Health Ministry to request for more allocations: Dzulkefly

PUTRAJAYA: The Ministry of Health will be requesting for more allocations to resolve the various problems currently faced by the ministry, said newly-appointed Health Minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
He said among the main problems were placement of medical graduates for housemanship, expensive drug prices, long waiting periods for hospital appointments, and achieving the ratio of one doctor per 400 people by 2030.
"The problem is that the allocation received by the Ministry of Health in Budget 2018 is insufficient to cover the costs incurred by the ministry for these issues," he said.
He was speaking at a press conference after attending a meeting and listening to briefings from the ministry's secretary-general Datuk Seri Dr Chen Chaw Min as well as other senior officials.
Dzulkefly had arrived at the ministry's headquarters at 8.30am, and attended the meeting which lasted for more than three hours.
Dzulkefly said the ministry will also pay serious attention to the welfare of medical professionals, as well as the workload issues faced by them.
"This is a challenge for the ministry due to the inadequate budget allocation," he said.
Meanwhile, Dzulkefly said he also planned to implement the "Skim Peduli Sihat" healthcare scheme implemented in Selangor throughout the country, in fulfilling Pakatan Harapan manifesto's to provide the best health services to the people.
In Selangor, those with a household income of below RM3,000 a month and registered under the scheme, receive free hospital treatment. — Bernama