The ministry’s deputy secretary-general (finance), Zahrul Hakim, said they included additional allocations for facilities in third-class wards and increased allowances for rural healthcare workers.

“The ministry has conducted several engagement sessions with stakeholders and met with the finance ministry to request additional funding, having proposed more than six initiatives with significant impact,” Bernama reported him as saying in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, today.

Zahrul said his ministry hopes that the finance ministry will consider the proposed allowance increase for rural healthcare workers as it would encourage staff to remain in rural areas and maintain uninterrupted delivery of government healthcare.

He also said the proposal for additional funding to improve patient comfort in third-class wards aligns with the government’s aspiration to provide improved and more comfortable services to the people.

Last month, health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said his ministry will place special emphasis on tackling obesity and diabetes in the 2026 budget.