Bangkok International Hospitals: JCI List and Insurance

Call 1669 for an ambulance in a medical emergency. JCI's directory lists Bumrungrad, Bangkok Hospital Headquarters, Samitivej Sukhumvit and BNH as accredited under its Hospital Program. Each hospital sets its own deposit and insurer rules, so read the hospital's own page before you go.

By Vincent Nguyen and team

Emergency: call 1669 first

1669 is the number for a medical emergency in Thailand. 1669 serves critical emergency patients outside a medical facility. If the emergency starts inside a medical facility, that facility’s own system handles the patient. For the other national numbers, see Thailand emergency numbers.

What happens when you call

The officer assesses whether the case is an emergency illness before sending a team. A case assessed as critical gets a team sent, and the patient goes to the nearest hospital. A team cannot always be sent: if the case is not a real emergency, the officer may advise other services.

What to say

• Stay calm and call 1669.
• Say what happened and what kind of patients or injuries there are.
• Give the location and route to the scene clearly.
• Give sex, age range, symptoms and the number of patients or injured.
• Say how conscious the patient is.
• Give your name and a phone number that can be reached.

Contact your insurer

Contact your travel provider and insurer if you are involved in a serious incident or emergency abroad.

JCI-accredited hospitals in Bangkok

JCI’s own directory, filtered to Thailand, lists these Bangkok hospitals as accredited under the Hospital Program. The date is the effective date shown in the directory.

JCI accreditation is a hospital program status, not a price or a promise about your treatment. Use the list to shortlist, then read each hospital’s own payment page below.

Bumrungrad: deposit and insurer rules

Bumrungrad Hospital is at 33 Sukhumvit 3 in the JCI directory. It discusses the cost of procedures with self-pay patients before care begins. It has one pricing system, and patients of all nationalities pay the same price.

Deposits

A full deposit is required for all procedures including CT, MRI and PET scans. An estimated initial deposit is required for general medicine admissions. Excess deposit is refunded once the procedure is done.

The hospital accepts cash, credit cards and debit cards. A cheque is accepted only if it is a cashier cheque.

Insurance

Many, not all, of the insurers Bumrungrad has contracts with allow direct billing. Otherwise you pay first, usually with a deposit, and are reimbursed later. You must contact your own insurer to learn whether direct billing is allowed and for which procedures.

For an insurer with a contract, the hospital contacts the insurer on admission and tells you the status within 48 hours. You pay a full deposit if no guarantee letter arrives within 48 hours. If no letter comes within 7 business days of discharge, the hospital uses the deposit to settle the bill.

With a non-contracted insurer you pay and claim from the insurer directly. If your insurer works with a contracted assistance company such as International SOS or Mondial, the hospital can most likely work through it for direct billing.

The 24-hour line for emergencies, appointments and ambulance is +66 2066 8888, and 1378 works inside Thailand only.

Samitivej Sukhumvit: pay and claim

Samitivej Sukhumvit Hospital is on the JCI list. The majority of its international patients are eligible for pay and claim reimbursement.

Under pay and claim, the hospital gives you the paperwork on discharge, and you claim reimbursement from your insurer. To arrange insurance payment in advance, email scans of your insurance card, front and back, and a valid passport or photo ID to the International Customer Service Department.

The International Insurance Department is on the 7th floor of Samitivej Sukhumvit Hospital.

BNH: emergency department and hotel call

BNH Hospital is at 9/1 Convent Road, Silom, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500. The emergency department is on floor 1 and gives 24-hour medical care and trauma treatment for adults and children.

The emergency hotline 02-632-1000 runs 24/7, and BNH will dispatch an ambulance if necessary. The ambulance service operates 24/7 anywhere in Bangkok. The medical team can come directly to your hotel room.

BNH offers multilingual support in English, Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Burmese, Bahasa and Arabic. Its insurance team helps with travel insurance and international medical claims.

Bangkok Hospital Headquarters: emergency centre and insurers

Bangkok Hospital Headquarters is at 2 Soi Soonvijai 7, New Petchburi Road, Huaykwang, Bangkok 10310. Its Emergency Service Center takes emergency cases of every severity, from disease to trauma. After the 20:00 to 00:00 COMFY ZONE hours, the Trauma Center serves 24/7.

The contact center is 1719 for local calls only, or +662 310 3000. Patients with private health insurance, Thai or international, are eligible for treatment under official collaboration with insurers.

The hospital works with hundreds of travel insurers for cashless emergency care, according to the terms of the policy. Cigna International and BUPA International are on its contracted list. It reserves the right to refuse certain policies or insurers.

For planned inpatient treatment, contact the hospital to verify coverage before treatment. Pay any expenses outside your insurance cover yourself.

Public hospital option: Chulalongkorn

King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital belongs to the Thai Red Cross, and its inpatient department serves patients seeking emergency care. Bring identification that includes a passport.

Patients paying cash are a payment category. A patient with no relatives with them is still eligible for treatment. For foreign patients treated for a long period, the hospital helps coordinate with the Department of Consular Affairs.

Payment and insurance checklist

• Call 1669 for an ambulance in a medical emergency.
• Carry your insurance card and a passport copy, which Samitivej asks you to email in advance.
• Ask your insurer whether the hospital has a direct billing contract.
• Expect a deposit if you pay yourself at Bumrungrad.
• Expect to pay first and claim later at Samitivej.
• Check Bangkok Hospital’s contracted list for your insurer.

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Not confirmed: Emergency deposit amount: ask the hospital for the figure before an elective visit, because it is not stated for an emergency walk-in. Direct billing: ask the hospital whether it bills your own insurer, and ask your insurer whether it will pay the hospital.

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