Joint Statement led by Consumers’ Association of Penang and Third World Network on 31 May 2025 in Kuala Lumpur
Consumer, patient and civil society groups strongly object to new charges by GPs and are calling on the government to stay firm on enforcing the Drug Price Display Order under Act 723
The undersigned 40 organisations and 43 individuals urge the Prime Minister, Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim, to stand firm in supporting the implementation of the Price Control and Anti-Profiteering (Price Marking for Drug) Order 2025 by the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living on 1 May. We also urge the Prime Minister to intervene and reject the current new charges or fees imposed by some general practitioners (GPs) for regulatory compliance, registration, drug prescription or use of their facilities, because these charges are unwarranted, unreasonable, unjustified and unfair, and would place an additional financial burden on many households.
We wish to express our strong objection to, and disapproval of, these GPs’ actions, which we deem to be a reaction to the newly introduced drug price display order. The GPs’ reluctance to support price transparency immediately does not reflect well on them in the eyes of the public. Their insistence on displaying drug prices only after amendments have been made to the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998 (Act 586) exposes their insincerity and makes it seem like an excuse to delay the implementation of the Order further.
The Price Control and Anti-Profiteering Act 2011 (Act 723) is the most appropriate act governing price labels and displays on goods, and medicines are not an exception. While doctors may prescribe medicine as part of their standard professional practice, determining drug prices is a purely business decision. Many GPs admit that they rely on drug sales to cover the cost of running their clinics, which is a testament to this claim.
GPs should earn most of their income through professional fees, such as consultation fees, rather than through drug sales. A GP clinic’s reliance on drug sales creates a dangerous conflict of interest and a perverse incentive for some GPs to prescribe and sell unnecessary medicines for ‘just-in-case’ use or in larger quantities than normal. Some GPs also hide the names of medicines and repackage them in the hope that patients will return to them for the medicines they have prescribed rather than buying them from a local community pharmacy. This behaviour may be deemed anti-competitive and detrimental to patients’ interests.
Alongside the drug price display order, we demand that all private healthcare facilities provide itemised bills. This will allow patients or consumers to learn about the prescribed and dispensed medicines, including unit price information, so they know what they are paying for. Transparency and proactive disclosure will enable patients to make informed decisions.
We support the GPs’ call to revise the fee schedule in Act 586 to increase the consultation fee in line with the general inflation rate since 1992. According to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the inflation rate for this period is 114%. Therefore, the new range for GP consultation fees should be RM21.40 to RM75. This would provide a good reference for a fair increase; a large deviation from this — for example, the proposal for a minimum fee of RM50 — would be excessive and out of touch with household financial realities. When setting a fair consultation fee range, we urge the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Health to consider protection for consumer and patient interests first.
We are concerned about the rapid proliferation of private clinics in urban areas of Malaysia post-Covid-19 era. From 2021 to 2023, Malaysia saw 2,040 more clinics open, with almost two new clinics opening every day. Selangor and Kuala Lumpur alone account for 43% of all private clinics, and Selangor has seen a 32% increase in the number of private clinics in the last three years. If GPs are struggling to be profitable, this is most likely due to intense market competition, while demand could be falling due to rising medical inflation and financial difficulties among households. It would be misguided for GPs to try to solve their problem of fierce competition by charging patients more new fees.
While the government is under no obligation to ensure the profitability and survival of every clinic, we urge the government to create more positions and opportunities for GPs to upskill and become specialists, as there is a real shortage of experts in the healthcare sector. This could also alleviate the intense rivalry and cutthroat competition among current GPs in urban areas.
