No difference between doctors, sundry shop owners, minister says on consumer rights
Domestic trade and cost of living minister Armizan Mohd Ali said the price control act does not state that it is only meant for certain categories. (Bernama pic)
PETALING JAYA : The domestic trade and cost of living minister today said there is no difference between professionals and sundry shop owners when it comes to consumer rights, following a protest by doctors over the mandatory display of drug prices.
Armizan Mohd Ali said as long as businesses sold goods to consumers, the government was responsible for ensuring that the public, as consumers, had access to information and the right to make an informed choice.
'However, the ministry will work with the health ministry to review the memorandum,' he told FMT.
His remarks followed a gathering by hundreds of general practitioners (GPs) near Perdana Putra on Tuesday, where they reiterated that the new rule should be enforced under the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998.
Malaysian Medical Association president-elect Dr R Thirunavukarasu also said that the government should not 'compare professional medical services with opening a grocery store'.
The GPs had handed a memorandum to the government, demanding that private clinics be removed from the purview of the Price Control and Anti-Profiteering Act 2011.
They also called for a review of GPs's consultation fees, which have remained unchanged for the last 30 years.
They likewise urged the health ministry to regulate third-party administrators' control over private clinics and reassess foreign ownership in the healthcare sector.
Armizan said the price control act did not state that it was only meant for certain categories, maintaining that it applied to everyone.
'There are no exceptions. Many existing sectors are bound by it,' he added.
He also said that as long as goods were sold to customers, irrespective of their nature, Section 10 of the Act empowered the minister to determine regulations regarding labelling and price tags.
Armizan said the mandatory display of drug prices was not the first time the Act was being enforced in the healthcare sector.
He said the ministry had been ordered to enforce the law when it came to Covid-19 vaccines, face masks, and rapid antigen test devices during the pandemic.
Armizan previously said that displaying medicine prices would not prevent clinics or pharmacies from adjusting them.
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