Malaysia allocates just 4.7 per cent of its GDP to healthcare — well below the OECD average of eight per cent to 10 per cent. Despite an annual public healthcare budget of RM35 billion–RM40 billion, our hospitals remain overwhelmed, underfunded and desperately short of skilled manpowerOver 250,000 health workers are stretched to the limit, while delays in surgical and specialist care are quietly growing into a full-blown crisis.Among the most urgent concerns is the alarming shortage of trained professionals — surgeons, anaesthetists, experienced nurses — many of whom have left for the private sector or migrated overseas. Public healthcare is still accessible in principle, but the reality is grim. Waiting times for many procedures stretch not over days or weeks — but months, sometimes years.  The core issues driving surgical delays in public hospitals are well known: a shortage of specialists, inadequate operating theatres and beds, outdated or insufficient equipment, overcrowding, and exhausted staff working long hours.While the current Madani government is not responsible for the crisis that has been years in the making, it must recognise that its continuous involvement in the healthcare cannot come at the expense of public healthcare.

Healthcare is a public good, and as the government has chosen to remain in the sector, it has a responsibility to ensure that reforms and actions prioritise public welfare, not private interests. Public expectations are high, and the responsibility to act and act decisively -rests firmly with those in power today.Given Malaysia's fiscal limitations, a proposed RM10 monthly contribution from the 16.8 million-strong workforce could generate RM2.016 billion annually for a dedicated National Surgical and Emergency Care Fund, a citizen-led initiative designed to ease the burden on overstretched public hospitals by specifically allocating funds for crucial services like surgeries and emergency care, potentially decreasing the reliance on private healthcare and subsequently lowering medical insurance premiums over time.

This estimated RM2 billion could be strategically allocated, with RM150 million for recruiting 1,000 new medical professionals, RM500 million for extending operating theatre hours in 100 major hospitals, RM500 million for modernizing surgical suites with advanced equipment, RM300 million for deploying mobile surgical trucks and outsourcing non-emergency surgeries, and RM500 million for covering comprehensive post-operative care, all aimed at significantly reducing emergency wait times, alleviating patient suffering, and reinforcing public hospitals, which should be viewed as a vital national asset. While acknowledging the role of private healthcare, the emphasis should be on a robust and well-funded public system that prioritizes patient welfare over profit-driven motives.