Joint ministerial panel formed for private healthcare reforms, says Anwar
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim delivering his keynote address at Bank Negara Malaysia's Sasana Symposium 2025 today. (Bernama pic)
KUALA LUMPUR : A joint ministerial committee has been formed to lead long-term reforms in Malaysia's healthcare system, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said today.
Delivering his keynote address at the Sasana Symposium 2025 hosted by Bank Negara Malaysia, Anwar said the new panel would include representatives from the finance and health ministries, as well as the central bank.
Anwar, who is also finance minister, said the committee would ensure that 'quality healthcare is both affordable and accessible for all Malaysians'.
He acknowledged concerns that Malaysia had too many committees with no outcomes, but said that the government must go beyond symbolic changes and enact bold reforms.
He said the focus must shift from incremental fixes to a value-based private healthcare system that prioritises outcomes, transparency, and fairness.
'Key reforms include clearer pricing, stronger digital healthcare, and expanded access to affordable options such as a universal base medical insurance product,' he said.
He also said that Malaysia must be adaptive in its policies, have strong institutions, and maintain a clear vision of its chosen direction to achieve its goal of becoming a high-income economy.
Anwar said the Madani Economic Framework reflected the nation's high-income economy vision and articulated a dual commitment.
'First, industrial policies should be modernised, focusing on sectoral competitiveness, digital transformation, green growth, and value chain upgrading.
'Second, the benefits of economic expansion should be broad-based, particularly for the vulnerable and underserved segments of our society,' he said.
He added that the government was prioritising five critical areas under the Madani agenda: fiscal sustainability and governance, subsidy rationalisation, tax reforms, human capital development, and institutional integrity.
On subsidy reforms, Anwar reiterated that Malaysia could no longer delay structural reforms, including targeted fuel subsidies and tax overhauls.
'Blanket fuel subsidies, particularly for RON95, were benefiting the rich and even foreigners, at the expense of government resources that should be channelled to the needy.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
3 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Correcting and Replacing: Visa unveils Flex Credential in Vietnam, ushering in a new era of payment flexibility and financial empowerment for consumers
Vietnam leads Southeast Asia in financial confidence and readiness for major purchases, Visa survey With Visa Flex Credential, consumers can seamlessly choose how they pay, via credit, debit, and more, all on a single credential, redefining the future of payments Customisable payment options : Switch effortlessly between payment modes, such as debit, credit, prepaid, loyalty points etc. to suit different spending needs and having one credential for life. : Switch effortlessly between payment modes, such as debit, credit, prepaid, loyalty points etc. to suit different spending needs and having one credential for life. Advanced security protocols: Benefit from Visa's latest security technologies to stay protected against fraud. Benefit from Visa's latest security technologies to stay protected against fraud. Personalised insights and control : Use AI-driven insights to better manage your finances and spending habits. : Use AI-driven insights to better manage your finances and spending habits. Unified payment experience: Manage all your financial transactions through a single, easy-to-use platform. [1] The Green Shoots Radar study is conducted quarterly by Visa to track consumer sentiments across financial services, commerce, travel, and other categories. The total sample size is 14,250 respondents across 14 Asia-Pacific countries, including Vietnam, with male and female participants aged 18 to 65 years old. HCMC, VIETNAM - Media OutReach Newswire - 17 June 2025 - Visa (NYSE: V), a global leader in digital payments, announced the launch of Visa Flex Credential , offering new ways for consumers to manage and spend their money, with Asia Commercial Joint Stock Bank (ACB) becoming the first bank in Vietnam – and Southeast Asia – to offer this feature. Starting today, ACB Visa cardholders can seamlessly switch between debit and credit cards via the ACB One app. By the end of 2025, additional issuers will expand Visa Flex Credential to more Vietnamese consumers, enabling expanded to Visa's latest Green Shoots Radar survey[1], Vietnamese consumers, especially Gen Z and Millennials, lead Southeast Asia in financial confidence and ambition. Today's young Vietnamese are prioritising investments in education (66%), healthcare (65%), electronics (63%), and travel (61%), showing a readiness to make big-ticket purchases and take control of their financial Flex Credential is reimagining the credential for the next generation, designed to put the power of choice directly in consumers' hands at every transaction – enabling them to opt for debit on daily purchases, credit for larger expenses, or even redeeming loyalty points when checking out, whether it's for everyday essentials or a dream vacation."Visa is committed to empowering consumers with innovative solutions that put them in control of their financial future. Flex Credential is Visa's breakthrough solution that enables the integration of multiple funding sources through a single card credential, providing cardholders with maximum flexibility to efficiently manage and utilize their payment forms. In specific markets such as the U.S. and UAE, Visa Flex Credential allows cardholders to choose to pay now or pay over time directly from the app, as well as access multiple currency accounts through a single credential – making cross-border payments simple and seamless. We are proud to bring this solution to Vietnam, making digital payments more accessible and contributing to Vietnam's digital and financial inclusion and overall economic growth," saidshared: "The Visa Flex Credential truly speaks for itself, elevating the customer experience to a new level. While there are quite a few similar solutions in the market, the