KUALA LUMPUR: The Health Ministry is open to the proposal to set up a joint task force on increasing medical insurance premiums, says Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
Although such a task force has not yet been formed, the Health Minister said discussions on the issue of rising medical insurance premiums began several months ago.
"Looking forward to addressing the issue more completely and comprehensively, setting up such a task force should not be a problem. There may even be a need for it," he said.
Dr Dzulkefly said this when speaking at a press conference after launching the International Medical Device Exhibition and Conference 2024 on Tuesday (Dec 10).
He said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had not announced the formation of the task force during his reply on the issue during Prime Minister's Question Time in Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday.
"We will wait and see if an announcement will be made soon," he added.
Dr Dzulkefly was responding to calls by backbencher Bayan Baru MP Sim Sze Tzin and several others for setting up a joint task force to investigate if increasing medical insurance premiums are linked to the rising cost of private healthcare.
Sim said the Health Ministry and Bank Negara Malaysia should probe the matter, adding that the task force should include experts from the medical, actuarial science, and public health policy fields to investigate, study, and find a resolution.
On Tuesday, the Parliamentary Special Select Committee (PSSC) began its hearing on the issue of rising insurance premiums.
Meanwhile, on a review of the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998 (Act 586), Dr Dzulkefly said it would centre around Schedule 13 of the Act regarding professional fees in relation to payments and reimbursements involving private healthcare providers.
Schedule 13 of the Act contains a comprehensive professional fee schedule covering consultations, non-specialist general practitioners, and specialists.
Dr Dzulkefly said this would also include the publication of costs imposed on diagnosis-related groups (DRG), a practice adopted in developed countries such as the US, UK, and Japan.
He said DRG would relate more to price disclosure rather than price control, allowing the public to be more aware of specific medical treatment and procedure costs.
"The issue of medical insurance premiums is now a national conversation. This is very good as it shows a high level of literacy among Malaysians on the issue. With the DRG, Malaysians will be able to make better comparisons regarding the cost of medical treatment and procedures," he added.
