HEALTHCARE is one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing industries. Consuming more than 10 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) of most developed nations, it can form an enormous part of a country’s economy.
The United Nations Development Programme has described our healthcare industry as a shining example for other developing countries. Due to its affordable alternative brand of medical tourism, Malaysia’s healthcare sector is thriving. Deeming it essential to the Malaysian economy, the government has prioritised healthcare spending, injecting RM23 billion into healthcare last year — approximately 10 per cent of the annual budget.
The Health Ministry and the Malaysian Health Tourism Council play important roles in boosting the industry’s growth.
The ministry has said that the industry is a key driver of economic growth.
In 2010, the Economic Transformation Programme was put in place to transform Malaysia into a high-income economy by 2020.
The National Key Economic Area (NKEA) estimates that the healthcare industry can generate RM9.67 billion in revenue and 5,300 job opportunities by 2020. Under this initiative, healthcare was identified as one of the 12NKEAs to receive substantial government support and funding.
The government’s expendi-ture of RM178.9 billion since 2009 is an effort to provide quality healthcare services to Malaysians.
Various initiatives have been undertaken by the government to develop and improve the healthcare sector.
One of the initiatives is the 1Malaysia Clinic. The establishment of the clinics runs parallel to the 1Malaysia concept of People First Performance Now.
In the 2010 Budget, 50 such clinics were developed with an allocation of RM10 million. Today, there are 361 1Malaysia clinics nationwide.
Medical costs in Malaysia are low compared with other countries.
An online portal reported that the health tourism industry grew by 23 per cent last year and contributed between RM4 billion and RM5 billion to the Malaysian economy. The government has allocated RM27 billion for health services and RM30 million for health tourism in the 2018 Budget.
This is certainly a boost to the healthcare industry which will further boost the country’s growth.
ENGKU FATIMAH NUR AMALINA
Faculty of Economics and Muamalat Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia, Negri Sembilan