Sime Darby eyes IJN
posted in - Nation, - Palmdoc |The EdgeDaily reports
Sime Darby Bhd has expressed interest in taking over the National Heart Institute, or Institut Jantung Negara (IJN), a move that has met with objections from the ministry of health, sources said.
It is learnt that the ministry of finance (MoF), which owns IJN, has submitted a proposal for the privatisation of the hospital to the cabinet. Health industry officials are not surprised by the MoF’s move as the ministry had sent out feelers to government-linked companies to gauge the interest in such an exercise.
Sources said that both Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai and his deputy Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad do not agree to the proposed divestment.
“They do not agree to this sale unless there is a safety net for the poor and the underprivileged. Their needs have to be taken care of. And the time is not right,” said a source.
Sources said Sime Darby’s interest and the positive reception from the MoF do not in any way mean that a deal is certain.
“It’s a preliminary exploration. There is still a long way to go as there are a lot of things to be ironed out,” said one of the sources.
One of the concerns is whether IJN’s charges would increase should it be taken over by a private corporation.
Considering IJN is a quasi-government hospital, its fees are regulated by the government, offering first-class medical treatment at below market rate. Also, all government hospitals have referred their heart patients to IJN, providing it a steady stream of patients and income.However, it is learnt that even if Sime Darby takes over the hospital, there would be conditions put in place to ensure that the charges are regulated and IJN does not lose sight of its social obligations.
“The government would still dictate the treatment price for patients. It would be business as usual for the heart centre,” the source said.
I don’t know. I have an uneasy feeling about this as far as the “social obligation” bit goes. Even right now, we see frequent pleas for help in the papers from desperate poor patients seeking funds for heart surgery, possibly because the waiting list in IJN is too long? There already doesn’t seem to be much of a social net, what more if IJN becomes fully privatised when bought over by a private entity?
Related MMR post:
Outsourcing heart surgery
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December 18th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
Unfortunately, I can see no benefit from Sime Darby taking over IJN.
After all, it’s not as if they done an absolutely smashing job of running SDMC….
Keep IJN as it is….the people need it.
December 18th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
Latest news - Najib: No objection to Sime Darby stake in IJN
Rocky says Hands Off
December 18th, 2008 at 11:08 pm
Really can’t think of any net benefit for the public.
A big ‘NO’ from me, whatever good that does.
December 19th, 2008 at 7:30 pm
It just illustrate that how expensive to provide medical care especially subspecialist medical care. Somebody got to come out with this money. Also consider how fortunate Malaysian to have government to pay 99% of their bill. Not even SIngaporean can match this.
December 19th, 2008 at 7:55 pm
If the privatisation goes through, I find it funny that a country’s National Heart Institute would actually be a National Heart Institute Pte. Ltd.
A popular coffeshop saying and even in some of the Singapore TV series : “In Singapore, it’s better to die than to fall sick.”