KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 18 – The Ministry of Health (MOH) has allocated a marginally higher budget for radiotherapy and oncology in 2020 at about RM329 million.
Radiotherapy and oncology under MOH received RM271.07 million this year, rising to RM328.71 million for next year, translating to a 21.26% increase, according to Budget 2020.
Pharmacy and supplies, which includes most medication and drugs, also received a budget increase from RM1.81 billion in 2019 to RM1.94 billion in 2020, recording a slight increase of 7.18 per cent.
June Choon, a lecture with Monash University Malaysia, and Professor Kenneth Lee, a professor in Pharmacy, Monash University Malaysia, told CodeBlue that the increase was a welcomed move, but the funding was not sufficient.
“Increased funding should be allocated to pharmaceuticals to improve patient access to new and innovative medicines.”
