He said the council, which would comprise five to seven experts in various fields, would serve as an advisory body, problem solver and think tank in boosting healthcare sector delivery.

“Members of the council will not necessarily be from the medical field. There is also an economist.

“We will choose the best among the best to empower the health ministry and make it world-class,” he said after the ministry’s monthly gathering here today.

According to him, the long waiting period to meet doctors, especially specialists, disruption in the supply of medicines and congestion at health facilities will be addressed.

In addition, he said the rising cost of healthcare, especially in the private sector, would be given attention.

Dzulkefly said the 1Malaysia Clinic nationwide would be rebranded as the People’s Clinic and it would house more doctors to increase its operational capacity.

“The placement of more doctors is not a problem because we produce about 5,000 doctors each year.”

Dzulkefly said the ministry clearly needed a higher budget allocation to improve the quality of health services.

He said the temporarily delayed “Peduli Sihat” healthcare scheme was expected to be included in the 2019 budget allocation.

The scheme involves giving RM500 for basic treatment at registered private clinics for the bottom 40% income group (B40) and is among the 100-day promises of the new Pakatan Harapan government.