Growing pains of Malaysia's high healthcare costs

 29-Aug-16, The Edge Markets 

Healthcare costs have crept up at a rate of as much as 15% annually over the past three years - another rising living cost for of Malaysians.

Image: The Edge Markets / Malaysia Health Ministry / World Bank

The depreciation of the ringgit is partly to blame for the increasingly expensive medical bills in the country. This leads to longer queues in public hospitals, while in contrast, the number of patients at private hospitals has dropped 20%. This exposes the structural problem of the existing healthcare system.

Adding to the problem is the government’s tight budget. The government has trimmed healthcare spending to avoid a yawning budget deficit.

According to the Association of Private Hospitals of Malaysia, there is a pressing need to reform the country’s healthcare system to ensure better access to affordable medical treatment, considering that healthcare costs have increased at an annual rate of 10% to 15% in the last three years.

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