KUALA LUMPUR: The government will consider providing a tax exemption for married couples undergoing in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
He said that the government understands the ordeal which couples facing difficulty conceiving babies have to go through, and the high cost of IVF treatment.
“It is a good proposal… I can bring this agenda up for consideration,” he said during the Ministers’ Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat, today.
Dr Dzulkefly was responding to a supplementary question from Datuk Seri Ismail Mohamed Said (BN-Kuala Krau) on the matter.
To an original question from Wong Kah Woh (PH-Ipoh Timur) on the cost of IVF treatment at government hospitals, Dr Dzulkefly said the charge for every IVF cycle or intracytoplasmic sperm injection is between RM4,500 and RM5,000.
The amount, he said, does not include medication.
He added that 976 patients underwent IVF treatment at four government hospitals last year, with 198 of them becoming pregnant.