KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 25): Malaysia's health spending due to Covid-19 stood at RM2.16 billion in 2020, comprising 3.2% of RM67.02 billion total health expenditure across public and private sectors.

Citing the Ministry of Health’s (MoH) Malaysia National Health Accounts (MNHA) Steering Committee in a presentation tabled on Nov 3, health news portal CodeBlue on Monday (Jan 24) said the bulk of the expenditure on Covid-19 was spent on gross capital formation, amounting to RM507.66 million or 23.5%.

Meanwhile, it said gross capital formation, or investment, according to the World Bank, comprises outlays on additions to the fixed assets of the economy plus net changes in the level of inventories.

The portal said spending for Covid-19 related treatment was the second-highest expenditure at RM330.24 million (15.3%), followed by governance and health system administration related to Covid-19 at RM316.91 million (14.7%).

The government’s Covid-19 expenditure in 2020. Picture from the Ministry of Health’s Malaysia National Health Accounts Steering Committee’s presentation on Nov 3, 2021. (Graphic used with permission from CodeBlue)

It said quarantine expenditure amounted to RM281.83 million (13.1%), while spending for Covid-19 testing and contact tracing stood at RM273.54 million (12.7%).

Spending on medical goods to adhere to Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) totalled RM269.95 million (12.5%), it said.

CodeBlue said MoH was the main source of Covid-19 health financing in 2020 with RM791.68 million or 36.7%.

Expenditure by MoH for the pandemic was channelled via the Covid-19 Fund.

The Ministry of Health was the main source of Covid-19 financing in 2020 with RM791.68 million. Picture from the Ministry of Health’s Malaysia National Health Accounts Steering Committee’s presentation on Nov 3, 2021. (Graphic used with permission from CodeBlue)

Public non-MoH agencies, comprising the Higher Education Ministry, the Defence Ministry, state governments, and other federal agencies, such as the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA), came in second with a contribution of RM693.63 million (32.1%).

Corporations and non-governmental organisations contributed RM470.25 million and RM108.36 million respectively, while private household out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditure contributed RM75.67 million.

Private OOP and corporation expenditure is limited to donations. The rest of the world committed RM18.75 million.

The report said Malaysia doubled its spending on epidemiological surveillance risk and disease control programmes to RM1.43 billion in 2020 from RM709 million in 2019.

Provision and administration of public health programmes received the bulk of the RM2.16 billion spent on Covid-19 in 2020. Picture from the Ministry of Health’s Malaysia National Health Accounts Steering Committee’s presentation on Nov 3, 2021. (Graphic used with permission from CodeBlue)

It said 2020 also saw increased health spending in early disease detection programmes — up 39.7% to RM945 million from RM676 million in 2019 — and immunisation programmes, which more than doubled to RM503 million from RM239 million over the same period.

The government also spent RM95 million on preparing for disaster and emergency response programmes and RM84 million on other forms of preventive care that could not be subclassified.