YSK practically all private hospitals in Thailand are owned by one group Bangkok Dusit Medical Services (BDMS)

[u/tuktukson]

• You should know that BDMS controls over 60 private hospitals. Some big ones are Bangkok Hospital, Samitivej Hospital, Phyathai Hospital, Paolo Hospital, and BNH.
• One notable exception is Bamrungrad that is not yet bought despite multiple serious attempts by BDMS. Another exception is MedPark.
• BDMS started Bangkok Hospital about 50 years ago before slowly acquiring all these private hospitals.
• Medical record maybe shared between the hospitals. That may not be a good thing for medical insurance and pre-existing conditions.
• Both patients and doctors can be squeezed which such controlling monopoly. If a doctor is blacklisted by BDMS for whatever reason, they will have a very hard time finding work in the private sector.

[u/mdsmqlk]

There are over 400 private hospitals in Thailand, with at least 250 in Bangkok alone.

So not all by a long shot. Many, yes.

[u/Timsahb → u/mdsmqlk]

Yeah 'all' is a big stretch

[u/Schlickeysen → u/Timsahb]

Clickbait heading.

[u/e99oof]

There are at least 20 listed companies that are hospitals. It doesn't take that much effort to verify this information. Why are you doing this?

Even without looking it up, don't you find it sus that Bamrungrad, Praram 9, Sikarin, etc aren't in your list?

[u/badderdev → u/e99oof]

and Vibhavadi.

[u/d70]

This YSK is false info.

[u/patrickv116]

Off the top of my head: there are at least 2 more private hospitals in Khon Kaen (just in the city) that are not on your infographic: Ratchaphruek Hospital and Khon Kaen Ram. Both provide excellent private service. There might be more.

So yes: if you use an infographic from BDMS, then you only see BDMS hospitals. How you extrapolate that to “practically all private hospitals in Thailand” is baffling to say the least.

[u/obidie]

Downvoting this clickbait bullshit.

[u/jonez450reloaded]

Both patients and doctors can be squeezed which such controlling monopoly.

There is no monopoly - you're making things up. BDMS owns 60 private hospitals as of August this year, although two of those are in Cambodia. There were 440 licensed private hospitals in Thailand as of September 2024, meaning BDMS owns 13.2% of private hospitals in Thailand based on the 2024 figure.

[u/PoxyDogs]

Stupid title.

[u/Only4uArt]

Maybe they will squeeze us one day. But for now I am extremely satisfied with their services and the 2000 baht monthly insurance I have covers all I need and gives me far better services then in the west. I am in the hat yai one , not bangkok

[u/rus_tob_xi → u/Only4uArt]

Mind if I ask what is the 2000 baht monthly insurance?

[u/Only4uArt → u/rus_tob_xi]

i would have to ask my wife who set it up for me.
but I really can't complain. keep in mind I have a thai nationality even tough I didn't grew up in thailand. On top of that my wife is a government employee.

but even then a insurance for foreigners with the same benefits shouldn't be much different,
probably a Standard Local Thai Health Insurance Plan.

[u/cs_legend_93 → u/Only4uArt]

Can you speak Thai? That's so cool. Your wife is really smart

[u/show76]

OMG!1! What ever shall we do!

Thailand is full of duopolies and mega corps controlling everything.

[u/deuxbulot]

I don’t see Vejthani anywhere here.

It’s one of the best private hospitals I’ve tried in BKK.

[u/mdsmqlk → u/deuxbulot]

It's not a BDMS hospital.

[u/si_de]

“Practically all” is hyperbole. A simple Google search would've helped you get at least some facts eg Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health counted 347 private hospitals/medical establishments with inpatient beds in 2024. BDMS currently operates 60 hospitals in total, including its Cambodian hospitals.

BDMS is the largest private hospital group, not some monopoly as you disingenuously imply. If you want to be taken seriously then offer proper info.

It sounds like you have an agenda.

[u/icecreamshop]

I don't see Theptarin, Sukhumvit, or Ruamjairak. All private hospital I visit.

[u/Schlickeysen]

And why exactly do I have to know this?

[u/Cautious_Ticket_8943]

They own the best hospital in Cambodia too.

[u/lodgedmouse]

The Bangkok hospital network has provided phenomenal care for me and my family at reasonable rates and accepts my employer provided insurance. Im glad theres a lot of them cause when i got hurt in huahin they had my records already on file from my regular hospital up north.

[u/Available-Visit5775]

Wow why are there so many private hospitals in one city

[u/betterthannothing123 → u/Available-Visit5775]

They are developing the medical tourism sector. Better than some nearby less developed countries and cheaper than some nearby more developed countries.

[u/Woolenboat]

Bro wants us to fear hospitals like it’s controlled by CP

[u/Fragrant-Exchange-54]

Monopoly

[u/Sudden-Yard-2429]

There are more, but if you mean none to this scale or close to this scale then yeah. Others only have 1. I think the next biggest network is Thonburi Hospital.

[u/Prestigious_Sea_5121]

Yes, I've also pointed this out on Reddit and to friends and colleagues. It's a practical monopoly in many areas and they overcharge enormously. It's a very greedy, corrupt company. Not dissimilar to many U.S. hospitals. I'd also like to point out one thing many commentators here seem to ignore about Thailand: the country is not just Bangkok. In many places, only a few large corporations have a monopoly in almost every sector. Due to its size, there is more competition in Bangkok. Many people here seem to be very "Bangkok-centric" in their thinking. In addition, don't compare prices to your own purchasing power: The average Thai earns a tenth of the average income in many Western countries. But the prices are not a tenth, they are much higher. So purchasing power is considerably lower.

[u/_I_have_gout_ → u/Prestigious_Sea_5121]

Not sure what you meant by monopoly in many areas. I live in Phattanakarn and you could say Smitivej have a monopoly in my area, that is unless I want to drive a bit further and go to sirinhorn, which is 8km away.

In Thailand there are 2x-3x the amount of public hospital vs private. The public hospital in most cases is never too far away unless you are in a middle of nowhere. And if you are in the middle of nowhere, it's unlikely there will be a private hospital there.

[u/motioncat → u/_I_have_gout_]

Samitivej is part of BDMS group.

[u/e99oof → u/motioncat]

His point is that Samitivej may have a monopoly in his neighborhood, but he could drive a block away to a hospital that is NOT part of BDMS. Healthcare in this country is nowhere close to having a monopoly.

[u/mdsmqlk → u/_I_have_gout_]

They probably don't mean in Bangkok, but in smaller cities like Trat or Chanthaburi where Bangkok Hospital is the only choice for private healthcare.

But yes, there are always public options anyway.

[u/e99oof → u/mdsmqlk]

It's monopoly on one side, it's race to the bottom on the other. If a market is big enough, there'll be alternative hospitals.

What we should be concern is IF the government is working on some regulation that promote monopoly. My understanding is that it's the opposite, healthcare probably should be more restrictive and regulated based on some malpractice story I see posted in this sub.

[u/Pjeoneer]

Another W for Bumrumgrad