Thailand - Thailand is used to hot Aprils, but not this hot!

BANGKOK - Animals at Bangkok's zoo are being fed special frozen fruit pops. People are flocking to shopping malls just to soak up the air-conditioning. Authorities are telling people to stay out of the blazing sun to avoid heat stroke.

April in Thailand is typically hot and sweaty, but this year's scorching weather has set a record for the longest heat wave in at least 65 years.

The average peak temperature each day this month has been above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), with the mercury spiking one day to 44.3 degrees C (111.7 F) — just short of the all-time record.

The heat wave has also fueled a new record for energy consumption and prompted health warnings on everything from foodborne illness to drowning, both of which rise every April when Thailand's hottest month coincides with school summer break.

"As of now we can say we've broken the record for the highest temperatures over the longest duration in 65 years — and the season isn't over yet," said Surapong Sarapa, head of the Thai Meteorological Department's weather forecast division. Thailand began keeping national weather records after 1950.

On this very day, April 27, in 1960, Thailand posted its hottest day ever recorded with 44.5 degrees Celsius (112 F) in the northern province of Uttaradit.

Countries across Southeast Asia are feeling the heat, which scientists say is triggered by El Nino, a warming of parts of the Pacific Ocean that changes weather worldwide and tends to push global temperatures up. El Nino has also been blamed for causing the worst drought in decades across the region.

Thailand's Department of Disease Control has warned people to beware of food poisoning and other food-related illnesses that typically increase during hot weather when bacteria can thrive on unrefrigerated food.

"Stay indoors, try to limit activity outdoors. Wear sunglasses, wear hats with large brims. Drink more water than usual," the disease control center said in a statement this week. It also reminded of the increased risk of drowning in hot weather as children flock to Thailand's beaches, ponds and lakes to take a swim.

"Do not let young children out of your sight for even a brief moment," the statement said, noting that an average of 90 children die every month in Thailand from drowning but that number increases to about 135 in April.

Thais are used to the heat. April typically brings an average of 38-degree C (100 F) days. The current stretch of sweltering weather has been a main topic of conversation, but people are taking it in stride.

"This April is so hot. I've got the air conditioner AND fan turned on at home. And I'm keeping ice cream in my fridge at all times," said Jarossanon Thovicha, a 30-year-old Bangkok resident who works in the fashion industry and is living in fear of her next electricity bill.

"My husband and I have been going out to the mall and spending time there over the weekends to save on electricity at home," she said.

Nationwide, energy consumption set a record high on Tuesday at 29,004.6 megawatts, said the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand. It was the latest in a series of peaks reached earlier this month, and EGAT is urging the public not to keep air conditioners on all day.

"We are asking for public cooperation in conserving energy for one-hour a day from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. until May 20," the national power utility said in a statement Tuesday.

In Cambodia, the hot weather was blamed for the death of an elephant trained to carry tourists at the famed Angkor Wat temple compound. Local media carried pictures of the pachyderm which collapsed last Friday and quoted the Angkor Elephant company as saying she had apparently died of a heart attack due to high temperatures and lack of wind.

The Dusit Zoo in Bangkok says it's taking extra precautions so its animals stay safe.

"Monkeys and apes at the zoo are getting fruit popsicles," said Saowaphang Sanannu, head of conservation and research at Bangkok's main zoo.

Oranges, watermelon, pineapple and other fruit get chopped up, mixed with fruit juice or water and is then frozen for the chimpanzees, orangutans and other primates. Bears already have waterfall displays in their habitats, so can take dips whenever they want, and are getting the same fruit pops as the others.

"Tigers are getting meat popsicles. We'll freeze pork legs and chunks of meat to feed them and cool them off at the same time," Saowaphang said. "Deer, giraffe and elephants get increased shade and sprinklers to provide rain and decrease the heat on the ground."

Temporary relief is forecast later this week with scattered tropical storms. But it will be brief, with the heat expected to return next week before tapering off in mid-May when the monsoon rains are expected.

