CRC/C/THA/CO/3-4 F. Disability, basic health and welfare (arts. 6, 18 (para. 3), 23, 24, 26 and 27 (paras. 1-3) of the Convention) Children with disabilities 56. The Committee welcomes the State party’s efforts to improve the quality of life of persons with disabilities by adopting the National Plan on Quality of Life Development for Persons with Disabilities of 2007–2011 and the Persons with Disabilities Education Act of 2008. It also welcomes the growing number of schools with inclusive education for children with disabilities. Notwithstanding, the Committee is seriously concerned about the large number of children with disabilities who are not in school and that youth policies do not identify them as special target groups. The Committee is also concerned at the limited proportion of children with disabilities who receive education beyond the pre-primary level. 57. The Committee recommends that the State party review the situation of children with disabilities in terms of their access to education services and give effective priority to the development of inclusive education over the placement of children in specialized institutions. It also recommends that the State party properly target children with disabilities in youth policies, taking into account the Committee’s general comment No. 9 (2006) on the rights of children with disabilities. Health care and health services 58. The Committee welcomes the achievements of the State party in implementing the Universal Healthcare Coverage Scheme, which ensures free medical treatment for most diseases for all Thai nationals, including children and in improving overall child nutrition. However, it remains seriously concerned about severe disparities in nutritional status among children depending on their families’ economic status, mothers’ education, linguistic background and geographic location. The Committee is also concerned that despite some improvements, iodine deficiency remains widespread. 59. The Committee urges the State party to accelerate measures to improve the nutrition of all children irrespective of their families’ economic status, mothers’ education, Thai or non-Thai linguistic background and geographic location in urban, rural or remote areas. In this regard, it encourages the State party to conduct an analysis of the causes and extent of under-nutrition of children in disadvantaged social groups. In addition, it recommends that the State party improve the nutritional status of children, inter alia, through control of iodine deficiency by, inter alia, introducing legislation and policies to achieve universal salt iodization (USI), and ensure compliance and universal consumption of iodized salt. Breastfeeding 60. The Committee is concerned that the breastfeeding rate at six months in extremely low (5 pre cent), while early initiation of breastfeeding is also at a low 50 per cent rate. It is further concerned that although there are voluntary measures, there is no legal regulation of the aggressive marketing and promotion of breast milk substitutes. 61. The Committee recommends that the State party strengthen and expand its efforts to promote the early initiation of breastfeeding, and exclusive and continued breastfeeding for six months by raising awareness and educating the public, particularly mothers, on the importance of breastfeeding and risks of artificial feeding. The Committee urges the State party to adopt legal regulation of the marketing activities for breast milk substitutes in accordance with the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes and ensure effective compliance and effective monitoring. In addition, it urges the State party to take measures to convert 12