The drug shortage at Sansai Hospital in Chiang Mai is finally starting to loosen its grip, with the hospital handing out its first batch of backlogged medication today after weeks of patients showing up short on what their doctors had actually prescribed.
Patients and relatives lined up for queue tickets this morning (September 15) as the hospital began distributing the medicine it owed people, the result of a push to settle outstanding debts with pharmaceutical suppliers and borrow stock from other hospitals in the meantime. Supplies have been trickling back into the hospital’s storeroom as a result, apparently enough to start catching up.
Staff set up a dedicated distribution point in the old emergency room area, separate from the regular pharmacy counter, to keep the crowds from piling up in one place. Pharmacists and support staff were on hand to keep things moving, and by midday more than 300 people had already come through. The process itself is simple: bring the medicine envelope showing what’s still owed, along with a national ID card, and staff hand over the rest.
Hospital staff say the situation is improving step by step and that they’re doing what they can to keep the disruption to patients as minimal as possible, while thanking the public for its patience.
A few details on how it’s being handled:
The backlog distribution point runs from September 15–25, 2026.
Patients registered for mail delivery will keep receiving their medicine by post as usual, sent to the address on file.
