KUALA LUMPUR — The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) wants more members of the public to attend and speak up at its public hearing on health insurance and private hospital charges as these inputs will be included in its report to Parliament.
PAC chairman Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin said since announcing the committee’s first-ever public hearings – to be held in Penang and Kuala Lumpur – there have only been 71 registrations for the session up north this Friday.
The session in Penang on Feb 14 will begin at 9am at the AC Marriott Hotel in Bukit Jambul, while the one in Kuala Lumpur will be on Feb 21 in the banquet hall in Parliament.
“For the Kuala Lumpur session, there are 172 respondents but in Penang, only 71, and I hope more people will register to attend.
“This is the first time PAC will hold a public hearing, normally our inquiries are closed sessions. The public’s views will be included in PAC’s report which we will table to Parliament,” Mas Ermieyati said at a press conference in Parliament today.
Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin is to moderate the sessions.
Sim said people can still attend the public hearings even if they did not register online beforehand. The online link here leads to a Google Form where people can choose to attend either session in Penang or Kuala Lumpur, or both.
“We want to hear in detail what is happening on the ground.
“Before this, people could only complain on Facebook, now they can come forward and tell their experience.
“PAC wants to help the government reform the private hospital system, which will in turn be good for government hospitals by preventing overflow (of patients) to public hospitals which are already burdened,” Sim told the press conference.
He said PAC decided to look into public concerns about exorbitant hikes in medical insurance premiums following public complaints last year.
Sim, in a recent interview with health news portal CodeBlue, had also said that about 70% of private hospital charges are unregulated, leading to patients being charged up to double the price for medications they could buy cheaper at pharmacies.
Besides its sessions with the public, PAC will also have closed sessions with a range of stakeholders such as non-governmental organisations, the insurance industry, doctors and pharmaceutical groups and academicians.
To date, NGOs that will attend the PAC hearings include the Federation of Malaysian Consumer Associations, Malaysian Association of Pharmaceutical Suppliers, Malaysian Pharmacists Society, the National Cancer Society of Malaysia, National Kidney Foundation and the Malaysian Medical Association, Mas Ermieyati added. – February 12, 2025