Health tourism sector shows steady growth: Dr Hilmi

KUALA LUMPUR: The health tourism sector has shown a steady growth and recorded a revenue of RM1.12 billion in 2016, said Deputy Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya.
He told the Dewan Rakyat today that in 2015, the industry recorded a revenue of RM914 million.
"The contribution of health tourism has given a huge impact towards the nation's economy, especially when taking into account its multiplier effect.
"Taking into account some other matters, we expect the health tourism sector to contribute up to RM5 billion this year," Hilmi said.
He was responding to Datuk Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah (Lenggong-BN) on the contributions of the public-private sector, as well as government to government deals to promote the health tourism industry.
Hilmi said more than 900,000 medical tourists sought treatment in the country last year compared to 859,000 in 2015, with most of them coming from Indonesia, Bangladesh, India, Indochina (Myanmar, Vietnam), Middle Eastern countries, Australia, China, and Japan.
He added currently the focus markets are countries such as Indonesia, China, Myanmar, and Vietnam, with continued efforts in the existing markets.
"The marketing strategy of Malaysian medical tourism has also shifted to high-value customers by offerings niche medical treatment to increase average income derived from each medical tourist," he said.