PUTRAJAYA: The Health Ministry has received approval to increase the On-Call Duty Allowance (ETAP) for healthcare workers and an announcement on the matter will be made later, says Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
The Health Minister stressed that the welfare aspect of healthcare workers has always been fought for and has been his priority throughout his leadership at the ministry.
"We have already received approval for the increase in the active allowance or ETAP, we just need to announce the amount, I have been asked to wait for the announcement," he said.
He told reporters this after launching the National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2024: Nutrition at MOH here Thursday (April 24).
ETAP is compensation for additional responsibilities carried out by medical officers in treating patients while on-call at hospitals after normal working hours.
In addition, Dzulkefly said that the ministry had also received approval regarding the fee schedule involving private clinics and hospitals.
Regarding the claim that the Health Ministry held a large-scale Hari Raya celebration and invited famous artists, he stressed that the appearance of Datuk Seri Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin was through the platform of Yayasan Nurjiwa.
He said that the Health Ministry did not pay Biduanita Negara to perform while Datuk Jamal Abdillah was only given a small token.
"This (Hari Raya event) is also to celebrate the senior citizens of the Health Ministry not only from Putrajaya but other places as well," he said.
Previously, several news portals criticised Dzulkefly and his ministry for spending a lot for their Hari Raya ceremony, including inviting famous artists including Siti Nurhaliza.
Following this, Siti Nurhaliza explained that her presence at the event was as a guest, not as an officially invited artist to perform. — Bernama
