PUTRAJAYA, Jan 6 (Bernama) — The Ministry of Health (MOH) has designated this year as the implementation phase for comprehensive reforms of the national health system, focusing on comprehensive structural changes to ensure Malaysia’s healthcare services are prepared to meet future challenges.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said in line with the theme ‘Modernising the Health System, Boosting Service Quality’, the ministry has outlined four major leaps that will guide its efforts throughout the year.
The four leaps are comprehensive digitalisation (the efficiency engine), financing reform (the sustainability engine), human capital and welfare (the justice engine), and public health and ethics (the moral engine).
“We are now standing on the threshold of a new phase. If previous years were focused on ‘diagnosing’ issues and planning, 2026 is the year for implementation.
“We can no longer move incrementally or take small steps. The time has come for thorough structural changes to ensure that our health system is truly future-ready, future-focused and future-proof,” he told the media after the 2026 New Year’s Address here today.
Under the comprehensive digitalisation drive, Dzulkefly said the ministry aims to expand the health digitalisation system to include the Total Hospital Information System (THIS) to 16 hospitals; the Cloud-Based Clinic Management System (CCMS) to 2,489 primary health facilities; and the Dental Information System to 157 dental clinics.
He said the ministry would also operate a centralised dashboard to monitor facilities in real-time through the Integrated Dashboard, as well as initiate steps towards the creation of the National Health Interoperability Platform (NHIP), as a long-term vision to ensure that the people have integrated health files online.
Under the financing reform drive, Dzulkefly said the ministry would strengthen the Diagnosis-Related Group (DRG)-based payment mechanism, in an effort to standardise treatment costs and prevent leakage.
He said the RESET framework would also be implemented through collaboration with Bank Negara Malaysia, the Ministry of Finance, and insurance and takaful providers to restructure health insurance and takaful for greater fairness, including the implementation of co-payment features to control premium increases.
As part of efforts to strengthen human capital and welfare, the ministry is targeting new permanent appointments involving 4,500 medical officers and 935 nurses. An Integrated Human Resources Dashboard will also be operational to provide a comprehensive overview of workforce distribution across all MOH facilities.
Meanwhile, the public health and ethics leap marks a major paradigm shift from Sick-Care to Health-Care.
Dzulkefly said the National Transplant Resource Centre (NTRC) under the Medical Development Division would be restructured to address the country’s low organ donation rate and to support the “ ‘Warisku, Hormati Ikrarku’ campaign.
“We are in the process of establishing a National Transplant Council with the authority to access data and manage resources more effectively.
“At the same time, we will review existing policies and legislation, particularly the Human Tissue Act 1974,” he said.
Dzulkefly also announced that Malaysia will chair the 2026 ASEAN Health Ministers’ Meeting (AHMM), which is scheduled to take place in Kuala Lumpur this August.
— BERNAMA