Part VII: Giving the poor the access to private practice

Part 1: 1-CARE: Scouting in the dark

Part 2: 1-CARE: Who pays for it?

Part 3: 1-CARE: Is it fair for the people to pay?

Part 4: 1-CARE: The way I would do it?

Part 5: 1-CARE: The interview

Part 6: 1-CARE: Understand the people’s worry and manage it

The sales pitch of MOH is that they want to give poor patients access to private medical services. Isn’t that a noble idea? If indeed that is the plan than why is the public complaining? Why would the GP and the private hospitals making noise when they can get more business? Have these private practitioners lost their brain? Let us revisit this issue from a basic perspective. The intention is for the government to help the poor to have access to private healthcare. How can the government do it?

They can start by helping the poor to have private insurance cover. The government can start by buying the low-end benefits of group private insurance products in the market. Such products start as low as RM250 per year per person. Assuming that there are 5 mill poor people in this country, it would cost the government RM1.25 bill a year. In the context of the total government budget, the amount is a pittance. If we take into account of the leakages within the government, I would say it in relative it is almost nothing.

Instead of doing things the simple straight approach manner, they are going-around in circles in doing it. Why? This is a question that no a soul in the FG wants to give a clear and simple answer. The day the poor can enter the private hospital that is the place that they will go. They will abandon the government hospital. In their mind, why should they go to a facility that has long queues and very long waiting time for services? That will reduce the congestion at government hospitals and everyone will be happy. They will travel from some Felda estates and goes to hospitals like Gleneagles.

The second option the government has is to upgrade the services at their hospitals to the level of the private hospitals. When they do this, the rich and the poor will see no difference in service between the two and they will go to the most convenient medical facility. The rich already has private insurance therefore the government can make more money by charging them at private hospital rates. The poor who carries “a poor man card” will enjoy the same facility at low cost. Everyone will be happy. The only drawback is that under the second approach, the government will spend more but since they are as good as the private hospitals, they will make more money as those who are rich and with insurance will go there and they can charge a commercial rate.

By implementing the above models BN will win the next 3 GE with hands down.  The poor and the rich will ensure that they stay there. Everyone would say that this is a caring government, as they are not burdening the people at large. The government is helping without shifting the cost to the people. Why are they not doing any of the above? The simple answer is that the issue of providing private healthcare is secondary to passing the medical burden directly to the people. Healthcare reform must be done in a manner that gives minimal inconvenience to the people. However based on the information that I have the government is not doing in that manner. It is rather unfortunate.