First phase of DRG payment model planned for 2026, says Dzulkefly
The Health Minister said DRG's implementation was planned to be done incrementally over time, with its first phase to focus on minor cases.
'It will take time, but we plan to expand it to cover more complex cases as we move along 2026.
'But its implementation will be linked to the planned introduction of the basic medical and health insurance/takaful (MHIT) products,' he said during a press conference at the Health Ministry's office here on Monday (July 7).
He also revealed that the group categorisation of patients under DRG would be according to the World Health Organisation's (WHO) existing International Classification of Diseases (ICD) system.
He added that the implementation of DRG would be governed directly under the recently formed joint ministerial committee on private healthcare costs.
Revealed on June 24, the committee is co-chaired by Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan and Dzulkefly himself with the goal of reducing private healthcare costs and medical inflation.
Dzulkefly also said that there has been a warm reception of DRG's planned implementation from across healthcare industry stakeholders without any major issues expected so far.
'We might face problems like possible glitches or hiccups when DRG is implemented, but I believe we will be able to easily fine-tune it when that happens with the support from all stakeholders,' he added.
Under the DRG payment model, hospital patients would be categorised into groups based on diagnoses, procedures and expected length of stay.
A fixed payment rate would then be fixed for each of these groups, meaning patients would only have to pay standardised rates for treatment instead of being charged depending on how many services they receive in hospitals.
Dzulkefly also addressed concerns of the ministry's Rakan KKM programme being a privatisation of public healthcare, adding that it would only apply for elective patient cases.
'Rakan KKM is not a privatisation programme as it does not use private funds but is a government investment financed by government-linked investment companies (GLIC).
'It is designed to provide only patients with non-emergency or elective cases the ability to expedite their elective procedures, while for emergency cases, everyone will still receive equal treatment without any priority.
'This means patients with elective cases will now have the choice to either wait in the regular queue or obtain faster services through Rakan KKM,' he said in the same press conference.
He added that revenue generated from the Rakan KKM programme would be reinvested into public healthcare facilities.
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