Budget 2024: Health, education ministries will continue to get biggest allocations, says PM Anwar

IPOH, Oct 1 — The Health Ministry (MoH) and the Education Ministry will continue to get the biggest allocations under the Madani Budget 2024 to be tabled on Oct 13, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Anwar, who will be presenting the second Madani Budget as Finance Minister, said among the matters to be focused in the MoH budget are the building of health clinics and solving the problem of congestion in government hospitals throughout the country.

“In the Madani Budget, health and education issues will continue to be given emphasis. Our main focus is healthcare facilities, including hospitals.

“Some claim that since Anwar became PM, most hospitals have become congested. This problem has long existed, so we will manage it properly,” he said when launching the national Madani Medical Scheme and Madani Afiat Programme 2023 here today.

Anwar also said subsidy rationalisation was necessary to ensure that government subsidies benefited groups which truly needed help.

He said this included treatment charges at government hospitals.

“We have to study it; if we want to continue with subsidies, there is no need to give to the 10 per cent (high-income group). For example, hospital charges are low, even free in some cases, but we give to all. Is it wrong to impose higher payments on the richest group?” he said.

On the Madani Medical Scheme, he said it was an important initiative under the Malaysia Madani Policy to provide equitable access to quality health service for the B40 group.

Anwar also conveyed his greetings to the local pharmaceutical fraternity in conjunction with World Pharmacists Day, which was celebrated on September 25.

He also praised Perak for implementing various initiatives to improve the dissemination of health information to the people, including the state-level Malaysia Health Month programme. — Bernama