OCTOBER 29 — It is good to note that health has been prioritised and that an allocation of RM32.4 billion has been allocated to the Health Ministry which is second only to the Education Ministry.
The additional RM2 billion each towards the cost of the immunisation program and for the capacity building of public health services is also appreciated.
Outsourcing of services to the private hospitals as well as hospitals under the various ministries is a good move and ought to be expanded.
Procurement of antiviral medication for the diseases caused by various viruses should also look at medical therapeutics which are low cost but equally effective.
The National Immunisation Program has been a success and it should be continued and expanded to include even more vaccine preventable diseases.
Noting that the government may not be able to continue giving the Covid-19 vaccine for free, the tax relief given to individuals and the tax deduction given to employers towards the cost of self -procured Covid-19 vaccines is welcome though the vaccines should still be provided free for those in the B40s.
The continuation of ‘Agenda Nasional Malaysia Sihat’ means that non communicable diseases has not been forgotten. Of additional delight is that rare diseases has also been noted and being acted upon.
We have been talking about extending the sugar tax as well as imposing excise duties on nicotine containing vape liquids or gels and it is noted that this is being taken care of. However, it will be good if eventually such excise duties are channelled towards the budget needed to manage diseases related to sugar consumption and cigarette smoking or vaping.
We have sought for an extension of the contract for medical officers to between 7-10 years. However an extension of 2-4 years have been given to give the medical officers an opportunity to specialise. MMA will continue our discussion with the government on this issue.
The allocation of RM100 million towards the sponsorship of specialisation courses slated to benefit 3,000 medical and dental officers is a welcome piece of news.
Mental health continues to be given importance and rightly so as seen by the mental health devastation which was brought on by this pandemic. Tax relief for psychiatric treatment and psychological counselling will help a long way in managing the mental health of our nation.
Not forgotten are also the victims of domestic violence, the end result of which is managed by the health sector, be it physical or mental injury. It is timely that this forgotten group is taken care of.
Undernourishment of urban children can never be understated as these children are our future. We need a healthy nation of the future and programs tackling this is good.
* Dr. Koh Kar Chai is president of the Malaysian Medical Association.
** This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
