KUALA LUMPUR: Help to control increasing healthcare costs for the benefit of the rakyat, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad urges the private healthcare sector.
He said that it has been challenging to control medical inflation, which is currently around 12.5%, which is relatively higher than in recent years.
“Even though there are some measures of control in terms of doctors fees, it is alarming to note that the hospital fees have increased very significantly.
“The impact to the rakyat is high, so there must be further discussion to ensure the prices of medical services in private healthcare can be more reasonable,” he said when launching the Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia Fact Book here on Wednesday (Nov 13).
Dr Dzulkefly, however, acknowledged the contributions of the private healthcare facilities, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic where the private hospitals served as immunisation centres and helped alleviate strain on the public hospitals.
“These partnerships extend beyond secondary and tertiary services to include pre-hospital care, ambulatory services, and primary care; highlighting the importance of public-private partnerships in driving healthcare reform in Malaysia,” he added.
In a press conference later, the minister also urged individuals from the upper-income brackets to get health insurance, as opposed to out-of-pocket expenditure.
“I believe for one that out-of-pocket expenditure would be one that is truly inflationary.
“So it's best that we all in the ministry would want to encourage, especially the upper middle and the T20s or T15 to get themselves subscribed to health insurance,” he said.
Previously, it was reported that Bank Negara said Malaysia recorded a medical cost inflation rate of 12.6% last year, which is much higher than the global average of 5.6%.
