The National Health Security Office (NHSO) has deferred the launch of new budget reimbursement criteria for hospitals joining the Cancer Treatment Anywhere (CA) programme pending discussions to deal with reimbursement shortcomings.
Dr Athaporn Limpanylers, deputy NHSO secretary-general, on Tuesday said the criteria will be revised for reimbursing healthcare expenses under the CA programme within the National Health Security System or the 30-baht universal healthcare scheme.
Expenses to be reimbursed for chemotherapy or hormone medications, radiation therapy for cancer and laboratory tests for cancer treatment for both outpatient and inpatient services would be straightened out. This includes outpatient cancer care under special circumstances covered by the NHSO.
The new reimbursement criteria were initially set to take effect on Jan 1. However, to ensure that patients under the National Health Security Act can access comprehensive cancer treatment services -- including diagnostic tests, stage assessments, management of complications, incurrent diseases during treatment and follow-up evaluations -- the reimbursement issue has to be streamlined first.
So, the NHSO has decided to postpone the new criteria to April 1. Meanwhile, hospitals participating in the CA programme can continue to claim expenses under the existing NHSO regulations, Dr Athaporn said.
The NHSO has informed healthcare outlets participating in the programme about the deferral. "In the next three months, the NHSO will discuss with medical service providers the need to make necessary preparations, particularly in adjusting the reimbursement system to minimise impacts on cancer patients," he added.
Also, Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin has pledged to boost the handling capacity of 35 regional hospitals so more of them are able to treat cancer patients. This will help ease overcrowding at large hospitals with medical schools, which have the resources and capacity to provide complicated cancer treatment.
Mr Somsak said the NHSO spends around 9 billion baht a year on cancer treatment for subscribers.
Of this amount, 2 billion baht goes to the hospitals run by the Public Health Ministry and the rest to medical-school hospitals mostly located in Bangkok. The minister said ministry executives agree regional hospitals are ready for the upgrade to cancer treatment facilities.
