The government’s decision to introduce the Rakan KKM scheme in selected public hospitals — including Hospital Cyberjaya, Putrajaya, Serdang, and the National Cancer Institute — marks an alarming shift in public health care.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) needs to rethink this scheme. Health care is a fundamental human right, not a privilege that can be purchased — and it must remain accessible, fair, and equal for all Malaysians.
Though framed as a way to allow paying patients quicker access to elective surgery and specialist care, the reality is clear: Rakan KKM opens the door to privilege in a system meant to serve all Malaysians equally.
Let’s be honest — when money decides how fast you’re treated, fairness is lost. Under this scheme, wealth determines priority, not medical need. Those who can pay, jump the queue. Those who can’t are told to wait — possibly indefinitely.
This goes against the very principle of public health care, which was built to ensure equal access regardless of income. Now, two classes of patients are emerging: those with cash, and those left behind.
Legitimate concerns about abuse likewise permeate. Will junior doctors and trainees carry the extra load, while senior staff benefit from added income?
Who will ensure transparency and fairness in implementation? Will nurses in attendance stand to benefit financially from this scheme too, failing which, natural human frailty of envy would seep in.
Even worse, will access to public health care regress into corrupt practices, where every health care provider from the clerks registering patients to the specialists delivering the treatment expect bribes for fast-track medical treatment?
Despite these, Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad and DAP MP Young Syefura Othman defend the scheme as a “reform” to generate revenue. But real reform must not erode justice. Selling priority access in public hospitals is silent privatisation, no matter what label it’s given.
Let us not forget the real consequences. Every extra minute spent on paying patients means less time for others — including those in semi-critical condition. This isn’t just about longer queues; it’s about lives delayed, and potentially lost.
Meanwhile, public hospitals are already overwhelmed. Malaysia faces a shortage of over 11,000 medical specialists — with only 44 per cent of required positions filled. Rather than address this, Rakan KKM risks further burdening the system by dividing doctors’ time between ordinary patients and premium clients.
The government needs to respond: Why is there still not enough funding for health care after so many new taxes, utility hikes, and supposed foreign investments under the Madani government? Why are ordinary Malaysians now being pushed to pay for speed and dignity?
Public health care should not become a business. The B40 rely on government hospitals not by choice, but by necessity. They deserve better — not longer waits while others buy their way forward.
Dr Mah Hang Soon is the deputy president of MCA.
- This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of CodeBlue.
