Thaksin ‘paid for entire hospital stay’

Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra paid 8,500 baht a night for his room, along with all other medical expenses, for the entire six-month period that he stayed at Police General Hospital, an inquiry heard on Friday.
Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong discussed some of the details of the billionaire ex-premier’s detention in testimony before the House committee on state security, border affairs, national strategy and reform, chaired by People’s Party MP Rangsiman Rome.
The committee has been looking into claims that Thaksin received privileged treatment when it comes to healthcare, compared with other prisoners.
The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), meanwhile, has asked for medical records to verify whether Department of Corrections authorities were justified in transferring Thaksin to the police hospital from a prison facility on the first night of his detention.
Pol Col Tawee said the medical records are at the hospital, but the hospital must seek the patient’s consent before releasing them, under Section 7 of the National Health Act.
He said he had asked the hospital to disclose the relevant information within 120 days, adding that he personally had seen all of Thaksin’s records in the hospital database, including receipts.
The minister said he was happy to provide information to the committee as long as it had been legally obtained.
Thaksin returned to Thailand on Aug 22, 2023 after 15 years of self-imposed exile. That very day, the Supreme Court ordered him imprisoned for eight years — later shortened to one year under a royal pardon — for abuse of power and conflict of interest while serving as prime minister prior to 2006.
On the first night of his stay at the Bangkok Remand Prison, corrections doctors determined that he had to be transferred to Police General Hospital. He walked out of there six months later after meeting conditions for parole, having never spent a night behind bars.
On Friday Pol Col Tawee told the House committee that Thaksin’s transfer was reasonable, as the prison hospital was incapable of accommodating Thaksin’s complex medical condition.
He said Thaksin paid for his treatment by himself, even though the police hospital is registered with the universal health care programme, the signature achievement of Thaksin’s time in office from 2001-06.
Pol Lt Col Theerawat Panyathammakul, the committee secretary, said the room where Thaksin stayed cost 8,500 baht per day, which meant that he needed to pay at least 1.5 million baht for his 180-day stay.
In response, Pol Col Tawee said Thaksin also needed to pay medical fees.
Mr Rangsiman then asked about the person who approved Thaksin’s transfer, reportedly a doctor from the correctional hospital, whose identity was not revealed to the committee.
According to Pol Col Tawee, the doctor approved Thaksin’s health examination results at 11am on Aug 22, 2023, the first day of his detention, before he was moved to the police hospital on the same night.
Pol Col Tawee asked the committee not to reveal the results of the medical exam in detail, saying only that Thaksin’s condition is complex.
Mr Rangsiman then ordered a suspension for an off-the-record discussion before testimony resumed.
Pol Col Tawee also told the committee that the number of officers stationed outside Thaksin’s room complied with rules.
The former premier was placed in a special room for safety reasons given that he had been a target of assassination attempts in the past, a decision made by the national police chief.
Records of all visitors during Thaksin’s detention are available for review, he said.
Also invited to the hearing were Sahakarn Petchnarin, the director-general of the Department of Corrections; Pol Lt Gen Taweesilp Wechawitarn, the director of the police hospital; and Wattanachai Mingbancherdsuk, director of the Medical Correctional Institution.