Locals in Arakan State hard-hit by high medical costs

By Admin 01 Aug 2025

DMG Newsroom

1 August 2025, Minbya

Locals in Arakan State, which is under blockade by Myanmar's military regime, are facing hardship due to a shortage of medicine and a lack of functioning hospitals, with travel costs of at least K600,000 to reach a hospital for medical treatment.

Kyauktaw, Mrauk-U, and Minbya townships in Arakan State have an adequate range of health workers and medical supplies, and residents from other townships often travel to these areas for medical treatment.

But locals say that due to travel barriers, getting to these townships for medical treatment is difficult and expensive.

"Due to travel barriers, travel costs are more expensive than medical costs. For those who have to visit the hospital frequently due to their medical condition, they have to mortgage their homes and farms for medical treatment," said a local woman in Kyaukphyu Township.

Locals from southern Arakan State townships such as Kyaukphyu and Ramree face a minimum round-trip cost of between K600,000 and K1 million per person for medical treatment in Mrauk-U, and travel delays are also causing problems for emergency patients.

Locals say they are concerned about security as they cannot easily travel to Sittwe, Kyaukphyu, Manaung, and mainland Myanmar, which are still under military regime control, for medical treatment, and face strict inspections, threats, and potential arrest.

Residents from Buthidaung, Maungdaw, Rathedaung, and Pauktaw townships also face difficulties due to high costs when traveling to Mrauk-U and Kyauktaw for medical treatment.

"The round trip cost over K400,000," said a woman from Buthidaung who receives medical treatment in Kyauktaw. "In the meantime, we had to wait for about a week [in Kyauktaw] because it wasn't our turn to get treatment, so we also had to spend money on food and living expenses."

As patients from other townships come to Kyauktaw, Mrauk-U, and Minbya for medical treatment, many have to wait for days before receiving medical treatment, leading to additional expenses for lodging and food.

The junta has imposed a blockade on medicine and food supplies to Arakan State, as well as conducting airstrikes on hospitals, schools, and religious buildings, putting the lives of local residents at risk for multiple reasons.

"The military regime is using various means to suppress the people during the revolution, so if they only knew where the medical facilities were, they could be bombed at any time. Another challenge is the availability of medicine, so it is difficult to have doctors everywhere," said a healthcare worker in Kyaukphyu Township.

Customary international humanitarian law requires any armed organisation to protect civilians and bars them from attacking, abducting or using civilians as human shields, or targeting civilian dwellings.

The military regime has been accused of war crimes in its ongoing campaign against armed resistance groups and civilian populations across the country.

To provide healthcare services in Arakan State, the Department of Public Health of the United League of Arakan/Arakan Army (ULA/AA) says it is recruiting health workers, providing medical training, and increasing staff capacity.