Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra announced the decision
at a press conference held on 22 February 2013 at the Ministry of Public
Health.
The decision is in line with the Government’s policy of
developing Thailand into a medical hub. At the initial stage, the visa
extension from 30 days to 90 days will be granted to nationals of the Kingdom
of Bahrain, the State of Kuwait, the Sultanate of Oman, the State of Qatar, the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Prime Minister Yingluck said that, under the new rule,
which took effect on 4 January 2013, medical tourists from the six countries
are allowed to come with no more than four accompanying persons. They need to
produce appointment documents from a hospital in Thailand, bank statements, and
other relevant documents.
The Prime Minister said that during her visit to Gulf
Cooperation Council countries, she discovered that Thailand’s healthcare
service has attracted many patients from these countries, which were also
interested in cooperating with Thailand in medical service development.
She believed that the Government’s policy of developing
Thailand into a medical hub would promote medical tourism and generate more
income. This privilege under the medical hub project would be extended to other
ASEAN countries when the ASEAN Community is in place in 2015. ASEAN, with a
combined population of 590 million, would become a major market for Thai health
services.
The policy to develop Thailand into an international
medical center focuses on three areas: service hub for modern medicine,
traditional Thai medical service, and alternative medicine, academic hub, and
product hub.
Public Health Minister Pradit Sinthawanarong said that,
in 2012, foreign visitors sought medical services here on more than two million
trips. Popular health services include medical check-ups, cosmetic surgery,
transsexual surgery, dental care, orthopedic surgery, and heart surgery.
Medical tourism earned Thailand 121,658 million baht in 2012.
He said that the Ministry of Public Health has also
provided information about medical services for foreign visitors at the counter
service at Suvarnabhumi Airport.
Thailand is known to offer top-quality medical treatment
at a reasonable cost. Modern facilities and equipment, as well as qualified
medical doctors, nurses, and technical staff, are considered advantageous for
Thailand. Traditional Thai and alternative medicine is also recognized widely.
(thailand.prd.go.th)