KUALA LUMPUR: The appointment of 4,500 contract doctors to permanent positions will be carried out in several phases next year, said Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
The Health Minister lauded the Budget 2026, describing it as a "morale booster" in addressing the long-standing issue surrounding the fate of contract doctors.
"What was important was related to human resource matters in the approach taken to uplift the spirit of our personnel.
"This will directly inject the morale and pride of doctors who were previously viewed as contract doctors, but will now be given permanent positions," he said when met after the Budget 2026 announcement in Parliament on Friday (Oct 10).
He said that the mechanism of how it will be implemented has yet to be decided.
"It will likely be carried out in three tranches involving 1,500 contract doctors initially, followed by another 1,500 and the remaining 1,500 by the end of next year," he said.
He added that the move would mean that a total of 12,900 contract doctors would have been appointed to permanent positions by the ministry so far.
Another morale booster, Dzulkefly said, was increasing the On-Call Allowance (ETAP) for healthcare personnel.
"There had not been an increase in the ETAP for almost 14 years, which will now see an increase of about 40% whether on active or passive call from the additional RM120mil allocation," he said.
The new ETAP rates will be effective this Oct 1.
Dzulkefly also noted that consultation fees for general practitioners, which had been unchanged since 2006, will be increased.
The revised rates will be between RM10 and RM80, from the previous RM10 to RM35 range.
He said that the move is a recognition of doctors in the private sector who are also part of the nation's healthcare system.
On another note, Dzulkefly also lauded the move to channel revenue derived from increases in sin tax for tobacco and alcohol to the ministry, which is to be used to address related diseases.
