Tan Kin Lian - Perspectives
Not for profit hospital
The Ministry of Health wants to set up a not-for-profit hospital.
I think that this is a bad idea. It does not address the underlying problem - which is to keep the health care cost affordable.
I prefer the following approach:
a) The ministry should set standard fees for the common treatments, and these should apply to all hospitals that wishes to treat public patients.
As the ministry has the data of the cost of large number of cases for each type of illness, it will be able to set the standard fees that are adequate for the doctors and hospitals, and fair to the patients.
b) The ministry should set a cap on the amount that the public patient has to pay for treatment and should pay for all expenses in excess of th cap.
The public patient or their family is not able to judge whether the treatment is necessary and is fair. This question is important for expensive treatment in "end of life" situations. If the government take over the excess expenses, the ministry can set up an impartial panel of medical experts to determine the limit of the treatment. There is no point in providing expensive treatment that prolong life, without any reasonable prospect of recovery. The family should not be asked to make this judgment.
c) All public hospitals, including the "restructured hospitals" should be operated on a not-for-profit basis.
I hope that you will agree with my approach and share your view on this matter.
Tan Kin Lian
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