Ministry proposes national health insurance to help pay Malaysia’s medical bills

KUALA LUMPUR, June 13 — The Health Ministry is proposing a progressive contribution scheme to diversify funding for public healthcare services and institute much-needed reforms in the sector over the next 15 years.

In the Health White Paper released on the Parliament website today, it said existing allocations for healthcare were insufficient to meet the rising demands on the system at present and in the future.

The paper said the dependency on a single source for public healthcare funding is unsustainable against the rising healthcare needs of the ever-changing Malaysian demographics.

“This allocation must be increased in order to realise the much-needed healthcare reforms while taking account of the government’s fiscal capabilities.

“The government’s role in this aspect is crucial to ensure Universal Health Care (UHC) is upheld and provides guarantees to individual financial risk when one is struck with illness.

“Thus, a form of social compact will be proposed in order for investments towards healthcare to become a joint responsibility,” the 57-page document said.

The paper therefore said healthcare funding from various sources including the government, individuals and corporations under public administration needed to be improved in stages to five per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

It said the mechanism will be studied, debated and presented in Parliament for eventual bipartisan support.

The mechanism is expected to be implemented within the next 10 years (second phase) of the healthcare reforms, with studies and structural proposals to be deliberated in the first five years (first phase).

Apart from the aforementioned mechanism, the paper also recommended suitable pro-health taxes to be introduced to institute behavioural changes and contribute to government funding of the healthcare sector.

The paper also said the low fee rate charged at various public healthcare facilities have contributed to inequality between payment charges with service cost and one’s capability of paying, especially among higher-income households.

“To strengthen the sustainability of public healthcare funding, the fees charged at public healthcare facilities will be reviewed to better match the level of affordability,” it said.