By Jocelyn Gecker and Natnicha Chuwiruch

Associated Press

kentucky

Thailand - Sugar tax for public health: Soft drinks 20-25% price rise

Fatness, heart disease & overburdened public hospitals from too much sugar in national diet to be fought with taxes.

TAXES & PUBLIC HEALTH

Sugar tax for public health: Soft drinks 20-25% price rise

Soft drinks could be 20-25% more expensive very soon.

That is, if the cabinet approves a new sugar tax proposed by reform councillors.

PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEMS FROM TOO MUCH SUGAR

The new taxes are aimed at discouraging Thais from consuming too much sugar and improving public health.

At present, Thais rank ninth worldwide in sugar consumption.

Drinking large amounts of sugar increases risks of obesity, hypertension and heart disease and other illnesses.

This adds to the state's heathcare burden under Thailand's universal coverage healthcare system.

These facts have been laid out in a report from the National Reform Steering Assembly's (NRSA) health and environmental reform committee.

UNHEALTHY SUGAR LEVELS TO BE TAXED

An excise tax on beverages with unhealthy sugar levels — more than six grammes per 100 millilitres -- was proposed by the reform committee.

Taxed drinks will include carbonated drinks, green tea, coffee, energy drinks, sour milk, soy milk and juices.

MORE SUGAR MEANS HIGHER TAX

Two rates of the excise tax were proposed based on different sugar levels.

Drinks with 6g to 10g per 100ml of sugar would be subject to a rate that would raise their retail prices by at least 20%.

Those with more than 10g of sugar would see their prices at least 25% higher.

The reform report stated that most local beverages contained more than 6g of sugar per 100ml.

The proposed tax was estimated to increase national income by more than 10 billion baht a year in the future.

The NRSA would also ask the Interior Ministry to regulate lucky draw marketing campaigns by sugary beverage manufacturers to further reduce sugar intake nationally.

REFORM STEERING COMMITTEE VOTES FOR TAX

The National Reform Steering Assembly (NRSA) voted Tuesday to table the so-called sugar tax for cabinet consideration, for better public health public health.and larger state revenue.

The resolution was backed with 153 votes against two with six abstentions and will be proposed to the cabinet later.

Aekarach Sattaburuth

bangkokpost

Thailand - Australian part-owned Chatree gold mine prompts protests in Thailand after poisoning claims

It has all the hallmarks of a classic Western — farmers in cowboy boots fighting against a big gold mine, led by a gruff-talking Australian boss, in the dusty heartland of Thailand.

But the struggle over the Chatree mine and its impacts on local health really comes down to a lack of clarity in Thailand over what levels of naturally occurring toxic substances are considered safe.

Australian company Kingsgate Consolidated owns 48 per cent of the mine.

Chairman Ross Smyth-Kirk said he was frustrated the debate over alleged contamination could hamper the company's efforts to extend their mining license, which expires next month.

"Not only has nobody died, nobody has even been sick or shown any symptoms of anything and yet we still go on with this giant farce," Mr Smyth-Kirk said.

"If the stupidity of these people [protesting] was to come to light, it would have amazing economic ramifications for this area."

A recent visit by four government ministers to the site drew about 3,500 supporters and at a separate event, about 500 protesters turned out.

Opponents said the mine had poisoned local residents, crops and livestock.

"We're not against development but we can't trade development for people's lives, for sickness and suffering," campaigner Suekanya Sintornthammathat — the last resident left in Ban Khao Mor, the village closest to the mine's boundary, said.

One protester at the ministers' meeting held a placard saying "Get Out Australia Capitalists", while a small girl clutched a handwritten sign showing her levels of arsenic, manganese and cyanide.

The levels of heavy metals have been used by both sides to push their very different agendas.

Gold at what cost?

The Chatree mine is located 280 kilometres north of Bangkok and is the country's only major gold mine, employing 1,000 Thai staff.

It is a low-grade, open-cut operation, meaning its operators blast rock from a huge mine pit and use cyanide to extract the fine gold particles from the rubble.

The company's use of cyanide is considered world standard and tests have shown no problems with the level of cyanide in the bodies of staff or locals.

