Future prospects of voluntary health insurance in Thailand

Voluntary health insurance schemes in Thailand are still under development and have yet to seriously address the questions of equity and efficiency, while private health insurance is limited to people who can afford the premium. One form of insurance, commonly known as the health insurance card scheme, was first introduced as the Health Card Program in 1983. This program is based on risk sharing of health expenditures, with no cost sharing, in a voluntary health insurance prepayment scheme. With the uncertain performance of the Thai economy, program sustainability and the efficient use of resources are major concerns. The Health Card Program needs enough enrollees to ensure a sufficient pool of risks. This study looks at health card purchase and utilization patterns, using data from Khon Kaen Province, and finds that employment, education levels and the presence of illness are significant factors influencing card purchase. The last factor is related to the problem of adverse selection of the program; families with symptoms of sickness are more likely to buy cards, resulting in greater use of health services. The results also show an improvement in accessibility to health care and a high level of satisfaction among card holders, both key objectives of the program. It is suggested that changes in the health card system could enable it to evolve into a community-based compulsory health insurance scheme for rural areas.