The Thai government plans to use THB50 million (R26 million) from the Central Fund to arrange travel insurance to cover accidents and deaths for all foreign tourists visiting the country in an effort to repair its reputation following two accidents involving tourists.
In December 2023, a Taiwanese tourist died while in transit to a public hospital after being denied emergency treatment at a private hospital.
In the same month, an Irish tourist received medical bills of THB100 000 (R52 540) a day for the treatment for Dengue fever, forcing the patient’s family to raise funds to get him back home for treatment, reports e.vnexpress.net.
The new insurance initiative, known as the Thailand Safety Scheme, offers tourists up to THB500 000 (R262 000) for medical expenses and THB1 million (R524 000) in the unfortunate event of death, reports eturbonews.com.
The initiative commenced on January 1 and will continue until August 31 to reassure tourists about their safety.
Considering the many incidents of bad behaviour among tourists in Thailand, the scheme disclaims that accidents as a result of negligence, intentional acts, illegal behaviour or risky activities will not be covered by the insurance.
Interested tourists can register for the insurance through the official Thailand Traveller Safety website.
