As part of the government ’ s ’ war on sugar ’, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim also announced that excise duties on sugar-sweetened beverages will be raised by 40 sen per litre starting Jan 1 , 2025 .

The funds collected from the excise duties are meant to be used for the treatment and procurement of medicine supplies .

A total of RM1.35 billion is allocated to upgrade dilapidated healthcare facilities , including rundown wards and toilets , and RM300 million for upgrades and repairs to dilapidated clinics .

Meanwhile , RM25mil will be set aside for the Rakan KKM programme to be conducted at five hospitals that are in high demand .

Aside from that , RM100 million was allocated to healthcare facilities that

BY HARVINDAR SINGH Council member Chartered Tax Institute of Malaysia

serve as centres of excellence , such as Serdang Hospital , National Cancer Institute , and Kuala Lumpur Hospital , among others . The government has also allocated RM25 million for rare disease treatments .

A significant announcement in Budget 2025 was the end of universal and nearly free health care for all citizens , as the government seeks to have targeted subsidies for healthcare .

There were no specific details , however , of how much more the top 15 per cent ( T15 ) of income earners would be required to pay to access healthcare at public healthcare facilities under the MOH beyond the current RM1 and RM5 fees for outpatient and specialist care , respectively .

MANAGING EXPECTATIONS

In managing the expectations of the rakyat when it comes to healthcare , it was announced that existing patients can continue treatment at the National Heart Institute ( IJN ) and those aged 65 years and older , particularly , can stay at IJN .

It is to be noted that so far this year , IJN has discharged about 4,000 government patients covered by MOH from outpatient services . Many government pensioners have complained about their discharge from IJN and referrals to public hospitals .

As for tax reliefs for medical expenses for individuals , the following measures have been proposed in Budget 2025

• Expansion of the relief to cover diagnostic tests and purchase of health check devices and test kits .

• Individual income tax reliefs for payment of medical and education insurance premiums increased to RM4,000 .

• Individual income tax reliefs for medical expenditures up to RM10,000 also cover medical payments for medical and health insurance / takaful with copayment features . Malaysia ’ s medium-term health expenditure growth is among the fastest in ASEAN . The ageing population , the growing burden of chronic diseases ,