Using funds effectively for healthcare

Funds for the fight: Some of the RM100mil allocated for infectious disease research should go towards epidemiological modelling of the current pandemic to assist in fighting the current wave of Covid-19 infections. — Reuters

THE allocation for health services in the 2021 Budget can be found across several ministries – Health, Higher Education, Defence and Rural Development. The lion’s share, of course, goes to the Health Ministry – but there is a slight reduction in operating expenditure from RM27.9bil in 2020 to RM27.2bil in 2021.

As expected, the government has made provisions for immediate requirements for fighting the Covid-19 pandemic, such as to procure vaccines for the population. The amount directly committed to fighting Covid-19 in 2021 is RM1bil, slightly less than that allocated for 2020, but there is an additional RM3bil that has been earmarked for Covid-19 vaccines.