MP: Najib's budget sidelines women's health
The cut in allocation for the HPV vaccination programme and mammogram subsidy under the 2015 budget has raised questions about the government's commitment to women's health, says Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim.
“I am surprised and appalled that two very important programmes under the Health Ministry, the HPV vaccination programme and mammogram subsidy, were given a massive allocation cut, from RM10 million each in 2014 to only RM1 million each next year,” Sim said in a statement today.
The cut in allocation for the HPV vaccination programme and mammogram subsidy under the 2015 budget has raised questions about the government's commitment to women's health, says Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim.
“I am surprised and appalled that two very important programmes under the Health Ministry, the HPV vaccination programme and mammogram subsidy, were given a massive allocation cut, from RM10 million each in 2014 to only RM1 million each next year,” Sim said in a statement today.
By reducing the allocations by 90 percent, Sim queried if the government was implying that the health, safety and security of health of Malaysian women “are not important agendas of the federal government”.
Sim ( left ) asked: “As such, what is the message of the Prime Minister in his massive 90 percent reduction of the allocations to prevent two major causes of death among Malaysian women?”
The DAP parliamentarian added that cervical cancer, which is the second most common cancer among Malaysian women, can be curbed through HPV vaccination.
While more than five percent of Malaysian women are prone to breast cancer, which can be detected early on and treated by mammogram, Sim called for intervention from minister in charge of women's issues.
“I call upon the esteemed Minister for Women, Family and Community Development (Rohani Abdul Karim), who has been in the role for a year, to take responsibility of this matter.
“I call upon her to enlighten the prime minister, who himself was once the minister for women, family and community development, and to return the budget allocations for these important programmes to what was set asided in 2014," Sim added.
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