RM595mil spent on treating patients at IJN in 2024, Dzulkefly tells Dewan Rakyat
Of the 44,257 patients treated there last year, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said 26,782 were pensioners with treatment amounting to RM358mil.
Some 16,303 patients, meanwhile, were civil servants with treatment costs amounting to RM200mil while the remaining 1,172 comprised patients from low-income backgrounds, with treatment here coming to RM37mil.
"This clearly shows that the government still funds pensioners and also patients from low-income groups that require treatment only available at IJN,' he said in a written reply dated Tuesday (July 29).
Dzulkefly explained that treatment at IJN can be considered if the patient had received prior treatment at a government hospital and wsa later referred by either a government hospital general physician, cardiologist or emergency specialist to IJN.
'In emergencies, pensioners and civil servants can seek treatment at private hospitals, including IJN, subject to guidelines stated in related circulars.
'For patients from low-income backgrounds, government subsidies are subject to a socioeconomic evaluation by Health Ministry officers,' he said.
Dzulkefly was responding to a question by Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (BN-Bera) who asked if IJN still has a welfare fund to assist poor patients.
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