KUALA LUMPUR, August 21 — Three associations representing private medical practitioners have refused to extend their cooperation to the Ministry of Health (MOH) for its new application on drug prices.
The Federation of Private Medical Practitioners’ Associations Malaysia (FPMPAM), the Private Medical Practitioners Association of Selangor and Kuala Lumpur (PMPASKL), and the Medical Practitioners Coalition Association of Malaysia (MPCAM) perceived the MOH’s medicine “price catcher” app as degrading the doctor-patient relationship into a buyer-seller transaction.
“While branded as ‘transparency’, this project is, in reality, a backdoor enforcement of drug price display through a government-controlled app,” said FPMPAM president Dr Shanmuganathan Ganeson and PMPASKL president Dr Eugene Chooi Yuo Hao in a joint statement today.
“We repeat that medicine is not a grocery item to be listed in a supermarket app. Patients deserve professional medical care, proper diagnosis, and safe prescriptions, not a shallow price-tag hunt that risks encouraging dangerous self-medication.”
CodeBlue reported yesterday that the Pharmaceutical Services Programme (PSP) at the MOH was piloting a new app, called MyPriMeCatcher, to enable consumers to compare retail medicine prices between private health care facilities and community pharmacies, despite an existing PriceCatcher app by the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry (KPDN) that conducts daily monitoring of the prices of nearly 500 retail goods.
PSP has invited individual medical doctors and pharmacists to participate in a pilot project on MyPriMeCatcher by voluntarily submitting drug price data, offering participants continuing professional development (CPD) points. Those who agree to participate must share data with the app for at least one year, according to an August 12 letter by Health deputy director-general (pharmaceutical services) Azuana Ramli.
MyPriMeCatcher was initiated by PSP following the implementation of a drug price display mandate gazetted under the Price Control and Anti-Profiteering Act 2011 (Act 723), which is exclusively within KPDN’s jurisdiction, on May 1.
FPMPAM and PMPASKL accused the MOH of attempting to turn doctors into “unpaid data clerks” for its “digital experiments”, characterising the pilot project as an “unacceptable intrusion into medical practice” and a “Trojan horse against private doctors.”
The doctors’ groups questioned how much public funds are being spent on the MyPriMeCatcher app and who got the contract for the project.
“Why is MOH obsessed with pushing apps and regulations but silent on fixing overcrowded hospitals, endless waiting times, staff shortages, and stagnant GP (general practitioner) fees frozen for 30 years?” they asked.
“The MyPriMeCatcher initiative is misguided, counterproductive, and damaging to both patients and doctors. Until MOH focuses on strengthening its own failing system, we will reject any attempt to use private doctors as scapegoats or data feeders for bureaucratic apps.”
FPMPAM and PMPASKL also expressed fears that while participation in MyPriMeCatcher may be voluntary today, it could be made mandatory in future, similar to drug price display. “Medicines are not rice or sugar. Treating them as consumer goods is dangerous and misleading.”
The doctors’ associations plan to issue a separate statement to address the MOH’s “misuse” of CPD points, saying CPD must reward education, not compliance.
Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) president-elect Dr R. Arasu criticised Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad for the drug “price catcher” app, saying that under his watch, primary care is being weakened, not strengthened.
“Forcing GPs into minimarkets turns professional services into selling products, soon eroding trust, care, and safety,” Dr Arasu posted on X today.
MPCAM: Medicine Price App Will Spark Price War
MPCAM president Dr Bhupindar Kaur Dhaliwal said her association will not advise its members to participate in the project or to share medicine prices on MyPriMeCatcher.
“We have a responsibility to our patients; it’s not a buyer-seller relationship,” Dr Bhupindar told CodeBlue.
“This platform will lead to a price war. We are professionals and do not want to get involved in this battle with our GP colleagues or pharmacists.
“Why is MOH joining hands with pharmacists and not with GPs?”
Dr Bhupindar further characterised the MOH “enticing” GPs with CPD points to participate in the MyPriMeCatcher pilot project as “giving lollies to kids.”
MPCAM also questioned the progress of the government’s promise to review GP consultation fees that have stagnated at a rate of RM10 to RM35 for 33 years.
Malaysians commenting on CodeBlue’s article about MyPriMeCatcher on Facebook have also condemned the app, with one saying that patients could mistakenly perceive doctors or pharmacists as “overcharging”, even though drug prices can differ due to brand, supplier, or dosage.
The MOH has ironically requested cooperation from the medical fraternity for its new medicine price app, even though the government was slapped with two lawsuits by doctors’ and dentists’ groups filing for judicial review against the Price Control and Anti-Profiteering (Price Marking for Drug) Order 2025.
A hearing of the judicial review application by PMPASKL and Medipulse Healthcare Sdn Bhd has been set for August 26 at the High Court here, after case management of the suit by seven medical and dental groups, and an individual GP, scheduled for tomorrow.
CodeBlue has requested comments from the MOH on MyPriMeCatcher, including details on the vendor for the app, the project value, and what part of price data submission is considered to be a doctor’s or pharmacist’s “professional development”.