Visa Flex Credential stands out by meeting all customer needs, such as flexible payment source selection, a variety of transaction methods from offline to online, and the ability to choose from a wide range of suitable offers, all while ensuring independent, clear, and transparent spending management for each card."Visa first launched Flex Credential in partnership with Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and Sumitomo Mitsui Card Company (SMCC), known as Olive, two years ago in Japan. Today, more than 5 million Olive account holders are benefitting from the Visa Flex Credential. The Olive card continues to outperform, with cardholder transactions averaging 40% higher than the national average in Japan over the past year. Visa and SMCC have expanded the Visa Flex Credential to support small businesses with the flexibility to switch between business and personal accounts using the same Olive card, enhancing access to credit and cash flow and ACB are proud partners of Cashless Day 2025 , demonstrating their commitment to promoting digital payment solutions in Vietnam. This collaboration further highlights their shared vision of fostering economic empowerment through innovative #Visa #VisaFlexCredential #DigitalEconomy #AsiaCommercialJointStockBank(ACB) #ACBOneApp The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. About Visa Visa (NYSE: V) is a world leader in digital payments, facilitating transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. We believe that economies that include everyone everywhere, uplift everyone everywhere and see access as foundational to the future of money movement. Learn more at
Malaysia Sun
6 hours ago
- Malaysia Sun
Malaysian central bank launches digital asset innovation hub
Xinhua 17 Jun 2025, 17:45 GMT+10 KUALA LUMPUR, June 17 (Xinhua) -- The Malaysian central bank on Tuesday launched the Digital Asset Innovation Hub to stimulate financial innovation in a controlled environment for applicants to test new ideas and provide input to fine-tune regulatory and security frameworks. Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) said that this is to support the development of digital assets and the application of leading financial technology in Malaysia. Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said in his keynote speech that the hub is a testament to Malaysia's commitment to ensure policy evolves alongside innovation. "The hub will serve as a catalyst for progress, enabling innovators to test use cases such as programmable payments, ringgit-backed stable coins and supply chain financing; unlocking new efficiencies across the financial system and the broader economy," he said.
Free Malaysia Today
6 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Ex-senior executive wins final appeal to be reinstated
The Federal Court ruled that Osram Opto Semiconductors Sdn Bhd should pay all outstanding arrears, including statutory contributions, as a result of the reinstatement. PUTRAJAYA : A former senior employee in a Penang-based multinational semiconductor company has won back her job following a unanimous decision by the Federal Court to allow the 58-year-old woman's appeal to be reinstated. A three-member bench chaired by Justice Zabariah Yusof said they agreed with the submission by Ooi Mei Chien's lawyers that the primary remedy for unlawful dismissal was reinstatement as opposed to monetary compensation. Zabariah said Ooi's reinstatement with Osram Opto Semiconductors Sdn Bhd should be immediate and without loss of seniority, years of service, salary and all other benefits and allowances due to her from Jan 1, 2023. The court also ruled that the company should pay all outstanding arrears, including statutory contributions, as a result of the reinstatement. 'The net compensation of RM804,650, in lieu of reinstatement received by Ooi, is to be refunded to the company,' she said, adding that the court order must be complied with within 30 days. Justices Abu Bakar Jais and Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera also heard the appeal. Ooi's counsel Alex De Silva said his client's outstanding salary and allowances for the last 30 months could be about RM1 million. Last year, the Court of Appeal affirmed the High Court's decision that Ooi's retrenchment was not done in good faith, but reversed the High Court's order for reinstatement and instead ordered the employer to pay RM854,650 in compensation to Ooi. The Court of Appeal found compensation in lieu of reinstatement to be the preferred remedy as sending her back to employment was not in line with maintaining industrial harmony. The company had also paid her 24 months' back wages totalling RM772,464, as ordered by the High Court. The Court of Appeal had also affirmed the High Court order to Osram to pay Ooi RM50,000 in punitive damages. According to the facts of the case, Ooi had served Osram, a premium supplier of LED lighting products, for 24 years as head of its treasury and commercial administration services, drawing a monthly salary of RM32,186. In seeking to justify Ooi's retrenchment, Osram said it had outsourced its accounting and treasury function to a global shared services organisation, rendering her role in the company redundant. However, Ooi contended that only some of her functions had been taken over, and that her services were still needed. The Industrial Court in 2019 disagreed, and found Ooi's termination on Sept 30, 2015 to be fair and her redundancy package reasonable. In 2021, the High Court set aside the award, ordering that Ooi be paid back wages of RM772,464 and reinstated to her position. The Court of Appeal maintained that Ooi's retrenchment was in bad faith and also the order for punitive damages was correctly made. However, the Court of Appeal reversed the order for reinstatement with monetary compensation. Ooi was unhappy with the order for compensation in lieu of reinstatement and obtained leave to appeal on four questions of law. De Silva had argued that given Ooi's seniority in position and age, she was unable to find new employment. The Federal Court agreed with Ooi's counsel's submissions that in situations such as this, the primary remedy of reinstatement was the appropriate remedy. Lawyers De Silva, Louis Ambrose, Zuyin Toon and Jessica Chew appeared for Ooi while Arumugam Ganapathy and Moses Mathew George represented the company.
