Speaking on the hike, announced by Health Minister Dr S Subramaniam yesterday, Santiago said he was concerned over the increasing trend of costs being transferred from the government to the patients in the public health sector.

Subramaniam said the new charges – which have yet to be determined – will only affect patients who requested to be moved to the upper two classes from third class wards.

“The debt crisis Putrajaya is facing is taking its toll on the people. The budget for medicines has already been reduced and now this.

“Healthcare is a core responsibility of any government. What we are seeing now is the government unloading its healthcare responsibilities onto the people.”

He said people who depended on government healthcare were largely those from the Bottom 40 (B40), who were already struggling.

“What the government should do instead is cut its defence spending. We should only be spending on assets necessary for securing high-risk areas, such as Sabah’s east coast.

“Better yet, cut down on the budget allocation for the Prime Minister’s Department,” said the Klang MP in urging the government to protect and ensure affordable healthcare for all Malaysians.

For Budget 2017, the Defence Ministry received an allocation of RM15.1 billion of the total RM262.8 billion allocated for the year, while the Prime Minister’s Department, according to a Malaysiakini report, received an allocation of RM15.9 billion.

Subramaniam’s announcement came in the wake of a report by Malay daily Kosmo that charges for the first class and second class wards would be increased by 50 per cent.

Subramaniam said there were 32,000 patients in first and second class wards, out of the total two million patients in public hospitals.

When a person is hospitalised, he or she would be placed in a third class ward, where they will remain unless they request to be moved into the upper classes.

It is understood that the government has not revised the first class charges for more than 30 years.