GEORGE TOWN: A new basic medical insurance and takaful scheme will be introduced nationwide next year, says Deputy Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Sim Tze Tzin.
He said the reforms follows concerns over rising medical insurance premiums and private hospital charges.
Sim said a joint committee comprising the Health Ministry, Bank Negara and Finance Ministry had announced five key strategies involving 12 initiatives to provide basic medical insurance to Malaysians who could afford it.
He said the government had also introduced Diagnosis Related Groups (DRG) to benchmark the cost of medical procedures.
“Previously, when conducting a medical procedure, hospitals would calculate every item used, including gloves, and charge patients accordingly.
“Under the new system, it will be a lump-sum payment, and hospitals will have to work within that amount. If the procedures are more or less the same, the costs should also be similar. There is no way to overcharge,” he told reporters after launching the Medtech Industry Summit 2026 yesterday.
Sim said another key measure was implementing electronic medical records (EMR), which would allow medical information to be accessed across healthcare facilities.
“EMR is important because we do not have to do an X-ray at one place, then go to another hospital and do it again, and then go to a government hospital and do it again.
“You do it once and it is already in the system, so all places can refer to the same X-ray. It saves costs and avoids duplication.
“When all these measures are rolled out next year, they will have a positive impact on the sharp increases in insurance premiums and private hospital costs.”
However, Sim said the reforms would take time to implement, particularly DRG, which is a complex system.
“We cannot simply overhaul healthcare, which involves people’s lives.”
It was reported earlier that a pilot of the scheme, known as MediAsas, began in the Klang Valley in late July and will run until October, ahead of the nationwide rollout in January.
The scheme offers basic coverage at monthly premiums of between RM60 and RM65, with premiums increasing according to age and selected options.
On another matter, Sim said Malaysia had about 300 medical device companies, with exports reaching RM34.54bil last year.
He said the industry needed to move further into higher-value activities and develop more homegrown companies.
“Malaysia is targeting more than RM50bil in medical device exports by 2030.
“Engineers and technologists can turn their expertise into startups, drive innovation and eventually become global players.
“Many small start-ups can be part of your ecosystem and help grow the entire medical technology sector in Malaysia.”
