Private hospitals are wary of the Commerce Ministry's proposed price controls on medicines and medical services.
Amnaj Eur-Areemitr, director of SET-listed Ekachai Hospital Plc, told the Bangkok Post that policies and directives from the government regulator regarding controlling the prices of drugs and medical services have yet to set clear-cut methods for private hospitals to follow.
He said price control in the medical sector is a complex issue because there are many drug items in the system.
"At the moment, we have yet to see which direction the government is moving to control either the business of private hospitals or the margins of drugs and services," Dr Amnaj said.
Citing the widely available paracetamol as an example, he said the drug has an initial cost below one baht per tablet, but the retail price can range from 4-10 baht per tablet, depending on the hospital.
He said some drugs can cost as much as 100 baht per tablet. Hospitals can increase the price by only 10-20% and cannot double them, as that would be impractical.
"Normally, each hospital has a variety of margins on its drugs and services, and the margins of high-cost drugs will offset the low-cost ones, so the margins will be taken as a mean," Dr Amnaj said, adding that the average initial cost for drugs is roughly 25-35% of the retail price.
He said the location of the hospital is a key factor in the pricing of drugs and services. Metropolitan hospitals are more expensive than those in suburban locations.
"If you catch a cold and go to see a doctor at a hospital located in the central business district, you have to pay for 2,000-3,000 baht per bill and the drugs represent 50% of the bill," Dr Amnaj said. "But hospitals in the outskirts of the city may only charge 1,500-1,600 baht per bill and the drugs account for only 30% of the bill."
High-end facilities like Bumrungrad Hospital probably won't subscribe to state price controls for medical services as they seek to woo foreigners with state-of-the-art technology and services in what is known as medical tourism.
"We are priced at the top end in Thailand, but still 80% lower than what hospitals in the US charge," said David Boucher, chief business transformation officer at Bumrungrad. "We are concerned about costs, but we are not the least expensive hospital in Bangkok, and that is not what we endeavour to be."
Bumrungrad has invested heavily in robotics and Internet of Things infrastructure, making any cost reduction on the patient side unlikely.
"We want to pay a fair wage for a hard day's work for our employees, and that comes at high cost," Mr Boucher said. "We're still a for-profit, publicly traded company, so we tend to be very alert about costs and expenses."
Executives of Phyathai Hospital, a member of SET-listed Bangkok Dusit Medical Services Plc, declined to offer their opinion of the issue of price control in the medical sector, saying the matter was sensitive for the hospital.
