Malaysia Woos Medical Tourists With Quality Care, Reasonable Rates

PETALING JAYA (Selangor, Malaysia) Nov 6 (Bernama) -- Malaysia's healthcare has attracted more foreign patients, including from developed countries such as the United States and Japan, due to the high-quality care and reasonable rates on offer. Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai said the number of foreign patients to the country showed a 48 per cent increase in 2011, to 583,000 arrivals from 393,000 in 2010. "Malaysia is fast being recognised for the quality of its orthopaedic treatment, with the top most sought-after procedure being knee replacement, followed by cardiac care and cancer treatment," he said when opening the International Healthcare Travel Expo 2012, here, on Tuesday. A total knee replacement performed in Malaysia would cost about US$8,000, a heart bypass at US$10,000 and a health screening package at US$200, he said, adding that the domestic healthcare sector revenue was expected to reach about RM548 million (US$178.9 million) this year. Liow said the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC) care line had been established to answer queries from all over the world on healthcare facilities available in Malaysia. The minister said the MHTC had opened representative offices in Dhaka, Bangladesh and in Jakarta, Indonesia, while the one in Hong Kong would be operational next year. "We're also in the process of establishing a medical gallery and a medical concierge-and-lounge at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport next year, and such facility might also be extended to other airports, such as at Kota Kinabalu and Kuching," he said. Liow later told a press conference that his ministry was looking at the Korea, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar and China markets due to the encouraging health tourist arrivals from these countries. He said besides modern medicine, the MHTC would also promote traditional treatments such as acupuncture and ayurveda. -- BERNAMA