Detect cases, save lives

The National Health Security Office (NHSO) yesterday reiterated that under the universal healthcare system, those who test positive for Covid-19 virus are eligible for free examinations, testing and treatment in any state hospital. This policy is good, but not good enough. People with flu-like symptoms may have to prove they belong to at-risk groups before they can get free tests and treatment for the new disease.

The three groups comprise people with a history of close contact with Covid-19 patients, people living in or travelling from at-risk countries or zones, and people whose work requires them to come into contact with people in at-risk zones, like tour guides.

Those seeking a test may still have to pay for the service if the result turns out negative. And at around 2,000 baht in state hospitals and up to 12,000 baht in private hospitals, the price of a test inevitably means that many people with Covid-19 symptoms will delay seeking medical help and put others at risk of infection.

It is understood that the NHSO has laid down these restrictions out of concerns of the huge burden on finances and medical personnel as fear grips the country. Over the weekend, large numbers of people began stocking up on food and other necessities as concern over the scale of the contagion grew.

But treatment restrictions can also backfire by delaying the detection of infectious cases and thus enabling the disease to spread more rapidly. Under such circumstances, containment becomes more difficult. Speedy detection is vital as the epidemic moves into the current phase of domestic transmission, with new cases including senior metropolitan police officers, who were infected without travelling outside the country.

With such restrictions in place, it’s very likely that people who are struggling to make ends meet will not go to hospital immediately after developing flu-like symptoms, but wait until the condition gets more serious. During that delay, they could spread the disease to those in contact with them. Yesterday, 33 new cases were confirmed, some with no travel history.

A report on Covid-19 prevention issued by a taskforce under the Disease Control Department noted evidence proving that late detection contributed to the rapid spread of the disease in hard-hit countries like South Korea, Iran and Italy. Thailand should avoid making the same mistake.

The NHSO should reconsider its payment rules and encourage anyone with symptoms indicating Covid-19 infection to seek a test as soon as possible. The earlier the detection, the better.

Concern over cost must take second place in this life-and-death battle being bravely fought by medical personnel.

Yesterday, Attaporn Limpanyalert, NHSO deputy secretary general, said the agency was allocating over 1 billion baht to handle Covid-19 cases, and would soon get around 3 billion baht more from the national budget as an emergency virus fund.

Meanwhile the office should not hesitate to seek more budget from a government that has already suffered spending delays that will see a large chunk of the 3.2-trillion-baht national budget left lying in state coffers at the end of the fiscal year. Currently, there are over 50 million recipients of universal healthcare. The rest of the population falls under the social security scheme and the government pension fund.

The government must use every resource it has at hand, including money, to fight the virus. The longer the contagion rages out of control, the bigger the price paid by all Thais.