightened risk of stroke. The risk escalated significantly with the consumption of two or more of these beverages daily.

Stroke Risk Fizzy Drinks and Soda Pop

The correlation between fizzy drinks consumption and stroke risk was most pronounced in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and South America. Women exhibit the most elevated risk of stroke from bleeding (intracranial hemorrhage) associated with fruit juice beverages. Consuming over 7 cups of water daily diminishes the likelihood of stroke due to a clot.

Researchers observed that numerous items advertised as fruit juice are derived from concentrates and have added sugars and preservatives, potentially negating the advantages often associated with fresh fruit and instead elevating stroke risk.

Fruit juice beverages were associated with a 37 percent heightened risk of stroke resulting from bleeding (intracranial hemorrhage). Consuming two of these beverages daily increases the risk thrice.

Consuming over four cups of coffee daily elevates the risk of stroke by 37 percent, although lower consumption levels do not correlate with stroke risk. Conversely, tea consumption was associated with an 18-20 percent reduction in stroke risk. Additionally, consuming 3-4 cups daily of black tea, such as Breakfast and Earl Grey varieties, excluding green and herbal teas, was associated with a 29 percent reduced risk of stroke.

Consuming 3-4 cups of green tea daily was associated with a 27 percent reduction in stroke risk. Notably, the addition of milk may diminish or inhibit the advantageous effects of antioxidants present in tea. The lower risk of stroke associated with tea consumption was negated for individuals who added milk.

Disclaimer: This article is intended solely for informational reasons and should not be considered a replacement for professional medical counsel. Consistently consult your physician regarding any inquiries pertaining to a medical problem.

Starbucks Faces Sales Decline Amid Price Fatigue and Rising Competition

Starbucks Faces Sales Decline Amid Price Fatigue and Rising Competition

Health

Following a Diagnosis of Breast Cancer, What Else Should You Know?

(VOR News) – Even though breast cancer affects one in eight American women, receiving a diagnosis can make a woman feel isolated.

Experts in breast cancer from the American College of Physicians (ACS) advise patients on how to manage their disease so that they may better cope with this awful information.

First, the kind and stage of breast cancer dictates the course of your care.

In addition to immunotherapy and chemotherapy, there are various surgical options available for the treatment of breast cancer.

Women of African descent are disproportionately affected by triple-negative breast cancer, an extremely aggressive form of the disease that has never proven easy to treat.

According to the American Cancer Society, pembrolizumab (Keytruda), an immunotherapy, has been shown to be helpful when combined with chemotherapy and is currently the recommended course of treatment for certain combinations of triple-negative breast cancer.

In her presentation, Dr. Katharine Yao said, “It’s really important that the patient and physician discuss the patient’s preferences and values when deciding what type of treatment to pursue and that they have an honest, individualized discussion with their care team.”

She is currently responsible for developing breast cancer treatment recommendations for more than 575 hospitals and institutions nationwide in her role as chair of the American College of Surgeons’ National Accreditation Program for Breast Institutions (NAPBC).

Yao, vice chair of research at Endeavor Health NorthShore Hospitals in New York, pointed out that each decision made about a patient’s treatment plan should take her preferences and diagnosis into consideration.

She ought to think about whether she would prefer a mastectomy—a surgical procedure that involves removing the entire breast with or without reconstruction—or a lumpectomy, which involves a surgical procedure that spares part of the breast tissue.

She stated that “the breast cancer you have may be very different from the breast cancer you hear about in your neighbor, colleague, or friend” in a press release issued by the American Cancer Society (ACS).

“Consider that while discussing breast cancer with others.”

Throughout your journey, it is critical that you look after your emotional health because having breast cancer may have a detrimental impact on your mental health.

“Getting a cancer diagnosis does not mean that everything in your life stops to be normal.” Director of the Fellowship in the Diseases of the Breast program at the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute at the University of Arkansas and state head of the American Cancer Society Commission on Cancer for Arkansas, Dr. Daniela Ochoa She thinks adding the burden of a cancer diagnosis and treatment to all the other pressures in life may be taxing.

“Managing stress and emotional health is vital component of a treatment plan.”

Ochoa recommends clinically trained psychologists and social workers who have assisted people in coping with cancer to anyone receiving treatment. Learning coping techniques might also be facilitated by joining cancer support groups or cancer wellness initiatives.

Breast cancer specialists say your care team is crucial.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) defines comprehensive care as having support at every stage of the procedure from surgeons, oncologists, patient navigators, nurses, social workers, psychologists, and other specialists.

After receiving a breast cancer diagnosis, women should see a surgeon or medical oncologist to explore their options; nevertheless, treatment shouldn’t be discontinued after just one appointment or after surgery is over.

Additionally, you can ask trustworthy friends or family members to accompany you to appointments and aid you with research or notes. They could serve as a network of support for you.

Yao stated in his talk that “one of the most important things is that patients should search out a team they have confidence in, that they trust will have their back when they need it, and a team they feel they can get access to and that will help them when they are in need.”

SOURCE: MP