Call for free infertility treatment as Thailand’s birth rate plunges
In a bid to tackle a huge drop in birth rates and Thailand’s fast-ageing society, public health agencies are pushing for fertility treatments and surrogacy programmes to be covered by the Universal Healthcare scheme and other welfare programmes.
According to the Interior Ministry, Thailand saw 563,650 deaths against 544,570 births in 2021, the lowest in 10 years.
Prof Dr Kamthorn Pruksananonda, chair of a reproductive medicine panel at Royal Obstetrics and Gynaecologists of Thailand, warned that this decline in birth rate could trigger economic and social issues in the long term, especially when it comes to a greater reliance on migrant workers.
He said national healthcare schemes do not cover fertility treatments yet because infertility is not considered a disease. He added that currently, only private hospitals offer treatments like in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) for women finding it difficult to get pregnant. However, he said, not everybody can afford this because even the very basic IVF treatment can cost up to 100,000 baht.
“Now that the World Health Organisation has categorised infertility as a disease, government hospitals should start providing treatment at affordable prices,” he said.
Kamthorn said Royal Obstetrics and Gynaecologists of Thailand along with the Department of Health and Department of Health Service Support have drafted guidelines to help people gain access to infertility treatment. However, this process will take more than a year to complete as other related agencies like the National Health Security Office, Social Security Office and Comptroller General's Department must draft their guidelines as well.
"The Universal Healthcare Coverage should first start providing fertility treatments before it is expanded to social security and civil servants’ welfare schemes,” he said. “Initial treatment is not expensive, as the first step is a correct diagnosis.”
Kamthorn said making infertility treatment more accessible should help solve the problem of declining birth rates, much like Scandinavian countries, which have been focusing on promoting family lives.
“Besides, getting pregnant after turning 40 puts women at the risk of developing high blood pressure and diabetes, etc, while foetuses face the risk of Down’s syndrome and other problems. The only way this can be avoided is if women have access to infertility treatments earlier,” he said.
He added that public hearings are also necessary to determine if same-sex couples can become parents via surrogacy under the Child Protection Act.