What has been more contentious is the manganese and arsenic — both substances that can cause serious health problems such as Parkinson's disease and various cancers.

Manganese and arsenic occur naturally in the soil around the mine.

The allegation from opponents is that the mine's blasting and transportation of rocks is increasing the amount of these toxins in the dust and water.

Battle of the blood tests over poisoning claims

A study overseen by Thailand's Ministry of Public Health last year tested 1,004 people living near the mine and found 41 per cent had manganese levels '"above the standard".

About 20 per cent had levels of arsenic "above the standard".

The problem is there has been no clear "standard" for safe levels of exposure for these substances in Thailand.

The Public Health Ministry study used the range of 4-15 micro-grams (ug) of manganese per litre of blood and 0-50 ug of arsenic per litre of urine, as benchmarks for what is normal.

By comparison, Safe Work Australia is more generous, saying arsenic levels below 100 ug/L are considered normal, with readings above 150 considered "excessive exposure".

Akara Resources and its major shareholder Kingsgate has not denied the existence of elevated levels of manganese and arsenic, but said the exposure was normal and could not necessarily be linked to the mine.

"The slightly elevated levels of arsenic and other things are only slightly [up], none of them are earth-shattering, none of them are a problem," Mr Smyth-Kirk said.

The mine has also done its own health tests on staff and the community up to 50 kilometres away.

The most recent results show about 14 per cent of local residents had arsenic levels about 50 ug/L.

More concerning are the results that show 70-80 per cent of those tested had manganese levels above 10 ug/L — the level considered by Akara Resources to be "normal".

Company management told the ABC anyone with high readings was invited for further medical checks at the company's expense.

Last year Thailand's Ministry of Industry asked for a major review of community impacts, which was done by the international mining industry consultants Behre Dolbear and paid for by the mine.

It found "low arsenic/manganese impact" and overall "no negative impact" to community health.

Arsenic impacts not well understood

In terms of arsenic two complicating factors have been raised.

One is that some foods — particularly seafood and rice — are high in arsenic and can cause short-lived spikes in test results.

The other is that arsenic comes in two forms — organic arsenic is found naturally in food and is considered not very toxic, but inorganic arsenic is what is in the soil and is thought to be much more dangerous.

A test to isolate which sort of arsenic is in the urine test is more expensive (about $80 a sample) and is not being conducted by either side.

This means it is difficult to tell how much arsenic is coming from the local diet and how much might be coming from the mine.

The issue is complicated and not well understood in the community.

One former subcontractor at the mine complained of extreme lethargy and showed the ABC bruises on his torso that he said was evidence of arsenic poisoning.

He could not remember the name of the doctor in Bangkok who told him he had arsenic poisoning.

The man referred the ABC to another doctor occasionally employed by the mine to collect specimens, but she said the bruising was an unrelated skin problem and his lethargy was cause by thyroid issues.

Campaigners claim up to 500 people have become sick and dozens have died, but did not provide evidence linking ill health to the mine.

Mining could continue for another two decades

The claims come as the mine's future hangs in the balance.

On May 13, the company's metallurgical license expires and operations could be stopped.

Thailand's military government is under considerable pressure in Bangkok over its plans to limit democratic systems and wants to be seen to care about the concerns of its citizens in the countryside.

"We came to listen to everyone," Thailand's Public Health Minister Piyasakol Sakolsatayadorn said as he fronted protesters.

"You complain that it's taking a long time but this decision must happen in one or two months from now, I guarantee it."

Mr Smyth-Kirk has tired to shrug off the impending decision.

"It's critical but it shouldn't be a major problem," he said.

Mr Smyth-Kirk said the mine had about seven years of production life left, but that the approval of other exploration permits could see operations continue for two decades.

Many local residents the ABC spoke to supported the mine for the economic opportunities it has brought.

"Since the beginning, when they started clearing the jungle, my three sons have been working with them," resident Khampan Lue-aye said.

"There are no health problems, it's all normal — when people are sick, the mine helps them."

But farmers opposing the mine are digging in their heels — backed by some academics and non-government groups in Bangkok — so it's likely the controversy will continue over the community impacts of gold mining in Thailand.

