KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 6 — The Health parliament special select committee (PSSC) has summoned three insurance associations, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), and the Ministry of Health (MOH) for an inquiry into rising health insurance premiums.
The Health PSSC, chaired by Pulai MP Suhaizan Kayat, is set to hear two separate briefings from the insurance industry and the regulators this Tuesday in Parliament.
An 11am briefing will see testimonies from the Life Insurance Association of Malaysia (LIAM), Malaysian Takaful Association (MTA), and Persatuan Insurans Am Malaysia (PIAM), while representatives from the MOH and the central bank will testify together at a 2.45pm briefing.
“We will consider for next time,” Suhaizan told CodeBlue yesterday, when asked if the Health PSSC will also summon the Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia (APHM) that represents private hospitals in the country.
Suhaizan, who is a government backbencher from Parti Amanah Negara, added that the Health PSSC will issue a media statement after both briefings on Tuesday.
The general public will not be able to attend the hearings, which won’t be broadcast, as PSSC meetings are considered secret until the committee tables a report in Parliament – usually months later. PSSC reports on its inquiries contain transcripts of proceedings.
The Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy previously called for a parliamentary inquiry into the issue of soaring medical insurance premiums and private hospital bills, as well as an independent statutory commission to regulate private health care charges.
Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin from PKR, who has been the main parliamentarian leading the charge on the issue, recently suggested for the inquiry to be led by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), of which he is a member.
Many Malaysians have complained about not just double, but triple-digit percentage hikes of their medical insurance premiums this year, with retirees facing jumps of over 70 per cent to 275 per cent.
BNM regulates the insurance industry. The only private health care charges regulated under the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act (PHFSA) 1998 are doctor fees; all other charges are completely unregulated.
