On the 7th of June 2026, the National Health Security Office (NHSO) of Thailand announced that Thailand’s Universal Healthcare Scheme (also known as the B30 Scheme or Gold Card), now provides Gender Affirming Healthcare to Thai transgender and gender-diverse citizens.
The Universal Coverage Scheme is the largest of Thailand’s three healthcare programmes that provide low-cost healthcare for Thai citizens, which has also expanded to include stateless indigenous and ethnic groups within Thailand in 2024.
The programme provides gender-affirming hormone therapy alongside appropriate clinical monitoring and healthcare support, helping ensure transgender and gender-diverse people can access safe, evidence-based care through Thailand’s Universal Healthcare Scheme.
According to APTN data, there are about 314,808 transgender people living in Thailand who may benefit from this initiative, but exact population data is limited.
The NHSO estimates that the programme will initially provide hormone therapy to around 20,000 transgender individuals each year, marking an important first step towards expanding equitable access to gender-affirming healthcare.
While the policy has sparked debate over public healthcare priorities, with some questioning whether limited healthcare funding should be directed towards hormone therapy or treatments for life-threatening conditions, APTN believes this presents a false choice. Universal healthcare should not pit one group of patients against another, and access to medically necessary healthcare should not depend on whose health needs are perceived as more urgent.
Gender-affirming hormone therapy is evidence-based healthcare recognised by the World Health Organization, and expanding access helps prevent unsafe self-medication, improves health outcomes, and addresses longstanding inequities in access to healthcare, particularly for trans and gender-diverse people living outside major cities.
Rather than competing for limited resources, all communities deserve a healthcare system that is adequately funded, equitable, and responsive to their healthcare needs.
APTN wholeheartedly applauds this decision made by the Thai National Health Security Office – it dramatically increases the accessibility and affordability of medical transitioning procedures for trans and gender-diverse people, while ensuring that their health and mental wellbeing is taken care of as well.
During a time when anti-gender movements are rising in other countries, Thailand’s decision demonstrates that expanding access to healthcare, protecting human rights, and strengthening public health can go hand in hand.
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