Not the time for confusion in health allocation – Manvir Victor

DEAR finance minister,

First of all, congratulations on presenting your first Budget to the nation. However, as a patient and patient advocate, I would like to inquire as to what exactly is the situation with the budget for healthcare.

In the past 48 hours or so, there has been so much ambiguity over allocations that were “cut” and “added” from opex (operational expenditure) to devex (development expenditure).

It certainly looks like public health will see a drop of about 12%, from RM5.559 billion to RM4.997 billion next year.

Numbers aside, public health deals with lives. Human beings make up the rakyat, and so much confusion is not good at all.

This is especially because there are many who need medication and treatment just to carry on with their lives. Add to that, 2020 has probably been the most difficult year for many, with job losses and spiralling debt.

It is important at a time like this to note that unity is a key word used in Budget 2021. However, it smacks of confusion.

For unity to work, we need to remember that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. The weakest links in the nation, not by design, are the ill and weak.

It is paramount that the government of the day take this into consideration when tabling its Budget. No less than our wise Yang di-Pertuan Agong has instructed that it must be supported by all politicians for the good of the nation.

However, it is tough to understand how we are to support it, with all the confusion generated in the past 48 hours.

It certainly looks like there is a 74% drop in pharmacy allocation and 12% for paediatric care, and very sizeable chunks taken from nephrology, cardiothoracic, radiotherapy and general medicine, which will affect millions.

Those in medicine today, who we assume know this best, are perplexed by the numbers. How will the ordinary rakyat expect to understand it?

Surely, when explaining bread-and-butter issues, especially those of great importance, some consultation must have been done with non-governmental organisations and the relevant agencies.

Malaysia has a good, strong, robust and effective healthcare system. However, an area in which we lack consistency is communication. That can be said now of the healthcare part of the Budget, too.

Instead of propping up confidence in your office and the government, it has only succeeded in stoking fear and confusion in the ones who need its services the most.

Sir, I implore you to stand up and communicate this clearly for once, so as to bring about confidence in Budget 2021.

Yours sincerely,

Manvir Victor

Chairman – Patients for Patient Safety Malaysia

Board member – WHO International Patients for Patient Safety

Board member – British Medical Journal Patient Advocacy Group

Board member – Malaysian Society for Quality in Health

Board member – National Patient Safety Board

Member – International Society for Quality in Health

Speaker – International conferences on patient engagement, rights and communication. – The Vibes, November 9, 2020