The government-proposed National Health Financing Authority (NHFA) has not been presented to the public for scrutiny despite millions of ringgit of public funds spent on several studies, said an opposition leader today.

Barisan Alternatif Health Bureau chairperson Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail said that since the NHFA will be a first step towards changing the way people pay for healthcare, the public should know the details of the proposed scheme.

"The public has a right to study the proposal and give feedback. It is in the interest of the nation's health that the government provides a channel for people to voice their views," she said, in a press statement.

"The national health financing scheme should not compromise the health needs of any group, especially those who cannot speak up for themselves," she said.

The government recently announced a proposal to set up a national financing authority for healthcare.

The scheme, drafted jointly by the government, the Malaysian Medical Association, consumer bodies and other related non-governmental organisations, is expected to be incorporated into the Eighth Malaysia Plan.

Scheme details

Wan Azizah said that since NHFA will be the cornerstone of a national health-financing scheme, the legislation that will govern this body needs to be scrutinised.

"Will it be a non-profit and independent body? How will it be constituted? Who is it responsible to and what is the extent of its power?" queried Wan Azizah.

She said that the public will also need to know the details of the scheme as private health insurance is risk-rated and there is a necessity for a scheme that covers everyone.

Wan Azizah also questioned the scheme's source of funds. She queried if the scheme is based solely on premiums.

"Will the premiums be progressively structured so that the higher income groups pay a higher rate?" she asked.

"Given that the primary responsibility for healthcare rests with the state, what proportion of public healthcare costs will be borne by the government?" she asked in her statement.

Women oppressed

In conjunction with International Women's Day today, Wan Azizah, who is also Keadilan president, also said that while Malaysians take pride over the fact that more women have taken on higher-ranking positions, a large majority of women are experiencing increasing violence.

"Change can only come through with the empowerment of women and through a political commitment from a government that is democratic, transparent and accountable," she said.

Meanwhile, Parti Sosialis Malaysia national deputy chairperson M Saraswathy, in her International Women's Day message, said that a capitalist-patriarchal system doubly oppresses women.

"It exploits women as workers on one hand and on the other, women suffer all kinds of oppression by virtue of the fact that they are women," she said.

"Men of all classes gain from their 'superior' position in society and in the end the capitalists stand to gain the most, having divided the working class by yet another factor, which is gender," she added.