A TOTAL of 3,850 out of 4,352 UD10-grade medical officers have accepted offers for permanent appointments so far, according to Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
He said all officers who have accepted the offer will report for duty at Ministry of Health (MOH) facilities across the country starting 2 October.
"Broadly speaking, the acceptance rate is similar to last year. The key difference this time is the introduction of three placement options, including postings in Sabah and Sarawak. That remains our main challenge in addressing maldistribution," he told reporters after officiating the 14th Allied Health Scientific Conference (AHSC) 2025 here today.
"From the ministry’s perspective, as Health Minister, I strongly hope they will remain with us in building, strengthening, and empowering our public healthcare facilities," he added.
Dr Dzulkefly noted that feedback from Sabah and Sarawak revealed that many West Malaysian doctors who were initially hesitant eventually chose to remain in East Malaysia for up to five or ten years.
On 23 July, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had announced that the government would expedite the filling of 4,352 permanent positions in health facilities nationwide to address urgent needs in the healthcare sector.
Separately, in his speech, Dr Dzulkefly said the ministry, in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance, Bank Negara Malaysia, and the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), had introduced the **RESET** initiative to coordinate healthcare financing reforms across both public and private sectors.
RESET serves as a platform to integrate reforms such as Medical and Health Insurance/Takaful (MHIT), Diagnosis-Related Groups (DRG), and the proposed National Health Fund (DKN).
"It is designed to ensure sustainable financing, uphold equity, and build resilience against future health threats. Every ringgit collected will be ring-fenced and channelled back to strengthen the public healthcare system," he said.
"I must clarify that this is not privatisation. This reform is intended to reinforce our public system, which serves every Malaysian in every corner of the country," he emphasised.
Dr Dzulkefly also revealed that the **Allied Health Workforce Blueprint 2026–2035**, developed in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), is set to be launched soon.
The blueprint is intended to guide the governance and capacity-building of allied health professionals, ensuring they are recognised as strategic drivers of transformation within Malaysia’s healthcare ecosystem.
This year’s AHSC, themed ‘Innovate, Integrate, Inspire: Sustainable Healthcare Through Allied Health’, attracted over 500 participants from across the country. - September 9, 2025
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