In a closely-followed court case, the Administrative Court in Phetchaburi ruled that multi-tiered “dual pricing” in Thai hospitals are not discriminatory as they benefit Thailand. Ewrin Buse, who sued the Ministry of Public Health after discovering he was being charged more for his cancer treatment as a foreigner, vowed to appeal the decision.

Erwin said the court took the Ministry at its word instead of fact-checking statements and that a recent change in how the Ministry defines labour costs allowed it to justify the dual pricing retroactively. The ruling seemed to be based solely on the assumption that foreigners have and earn more money, so they can afford to pay more which benefits the Thai economy.

“The pricing was set on an appropriate basis of socioeconomic status, and it benefits Thailand, so it therefore doesn’t count as discrimination.”

a 4-tier pricing system based on legal status within Thailand. The lowest prices were charged for citizens of Thailand and prices might be the same or slightly higher for those who come from other ASEAN or neighbouring countries.

Fees start to climb significantly at the third tier for people on non-immigrant visas like working foreigners and expats and costs often skyrocket for the fourth tier which includes international tourists and those who are retired in Thailand.