KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 2 — The Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia (APHM) is confident that the three pillars listed under the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Industry Blueprint 2021-2025 to boost medical tourism industry in the country, are achievable.
APHM president Datuk Dr Kuljit Singh, welcoming the blueprint launched by Minister of Health Khairy Jamaluddin on Monday, said the blueprint was timely as the nation moves towards an endemic phase after fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said private hospitals are the main participants in the blueprint as they have world class infrastructure, facilities and medical experts to meet the criteria set in the blueprint.
“Prior to the pandemic in 2019, medical tourism was one of the key contributors to Malaysia’s economic growth and as the country enters the endemic phase, it is crucial to have a guide to boost the recovery of our medical travel industry.
“The success of Malaysia’s healthcare tourism sector is attributed to three aspects, best in class care, hi-tech facilities and access to innovative treatment. As such, fast access to high-quality and innovative medications will support growth of this industry in the face of regional competition,” he said.
According Kuljit, as they achieve a sizeable growth of medical tourism in the country within the next five years, private hospitals will also further commit to assist the government by providing services for local patients who have difficulty in obtaining treatment in government facilities with the allocation provided by the Ministry of Finance in the 2022 Budget.
He said market stability is crucial to enhance the local ecosystem, which requires an enabling policy environment as opposed to inhibitive policies such as price controls which will have negative affect to healthcare players in the country and subsequently impact the recovery of the medical travel industry.
Yesterday, Khairy launched the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Industry Blueprint 2021-2025, to provide the best Malaysian healthcare travel experience and industry recovery in transitioning into endemicity.
