Malaysian Medical Association president Dr Subramaniam Muniandy said that “as healthcare resources and attention are diverted towards fighting the pandemic, what may have been challenging healthcare access for some has become non-existent access.
“Where before there existed inequality, discrimination or stigmatisation of vulnerable groups or communities, Covid-19 has widened the gaps and created even more barriers for their healthcare access,” he told FMT.
Among many parts of the community, Covid-19 has particularly affected the migrant and refugee community, with these groups of foreigners, especially the Rohingya, even targeted in a hate campaign at the peak of the pandemic last year.
Although undocumented migrants were encouraged to come forward and be tested for the virus without charge in government hospitals, the authorities’ crackdown targeting undocumented migrants last year was seen as a step backwards in pandemic management.
Dr Khor Swee Kheng, an independent health policy specialist, said there was no doubt that Covid-19 had accelerated health inequity in the country, but the question was by how much.
“This pandemic has accelerated these inequalities mainly by shifting political and funding focus away from routine healthcare – like childhood immunisation, maternal health and primary care – to pandemic care.
“As this World Health Day should remind us, the Malaysian government should build better and fairer health systems, so that Covid-19 will not leave behind a legacy of destructive inequality,” he told FMT.
Subramaniam said healthcare needs were rising disproportionately to the government’s annual healthcare budget, particularly with the rise in cases of non-communicable diseases.
He also said healthcare equity needed to be prioritised in the agenda of national politics and even healthcare organisations, calling for structures to be put in place to support this initiative.
“In the long term, we need to work towards dismantling the remaining barriers to healthcare access for everyone through legislation, education, tolerance and acceptance of the potpourri of differences that make up Malaysia.
“We need to take specific action to address the social determinants of individuals or communities that face barriers to healthcare access,” he said.
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