Ministry to discuss with pharmacists, suppliers on price of medicines

The Health Ministry will discuss with interested parties and pharmacists to ensure control in the price of medicines with the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) next year.

Deputy Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya said the ministry was currently discussing with suppliers on measures to control the price of medicines so that it would not be too high.

"We will discuss with the suppliers, the interested parties and pharmacists to find the best way to control price.

"If there is a price increase, it has to be discussed with the ministry first," he told reporters after launching the Malaysian Health Tourism Council's once-stop service centre at the Penang International Airport here today.

The Health Ministry, he said, had recommended to the Finance Ministry to exempt 2,900 medicines from GST and the price list would be made public next year.

On medical tourism, Hilmi said Malaysia recorded were 671,000 health-tourist arrivals in 2013 and the number increased to 770,000 in 2013.

"In terms of revenue, it recorded an increase of 16.2 per cent to RM690.2 million in 2013, from RM594 million in 2012," he added.

He said Malaysia was becoming a destination for medical services because of effective government regulation which ensure foreign patients were not charged exorbitantly.