Surgery may cost more

NST: Surgery may cost more under a fee schedule proposed by surgeons.
It appears that the College of Surgeons of Malaysia may be asking for an increase of more than 10 per cent.
Surgeons feel they should be paid more due to factors such as risks faced in surgery besides increases in the cost of medical insurance.
There is also the issue of alleged drawbacks in the Malaysian Medical Association's schedule including bias towards insurance agencies and non-inclusion of newer operations and procedures.
A source said the schedule would not differ much from the MMA's schedule which is revised at regular intervals.
Under CSM's proposed schedule, minor operations and procedures such as a biopsy of the cervix would cost between RM300 and RM400.
Surgery involving organs like the heart and pancreas would cost between RM5,000 and RM7,000.
Surgeons are, however, not compelled to follow the schedule which is basically a guideline.
"If there are major complications to a relatively simple operation like appendicitis, then logically, the price would go up," the source told the New Straits Times today.
The source added that the schedule has been submitted to the MMA for study.
CSM is also engaged in discussions with the MMA on the implementation of the schedule.
He said the CSM schedule reduced the MMA's 25 pricing levels to just nine.
It is learnt that specialists in fields such as general surgery, urology, ENT, obstetrics and gynaecology, neurosurgery and plastic surgery worked two years to come up with the proposed schedule.
The source acknowledged that allegations of overcharging may arise, but said that doctors were a responsible lot with the exception of a few black sheep.
The limit set at each level, he said, would prevent overcharging.
"Medicine thrives on trust. If there is no trust, the entire profession will collapse."