Thai hospital to open in Myanmar

Myanmar is seeking to attract overseas investors into its healthcare sector.

With demand for private healthcare services on the rise, the healthcare sector has been identified as a priority sector for investments by the government of Myanmar. This is despite many years of preventing private investment and closing the door on overseas investors.

Thailand’s Thonburi Healthcare Group, expects to open a hospital in Yangon by the end of June 2018. The $75 million, 200-bed facility is part of an $253 million investment plan to expand services in Thailand and other Southeast Asian nations.

Thai hospital operators seek opportunities in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, lured by urbanisation and a growing middle class that could be more profitable than Thailand’s ageing local population and price competitive medical tourism.

The health ministry has committed to strengthening the healthcare system and achieving universal health coverage, following the successful adoption of the Myanmar National Healthcare Plan from 2017-2021.

More direct investments are needed as public hospitals in Myanmar come under pressure from rising constraints and demand for private healthcare rises.

Myanmar patients are spending $6 million a year seeking medical treatment abroad due to the lack of hospitals specialising in cardiology, neurology, kidney transplants and urology. 150,000 Myanmar patients seek medical treatment overseas, mainly in Thailand and Singapore.