Liam Cochrane

abc.net

Thailand - Thailand destroys 1.2 mn doses of type-2 poliovirus vaccines

BANGKOK, 26 April 2016 (NNT) - The Ministry of Public Health has burnt 1.2 million doses of type-2 poliovirus vaccines and pledged to burn all of the vaccines nationwide by 28 April 2016 before new poliovirus vaccines are used.

According to the ministry, polio is a severe infectious disease caused by poliovirus type 1, 2 and 3. In the past, there were many hundreds of thousands of polio patients worldwide each year but last year, there were only two polio-affected countries—Afghanistan and Pakistan. As for Thailand, the last polio patient was found in April 1997 and the country remained free from the disease until now.

Since poliovirus type 2 has been eradicated worldwide, there is no need for type-2 poliovirus vaccines. New poliovirus vaccines will be used in Thailand from 29 April onwards.

The World Health Organization has set a time frame for each country to destroy type-2 poliovirus vaccines without contaminating the environment.

thainews

Thailand - Celebrated abroad, Thai universal health coverage faces challenges at home

Chakrabongse Villa in Old Bangkok was the perfect setting recently for the start of a new chapter in the long friendship between Japan and Thailand.

Listening to Health Minister Piyasakol Sakolsatayadorn's opening remarks on a relationship that "reaches back as far as the 17th century", distinguished guests may have nodded as they glanced across the darkening Chao Phraya River at the lit pagoda of the Temple of Dawn, celebrated in Japanese Nobel Laureate Yukio Mishima's eponymous novel.

The occasion was the alfresco signing of a joint project on universal health coverage between Thailand's Public Health Ministry and National Health Security Office and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). At the gathering were key backers of the project, including upper-house lawmaker Keizo Takemi and JICA adviser Kiyoshi Kodera.

The project is the latest in a long line of mutual assistance between Japan and Thailand dating back to the 1950s, JICA vice president Kae Yanagisawa noted. Initially confined to the fields of electric power, health and agriculture, the partnership has now expanded to the social and economic sectors. The donor-recipient nature of old has also been replaced by a collaboration that allows both sides to use their experience to help other countries.

For this latest project, a core objective is to help other nations achieve universal health coverage (UHC), one of the global sustainable development goals (SDGs). Thailand played a significant role in the push to make UHC a global goal, advocating for its inclusion in the list of SDGs at the World Health Assembly and UN General Assembly.

To achieve UHC, countries must improve all components that make up the health system - governance, financing, workforce, service, information and medicines - as well as tackling the non-health sectors that link with those components. The resulting impact of a well-functioning UHC is far-reaching, going beyond improvements to individuals' health, to helping solve unequal distribution of affordable and quality care.

Some critics dismiss UHC as an unrealistic goal that seeks a utopia of equality. More acute observers view it as an astute strategy to eradicate inequity one sector at a time, starting with health.

Thailand is known worldwide for achieving UHC ahead of other low- and middle-income countries. Run by the NHSO, our universal (Gold Card) scheme provides health coverage for almost 75 per cent of citizens who fall outside of other government-funded safety nets.

Praised by the UN and the World Health Organisation, Thai UHC has achieved success on a par with another of our celebrated acronyms, Otop - One Tambon, One Product.

Japan meanwhile has half a

century of UHC experience, with valuable lessons to offer on insurance management and the roles of central and local governments in health provision.

The combined expertise of Thailand and Japan could now be an invaluable tool for those middle-income countries currently considering launching their own universal healthcare.

One point worth noting is that the involvement of both Thai agencies is vital if this latest project is to succeed.

Thailand is facing new challenges such as increasing healthcare costs, different benefit packages, and purchasing mechanisms among the three main schemes, not to mention the impact of a rapidly ageing population on the health system. Sustainability, Adequacy, Fairness and Efficiency - SAFE - are now crucial goals for sustaining Thai UHC.

Finding a sweet spot for civil and deep conversations to reach these goals is important. And finding it will require that both the Health Ministry and the NHSO work together as true partners with a shared philosophy.

