A network of abortion rights and labour rights groups have demanded that the Social Security Office ensure access to abortion for individuals insured under the Social Security Scheme after they found that many individuals were turned away by hospitals or stigmatized by medical personnel for seeking abortions.

At a time when Thailand’s birth rate is falling and the government is encouraging people to have more children, a growing number of women have reportedly been fired after their employer-mandated pregnancy tests come back positive. Many have decided to get an abortion to avoid unemployment.