Serdang Hospital Saddled With RM500,000 Unpaid Bills By Foreigners

SERDANG, Nov 13 (Bernama) -- Foreigners owed the Serdang Hospital here some RM500,000 in unpaid bills and this had caused its services to deteriorate, said Parliamentary Secretary to the Health Ministry Datuk Lee Kah Choon.
He said that foreigners still failed to settle their medical bills despite being charged low fees.
"Nearly 30 percent of the total number of patients seeking treatment at the Serdang Hospital are foreigners," he told reporters after visiting the hospital here today.
He added that the hospital could not operate all its wards due to a staff shortage. To date only 381 beds had been used while the other 239 beds will be used in stages.
The Serdang Hospital has a support staff of 400 and has to double that number to meet the needs of its increasing number of patients.
Lee. however, said that the hospital had adequate doctors and specialists.
The RM690 million hospital began operation on Dec 15, 2005 with 620 beds.
It also acts as the teaching hospital Universiti Putra Malaysia's medical Faculty.
He said the hospital's strategic location near Bangi, Puchong and Putrajaya makes it the hospital of choice for over two million people.