BANGKOK, 17 September 2013 The Public Health Ministry is speeding up its production of prosthesis legs, as the government is fully aware of the importance and potential of the disabled.
According to Public Health Minister Dr. Pradit Sintavanarong, as the government has a policy to narrow the gap of inequality in the Thai society and to sustainably lift the people’s standard of living, it is important that the government provide for the disabled in terms of mental, physical, and societal values. The government is of the opinion that the disabled have the potential and ability to support themselves and their families if they are taught and trained properly.
As a result, the government has assigned 6 related agencies to help the disabled in Thailand uplift their living standard, adding that the ministry is now cooperating with the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security in making prosthesis legs and giving them to all the disabled nationwide. The Minister expects all of the disabled to receive their artificial legs by 2019, adding that the ministry will have to allocate a budget for the maintenance of those prosthesis legs as well, given they have an average life span of 3 years.
Thailand had around 46,000 people who lost their legs, nearly 20,000 of whom did not have access to prosthesis limbs due to various limitations, according to the latest statics compiled in 2007, said the Minister.
