Reports about the removal of free COVID-19 treatments from the Universal Coverage for Emergency Patients (UCEP) program have raised public concerns. In response, the Ministry of Public Health said Covid patients will be covered by their respective health security and insurance coverages, event without access to UCEP.
Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul said UCEP was designed for emergency cases. Patients with emergency needs will receive treatments free of charge.
Regardless of the removal, Minister Anutin said COVID-19 patients who require hospital treatments can continue to receive them. The medical bills are covered by the National Health Security Office.
Meanwhile, patients of any diseases including COVID-19 who experience serious symptoms will have access to UCEP. This means that they can find emergency assistance at any hospital, public and private. With UCEP, the government will be covering emergency treatments for up to 3 days, before referring the patients to the hospitals they enrolled with when signing up for health programs. (NNT)
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