Chua's response to blitz raises more questions
Health Minister Chua Soi Lek has responded to the Coalition's leafleting blitz yesterday by arguing that the proposal to allow government specialists to provide private treatment to patients after working hours does not amount to privatisation.
Chua says that only 20 specialists (out of 10,000 government doctors) will be allowed to offer private treatment, but remember, the two hospitals involved, Putrajaya and Selayang, are part of a pilot run, which may later be extended to other hospitals.
At first glance, the proposal to allow government specialists to provide private treatment may not look appear like outright privatisation. But it is privatisation in the sense that the government is privatising the financing of the wage increments for these specialists.
Instead of increasing health care spending from the pathetic 2 per cent of GDP to 5 per cent as recommended by the World Health Organisation (thus allowing government doctors to be paid more), the government wants patients to pay more.
If the experience of other countries is any guide, patients will still have to put up with long queues to see government specialists. But more affluent patients will most likely be able to cut the queue by enlisting for "private treatment", which will enable them to obtain prompt treatment from the same specialists. These more affluent patients will most likely also be able to "choose" the most experienced or accomplished specialists. Will this be fair to low-income patients who will have to settle for inferior treatment? Can the Ministry guarantee that this won't happen?
This mentality of asking patients to pay more (instead of increasing budget allocations) reveals the neo-liberal mindset of the government. This mindset can be seen in several moves over the last 14 months to push the health care financing burden on to patients, namely:
- the proposal to set up private dispensaries in government hospitals;
- the proposal to get foreigners (including migrant workers) to pay first-class rates in government hospitals; and
- the budget focus on boosting health tourism in the country.
He said it is to help the specialists earn more money, optimise their professions and skills, and stop them from being "abused" by patients who can afford to pay for their specialised services.
Saying some non-governmental organisations and opposition political parties are politicising the issue, Chua explained that the country has about 10,000 government doctors and only fewer than 20 may be entitled to offer private treatment only at the Putrajaya and Selayang hospitals.
He said the move has yet to be implemented and it is still being discussed.
"Thus, it is impossible for the coalition to say the move will affect the training provided by the specialists to housemen and the quality or standard of a hospital," he said.
Chua said the ministry will also have guidelines for specialists who will be involved in the business to ensure private patients are not given priority.
He said priority will only be given based on clinical condition or specific requirements by the patients.
"There are rich people who go to the hospitals to have operations and it is reasonable to make them pay more.
"For example, a liver transplant operation will cost around RM3,000 in the Selayang Hospital.
"The same operation will cost around RM200,000 in private hospitals," he said after launching courtesy courses and training modules for the ministry's service counters.
Read the full article from theSun.
Chua says that only 20 specialists (out of 10,000 government doctors) will be allowed to offer private treatment, but remember, the two hospitals involved, Putrajaya and Selayang, are part of a pilot run, which may later be extended to other hospitals.
At first glance, the proposal to allow government specialists to provide private treatment may not look appear like outright privatisation. But it is privatisation in the sense that the government is privatising the financing of the wage increments for these specialists.
Instead of increasing health care spending from the pathetic 2 per cent of GDP to 5 per cent as recommended by the World Health Organisation (thus allowing government doctors to be paid more), the government wants patients to pay more.
If the experience of other countries is any guide, patients will still have to put up with long queues to see government specialists. But more affluent patients will most likely be able to cut the queue by enlisting for "private treatment", which will enable them to obtain prompt treatment from the same specialists. These more affluent patients will most likely also be able to "choose" the most experienced or accomplished specialists. Will this be fair to low-income patients who will have to settle for inferior treatment? Can the Ministry guarantee that this won't happen?
This mentality of asking patients to pay more (instead of increasing budget allocations) reveals the neo-liberal mindset of the government. This mindset can be seen in several moves over the last 14 months to push the health care financing burden on to patients, namely:
- the proposal to set up private dispensaries in government hospitals;
- the proposal to get foreigners (including migrant workers) to pay first-class rates in government hospitals; and
- the budget focus on boosting health tourism in the country.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home