In this regard, the UHC partnership project could be an ideal platform for both sides to map out routes to that sweet spot.

As representatives from both Thai agencies ambled back to the Chakrabongse pavilion after the signing, conversation was no doubt already turning to this critical point.

Kanitsorn Sumriddetchkajorn

Kanitsorn Sumriddetchkajorn is director of the Bureau of International Affairs on Universal Health Coverage, National Health Security Office.

nationmultimedia

Thailand - Girding Thailand for a greying future

With Thailand ageing as fast as S. Korea and S'pore, but at a much lower income level, it is striving to avert a crisis

Under the shade of her tiny wood and corrugated metal hut in central Thailand, Ms Sala Phetnoy, 77, shuffles across the floor warily on her haunches.

Community volunteers drop in once in a while to coax the stroke patient to practise walking while holding onto the grab rails they installed outside her door, but there is a limit to how much they can help home-bound folks like her, under a healthcare system that focuses on patients who can visit hospitals and clinics.

Change could come soon, through a new long-term plan to care for the home-bound or bedridden elderly. The National Health Security Office (NHSO), which administers the country's universal healthcare scheme, has allocated an initial sum of 500 million baht (S$19.4 million) this fiscal year to fund home-based therapy and related care for 100,000 such patients.

Working with local administrative organisations and community healthcare volunteers, the NHSO plans to eventually expand the programme to cover all the estimated one million vulnerable elderly citizens in need of such help.

This is one of the Thai government's latest plans to cater to the greying population. By designing a system of localised care, the government hopes to control the future surge in healthcare expenditure.

"When (the elderly) go to the hospital, it will cost more," Ms Orajit Bumrungskulswat, an NHSO senior director, tells The Straits Times. "A better way is for them to stay at home or in the community."

Still, experts say a lot remains to be done in one of Asia's fastest ageing economies. Data from the United Nations shows that the proportion of Thais aged 60 years and above is expected to jump from 15.8 per cent last year to 37.1 per cent in 2050.

Projections by the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB), the state planning agency, show that the labour force - which had 39.16 million people last December - will shrink by an average of 0.4 per cent annually from next year to 2021. That in turn could shave 0.15 percentage point off the country's economic growth potential every year.

Meanwhile, rising costs are making manufacturers eye cheaper destinations next door even when local workers are not sufficiently skilled to move on to higher-value industries. This is creating conditions for what economists call a "middle-income trap".

SEVERE PROBLEM

The International Monetary Fund, in a country report released in May last year, warned: "The challenge Thailand is facing is unusually severe.

"The pace of demographic transition is similar to that in Korea and Singapore, but those countries are experiencing it at much higher levels of income. Among emerging economies in the region, only China's transition is almost as rapid, but China is developing considerably faster than Thailand."

It surmised: "Under every conceivable scenario, Thailand will grow old before growing rich."

Unlike Singapore, which raised its reemployment age, encouraged immigration, redesigned jobs and upgraded workers' skills to try and head off the worst of a greying-induced slowdown, Thailand had been too embroiled in political turmoil to address the looming demographic change early. The most recent upheaval took place in 2014, which ushered in a military coup and the current junta rule buttressed by a military-dominated legislature. Policymakers admit they are now playing catch-up.

"This is just the start of the process," says the NESDB's secretary- general, Dr Porametee Vimolsri.

The government, for example, is considering raising the retirement age of its employees from 60 to 65, while encouraging the private sector to hire older workers.

According to a Reuters report, the state's pension bill is expected to rise from 61.37 billion baht last year to 71.23 billion baht in 2020. But academics say the system is riddled with inconsistencies and they have been calling for an overhaul for years.

Although all elderly citizens not covered by pension plans get a government stipend, many feel the sum is too small. One of these recipients, Ms Aubon Suksa, 80, sells packets of tissue to passers-by from a canvas sheet under a pedestrian bridge in Bangkok's Siam Square shopping district. The elderly woman grimaces when asked if the 800 baht she gets a month is enough to live on.

