Health Insurance for Protecting Migrant Workers : Points of View from Social Capital of Thailand

Abstract

Health insurance coverage is an important factor of access to health care services of citizens in any home country and migrant workers in those destination countries. As the agreements between the countries are focused on the health aspect as a key dimension and it requires all destination countries have a health insurance system for migrant workers to approach services that could be considered as basic necessities by respecting their human dignity and human rights. This article aims (1) to understand the social capital, concepts of public health insurance system for Thais; (2) to clarify health insurance of Thailand for protecting the unskilled migrant workers from neighboring countries namely Myanmar, Lao PDR and Cambodia that this article points out the equity in health to them as well as the necessary conditions of Thai state to determine the access to health services of migrant workers; and (3) to explore the challenging suggestions to develop Thai health services system for migrant workers in the near future. The author always believes that even today there are many conventions and covenants at international, regional, and national levels that mentioned the rights to health for migrants already, but the most important preliminary concern is understanding to health dimension that each country has had a significant social capital previously. Probably, it will be the right direction and can be beneficial to learn and develop health insurance system that is appropriated to the contexts and the possibility for managing of those countries in the future truly. Ultimately, the development process of all health systems is not only healthy for migrant workers, but also health for all and all for health.