KUALA LUMPUR — Government-linked investment companies (GLICs) and pension funds should invest more in the country’s healthcare system to prepare for an aged population and rise in cases of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), said Ipoh Timor MP Howard Lee.
The government backbencher said that there is a direct correlation between Malaysia’s ageing citizens and increasing demand from its citizens for more specific forms of healthcare.
“We have a NCD crisis (with) diabetes on the (rise) and more (cases) of wound care, where a large percentage of treatment room episodes are on wound care.
“So why can’t GLICs invest in home care and wound care institutions so that we can reduce the bottlenecks in (government) health clinics?,” Lee said on the “Risky Ventures: Is The Government Putting Our Savings at Risk?” dialogue session hosted by Sinar Daily recently.
The DAP lawmaker defended his support for the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) to invest in healthcare, when asked by dialogue moderator Jessy Chahal on why the retirement savings fund should invest in the sector, despite the fact that 48% of its members below the age of 55 have less than RM50,000 in savings.
Lee also said that after taking into account the past withdrawals of EPF savings by members during the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a need for higher returns to ensure EPF has enough money for future withdrawals and to bolster its investment portfolio.
Last month, the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said Malaysia would become an aged nation sooner than expected with more than 17% of the population to be aged 60 and above in 2040.
Chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said currently, those aged 60 and above make up 11.6% (3.9 million) of the total population in 2024, which is 34.1 million.
In 2040, Uzir said the country will see a significant increase of 17.3% or 6.4 million people aged 60 and above, out of the projected population of 37.1 million.
In May, the National Health and Morbidity Survey 2023 reported that over half a million or 2.5% of adults in Malaysia, live with four NCDs – diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and obesity.
These conditions carry a higher risk of heart disease or stroke. Another 2.3 million adults in the country live with a combination of three NCDs.
5.1% had diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol; 1.2% had diabetes, hypertension and obesity; 0.4% had diabetes, high cholesterol and obesity, while 2.9% had hypertension, high cholesterol and obesity. – October 6, 2024