So personally, I feel that the Malaysian government are getting more and more ridiculous on alot of matters, but somehow.... this seriously tops everything up. Already medication and health care in Malaysia isn´t really all that outstanding but yet extremely costly (believe me, I have alot of encounters with their "medical" and no its not the usual cough, cold and etc) and now they want to impose a Goods and Services Tax on the people who are sick? Are you guys really taking care of the citizens or just trying to make sure the country doesn´t sink into a deeper shit hole?

What about those people who have serious illness and long time illness? Should you all recommend them the death sentence as it would definitely be the fastest and cheapest way out for some of them? Or maybe..... it´s because none of you government folks have people in your family with really serious illness or long term sickness so you think all these are just simple and that everyone living in Malaysia is as filthy rich as the government ministers - who based on some news reports some ages ago have many assets abroad.

Serious people with no hearts and leading a country...... *faints*

Original Article : Patients with serious illnesses to be hit hardest with GST (Clickable link)

Patients with serious illnesses to be hit hardest with GST

Published: 8 January 2015

Many medicines are not zero-rated under the GST regime which goes into effect on April 1. – AFP/Relaxnews pic, January 8, 2015.Patients with serious illnesses and who require long-term medication will be hit the hardest once the goods and services tax (GST) takes effect on April 1, said pharmaceutical groups.

TheSun reported that there were concerns patients might stop taking their medicines when the price of medicines, which are not zero-rated, are increased by 6% with the GST, as some illnesses like cancer cost patients up tens of thousands of ringgit every month.

"On the price hike, those who require long-term medication will be the hardest hit. It is of concern that with such price increases, the patient may be forced to stop taking their medicines," Malaysian Pharmaceutical Society (MPS) president Datuk Nancy Ho was quoted as saying.

"If they are made to pay GST at a standard rate, they will need to pay an extra RM600 for every RM10,000 they need to pay for their medication. It is already sad for a person to fall seriously sick which cripples his ability to generate an income necessary to battle for his life. With GST, he may have to pay even more for his medicines."

MPS along with the Malaysian Community Pharmacy Guild (MCPG), Pharmaceutical Association of Malaysia (PhAMA), Malaysian Organisation of Pharmaceutical Industries (MOPI) and Malaysian Association of Pharmaceutical Suppliers (MAPS) said only 320 medications were zero-rated under the National Essential Medicines List (NEML) 4th Edition.

The report said that paracetamol was counted 17 times instead of being just one item while the NEML only represented 13% of the total 43,000 registered medicines.

"The majority of these zero-rated medicines are only used in government hospitals. The many medicines outside the list are widely prescribed and used in the private sector, hospitals, clinics and pharmacies which are mainly paid out of pocket," Ho was reported as saying by TheSun.

The GST would render medicines which are not zero-rated more expensive, making it costly for patients on long-term medication.

"The MPS and other pharmacy stakeholders would like to see all scheduled medicine zero-rated before April 1," she said.

The pharmaceutical groups said they have written to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to urge that all scheduled medicines be zero-rated under GST, while MPS has initiated a petition to gain support that all controlled medicines (schedule poison B and C) be exempted from the GST.

"The health minister himself has previously been quoted (as saying) there is a possibility of increase in medical care by 1% to 2% after the implementation of GST and the government is looking into ways to reduce this cost," Ho was quoted as saying.

Ho said it was difficult to explain to patients why the price of essential medicines would be increased while 900 other items, including lobster, were zero-rated under the GST.

Medical practitioners have also previously voiced their concerns over the matter, with Private Medical Practitioners' Associations Malaysia (FPMPAM) president Dr Steven Chow saying Najib had promised not once, but twice, that healthcare – both public and private – would not be affected by the GST. 

He said, at present, all registered medication was exempted from the sales and services tax, adding that the price of medication was set to rise when the GST was implemented.

“If you look closer, the NEDL (national essential drugs list) is clearly not designed to cater for all the important diseases and complications of the various disciplines of primary and specialist care. Specific treatment for many common diseases is not in the list." – January 8, 2015.