Ministry of Health - "Do you have the gumption to check the escalation of private medical costs?" By VM Chandran

This is a follow up article by VM Chandran.

Following my article "Private Hospital care - Cost escalation, Hidden charges", the numerous feedbacks I received have dumbfounded me. It would seem that everyone who has used a private hospital has a "story" to narrate. Untimately it boils down to the fact that they were shortchanged.  

For the level of service and facilities, the private patient care billing is horrendous. 

Strong words like "being cheated" or "there is a scam" has become the common language when people articulate their experiences of the cost of private medical care. 

They believe they have been "bullied" in a calculative manner by the private hospitals during their emotional low points because of their own illness or that of loved ones.

I provided various details of the mercenary style of billing in private medical care. Driven totally by the sole philosophy of maximising profit, the aspect of patient care seemingly takes a secondary role. 

The "dollars and cents" become the fundamentals of private medical care because it is more a business with "Patient Care" just being used as a 'marketing tool'.

Question: Is that wrong, taking into account that it is supposed to be a business? 

Prima facie that would be a fair comment. However this directly involves public welfare and their medical sufferings. 

There is need for a holistic approach where, in private medical care, the dispensation of qualitative medical service is based on the aspect of choice, privacy, speed, convenience, individual care and, above all, accessibility. 

Taking these components into the equation, there is obviously a massive premium on the charges. This is the 1st question of fairness that needs to be answered.

The 2nd question of fairness is how private hospitals, in a "cavalier" fashion, are able to build in costs into the billing without informing the patients until it comes to payment. This is what I refer to as hidden charges. 

On a daily basis it can add up to an extra  RM300 to RM400.Things like charges for monitoring of blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen intake, temperature and diabetic reading. Added to these are the "basic nursing charges" and "dependent patient care" charges.

3rd question of fairness that needs explanation are the margins private hospitals levy on the billing with regard to pharmaceutical items and medical supplies.  

Compared to outside pharmacies, medicines at private hospitals cost about 80% higher whilst medical supplies could at times be 1000% higher. These are not exaggerated figures for they can be easily substantiated.

 

This is where I challenge the Ministry of Health, as both public and private health comes under their jurisdiction. 

• The Malaysian Medical Council has strict rules on Doctors' / Consultants' charges. 
• These fees usually constitute 20% - 25% of the total private hospital charges. 

The material amounts are still the hospital charges.

Therefore the questions which the Ministry must answer are:

1. Is there a mechanism at MOH to monitor private hospital charges?

2. If so, what is being done regarding the exorbitant charges levied by private hospitals?

3. Is there a penalty or punishment system which MOH implements when private hospitals breach the fairness in their billings? 

If so, what is it?

4.  Which Division or Department in MOH has such powers ? 

What or which  ostensible authority is the Head and who does it / he report to in the MOH hierarchy? 

The answers to these questions will tell the public MOH's role in ensuring that fair business practices are adopted in private medical care.

However, looking at the prevailing situation, I am quite certain the MOH is either "toothless" as an enforcing authority or has abdicated that role.  (OSTB :  Mr Chandran,  'close one eye' is also going on.)

And thus it has permitted the spiralling increase in private medical costs. 

The private hospitals have fully capitalised on the MOH's ineffectiveness.

They are fully enjoying the windfall.

The bigger question is, what is the Minister of Health going to do?  Seriously, i believe nothing!!!!!! 

(OSTB : Mr Chandran, you are seriously mistaken. The Minister of Health will be summoning his senior staff for early morning Quran reading sessions at the MOH. They pray that their sing song reading in Arabic - which they do not understand - will solve many issues.)

• The ownership of the larger private hospitals seems to have Federal and/or State Government interests and this is where the conflict begins. 
•  Or very influential corporate personalities are behind the might of the private hospitals and they have their art of public relations to get away with daylight robbery.

It is only when Tun Mahathir as Prime Minister becomes aware, that changes could materialise. 

The question is how is he to know such things are happening? 

Until then we are at the mercy of the private hospitals on private medical care.

V M Chandran

My comments :  I reserve my comments.  I have plenty to add, In another post. Thank you very much Mr Chandran.