"I use it only when I go to the hospital," she mutters. "Or I put it aside for my cremation."

Like Ms Aubon, some two-thirds of Thailand's working population make a living in the informal sector. They include farmers, motorcycle taxi drivers and casual labourers, who usually have little by way of savings unlike civil servants and private-sector employees, who are covered by pension plans or retirement savings schemes.

The government is trying to nudge this group to save more. Last August, it revived a long-frozen voluntary scheme called the National Savings Fund, where members' contributions are topped up by the state in varying proportions. Some 400,000 people signed up in the first six months - an encouraging sign that nevertheless indicates how daunting it is to provide financial security for the more than 20 million still outside the system.

STRUCTURAL ISSUES

A more immediate task is to review the tax system to generate income for elderly support, says Dr Jirawat Panpiemras, a research fellow at the Thailand Development Research Institute.

This would also entail tackling larger, structural issues. A greyer society needs to become more productive to stay ahead, but several conditions work against Thailand.

Agriculture, for example, employs about 40 per cent of the country's workforce, higher than less developed economies like Indonesia and the Philippines. Traditionally, the sector acts as a shock absorber in rough economic times, taking in those who cannot find work elsewhere. But that pool of underemployed labour, combined with previous administrations' generous farm support, has made Thailand's farm productivity lower than that of some of its less developed counterparts.

Meanwhile, the country is producing too many unqualified graduates, many of whom also crowd the social sciences courses to the detriment of science, engineering or other more technical fields that could power future growth. While Thailand has a low unemployment rate - 0.7 per cent in December - about half of those unemployed have a degree, says Dr Porametee. At the launch of a research incubator programme by seafood giant Thai Union Group last month, one of its executives complained that he found it difficult to find scientists to take part.

Then, there is the business of creating an elder-friendly physical environment. Ms Siriwan Aruntippaitune, an expert in the newly created Department of Older Persons, observes that the concept of universal design - which makes spaces accessible to people of all age groups and physical conditions - is still new to Thailand. Her department has worked with some local administrations to introduce elder-friendly facilities, but sometimes ends up with unsatisfactory results like ramps that are too steep to be used.

GOOD MODELS

Yet there are also good models around.

The municipality of Bueng Yitho, which services 33,000 residents in the central province of Pathum Thani, runs a small-scale community health centre and physiotherapy clinic that save patients the more expensive visit to larger hospitals farther away. For elderly patients with mobility problems, the doctor keeps up to date on their condition through regular reports by community healthcare volunteers who make home visits. Treatment is free for those registered under the universal healthcare scheme.

Meanwhile, the municipality has three senior activity centres within the 15.4 sq km under its jurisdiction. Membership is capped at 300 baht a year for the elderly, including use of its swimming pool.

When The Straits Times visited one of the centres earlier this month, it found it staffed by enthusiastic elderly volunteers like Mr Lak Uttikritachai.

The 68-year-old man used to have to struggle with debt trying to support his family while selling snacks on the streets.

Today, his two daughters are grown up and supplement his 600-baht monthly government stipend with a 4,000-baht allowance.

Mr Lak, who learnt Mandarin when he was young, gives free Mandarin classes to his compatriots at the centre.

"My life is pretty good now," he says. "So I try to help others."

Tan Hui Yee

straitstimes

Thailand - Thailand OKs bigger warnings on cigarette packs

AP News - BANGKOK (AP) — A court in Thailand has given the go-ahead to a new regulation requiring packs of cigarettes sold in the Southeast Asian country to be 85 percent covered with graphic health warnings.

Public Health Ministry executive Dr. Nopporn Cheanklin said Friday that the change will take effect in September.

Currently, warnings illustrating the dangers of smoking must cover 55 percent of each pack of cigarettes sold in Thailand. Last year, the health ministry issued a regulation increasing the level of coverage to 85 percent. Tobacco giant Philip Morris and more than 1,400 Thai retailers sued, and a court temporarily suspended the order. On Friday, the Supreme Administrative Court ruled that the regulation can take effect.

Opponents have argued that such warning labels are ineffective and put the burden on cigarette makers.