Endorsed by:
Organisation
1. Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP)
2. Third World Network (TWN)
3. Agora Society Malaysia
4. Aliran
5. All Women’s Action Society (AWAM)
6. Always for People
7. Association of Family Support and Welfare Selangor & KL (Family Frontiers)
8. Center for Independent Journalism (CIJ)
9. Citizens’ Health Initiative (CHI)
10. Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih)
11. Dialektika Tv
12. Forum Kedaulatan Makanan Malaysia (FKMM)
13. Gabungan Bertindak Malaysia (GBM)
14. Health Equity Initiatives (HEI)
15. Johor Yellow Flame (JYF)
16. KLSCAH Youth
17. Labour Solidarity and Learning Resources Association (LLRC)
18. National Union of Seafarers Peninsular Malaysia
19. North South Initiative (NSI)
20. Organisation for International Development & Research in Sustainability (IDRIS)
21. Penang Forum
22. Penang Hills Watch
23. Pertubuhan Menangani Gejala Sosial Malaysia (UNGGAS Malaysia)
24. Persatuan Hokkien Selangor & Kuala Lumpur
25. Persatuan Pendidikan dan Penyelidikan untuk Pengguna-Pengguna Pahang (ERA Pahang)
26. Persatuan Sahabat Wanita Selangor (PSWS)
27. Persatuan Tarian Desa Selangor & Wilayah Persekutuan
28. Persatuan Wanita Maju Selangor & Kuala Lumpur
29. Pertubuhan Jaringan Kebajikan Komuniti (JEJAKA)
30. Pertubuhan Rangkaian Pembangunan Kesinambungan Malaysia (SUSDEN Malaysia)
31. Pusat Pembangunan Rakyat (MANDIRI)
32. Reproductive Rights Advocacy Alliance Malaysia (RRAAM)
33. Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM)
34. Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia [SABM]
35. Suara Anak Muda
36. Tanjung Bungah Residents’ Association (TBRA)
37. Together Against Cancer (TAC)
38. Treat Every Environment Special (TrEES)
39. Women’s Aid Organization (WAO)
40. Women’s Centre for Change (WCC)
Individuals
1. Adrian Pereira, Executive Director, North-South Initiative
2. Agnes James, Deputy Chairman, Tanjung Bunga Residents’ Association
3. Alice Tan Pei Pei
4. Andrew Pang, Social Entrepreneur/Co-Founder
5. Annelies Allain
6. Atyrah Hanim Razali, Founder, Feminomics Malaysia
7. Aw Swee Lim
8. Catherine Choon
9. Datuk Nizam Mahshar, Chairman of IDRIS
10. Dr. Geoffrey Williams
11. Dr. Ho Meilu, Professor (Retired)
12. Dr. Lim Chee Han, Public Health Policy Researcher and Advocate
13. Dr. Mazlan Bin Che Soh, Senior Lecturer
14. Dr. Sem Xiao Hui, Global Public Health Strategist
15. Dr. Sharuna Verghis
16. Egha Elias, Advocacy Manager
17. Evelyn Teh
18. Gopalan-K Papachan
19. Harmit Singh, Concerned Citizen
20. Ho Yock Lin, President of AWAM, Gender Equality Advocate
21. Jasmine Sum
22. Jayanath Appudurai, Retiree
23. Karina Yong, Legal Advisor and Public Health Advocate
24. Kelvin Lee, Chief, KLSCAH Youth
25. Kwan Shuk Yee
26. Leow E Ten, Operations Executive
27. Lim HuiYing, Parliament Researcher to MP
28. Lim Swee Swee
29. Margaret Chin, Banker
30. Masjaliza Hamzah, Project Coordinator
31. Meenakshi Raman
32. Mohammad Shahrin Bin Mohamad Ilmi
33. Ng Jee Kwan, President, Imperial College Alumni Association Malaysia
34. Patricia Nunis , Director
35. Prof. P T Thomas, Executive Dean
36. Roslizawati Md Ali, Carer
37. Saiful Nizam bin Ab Wahab, Aktivis Rakyat & Content Creator
38. Sarajun Hoda Abdul Hassan, Social Activist
39. Suguna Papachan, Teacher
40. Tiow Ee Hsiang
41. Wan Azuan Bin Wan Ali, Community Health Worker
42. Wong Jia Woei
43. Yap Mei Shya