About 3.2 billion baht has been slashed from the proposed budget plans of 17 ministries, says the budget razor gang headed by the National Council for Peace and Order's (NCPO) deputy chief, Gen Chatchai Sarikalaya.
The committee still has to go through the budget plans of two more ministries and seven independent organisations, he said.
Gen Chatchai is the chairman of the budget vetting committee for the 2015 fiscal year.
The committee expects to finish inspecting the budget bill by Sept 3, he said.
He said the Defence Ministry has only received a slight cut of about 45 million baht from its 193 billion baht allocation in the budget.
The ministry's personnel budget accounts for 56% of the total while the rest are tied-over accounts needed for maintaining the armed forces, said Gen Chatchai.
Meanwhile, the Network of People's Health System Movement and the Rural Doctors Society yesterday opposed a Public Health Ministry proposal to revamp the universal coverage healthcare scheme as they fear funding for chronic and high-cost diseases will be cut.
Speaking at a meeting at the National Health Security Office (NHSO), NHSO board member Nimit Tian-udom said the fund guarantees treatment and medicine for patients with chronic or high-cost diseases.
The scheme allocates 2,895 baht to each patient.
The spending is divided into nine categories, including 31 baht for chronic or high-cost diseases.
Earlier, health deputy permanent secretary Vachira Penchan said the number of categories should be cut from nine down to four.
Chronic and high-cost diseases were among the five categories shortlisted to be axed.