13th November 2026 - 4 min read
Deputy Finance Minister Liew Chin Tong told the Dewan Rakyat that MediAsas Teras users may pay an extra 20% at some private hospitals. MediAsas is the government’s basic medical plan. The 20% applies at hospitals that aren’t on its list. Hospitals on the list are called panel hospitals. That 20% is capped at RM3,000 for each illness or injury.
Hospitals using diagnosis-related groups (DRG) will count as following MediAsas’s rules, Liew said, so patients at these hospitals may not have to pay the 20%. Under DRG, a hospital charges one set price for each type of treatment. For example, an appendix operation would cost a fixed amount, covering the surgery, tests, medicine, and days you spend in the ward.
During the pilot, which started in late July 2026, only 10 hospitals were panel hospitals. Liew said four major hospital groups want to join, but they haven’t confirmed yet. There’s no word on whether people living far from a panel hospital will still have to pay the extra 20%.
He added that the 20% charge is still being looked at during the pilot period. The panel hospital list isn’t final either, and we’ll update this article once both are confirmed. MediAsas is due to open to everyone by the end of January 2027.
With MediAsas Teras, you pay the first RM500 for each illness or injury, or RM1,000 if you’re 60 years old and above. At a panel hospital, MediAsas pays the rest. At a non-panel hospital, you also pay 20% of the whole bill on top of the RM500 or RM1,000.
The table below shows what you’d pay on two bills if you’re under 60. The RM6,000 bill is an example from Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM). On the RM20,000 bill, 20% would be RM4,000, but it’s capped at RM3,000.
| RM6,000 bill | RM20,000 bill | |
| You pay at a panel hospital | RM500 | RM500 |
| You pay at a non-panel hospital | RM500 + RM1,200 = RM1,700 | RM500 + RM3,000 = RM3,500 |
The pilot’s 10 panel hospitals are all in the Klang Valley. They are:
The panel hospital list is set by ProtectHealth, a body under the Ministry of Health. It’s meant to grow and can change without notice. The list for January hasn’t been published yet. Before you buy, ask an insurer or takaful operator which panel hospitals are near you.
Some important things to note: At a non-panel hospital, you may need to pay the bill first and claim the money back later. If you’re given a private room there, MediAsas only pays up to the price of a shared room. BNM also says Teras doesn’t charge the RM500 or the 20% in an emergency, at a government hospital, or for cancer treatment that doesn’t need a hospital stay.
MediAsas was designed by the government and BNM. You buy it from an insurer or takaful operator, and you get the same benefits from any of them. Teras is the main plan.
The Fleksi plan may suit people who already have medical cover, such as a company medical card. It doesn’t charge the extra 20%. Instead, you pay the first RM10,000 of your hospital bills each year yourself, or RM15,000 at a non-panel hospital. Your company medical card may pay that first RM10,000 or RM15,000 for you.
Final prices aren’t out yet, but the Finance Ministry’s range is RM60 to RM550 a month, depending on your age and health.
In RinggitPlus’s 2025 Malaysian Financial Literacy Survey, 43% of people we asked had no medical insurance at all. MediAsas is aimed at that group. If that’s you, Teras may be a cheaper way to get covered, as long as there’s a panel hospital you can reach. If you already have a medical card, keep it until final MediAsas prices are out. You can then compare MediAsas with the medical cards on RinggitPlus.
Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel for the latest money tips and updates.
Christina writes about personal finance with an eye for making the complicated feel straightforward. She is drawn to the everyday money decisions people face and genuinely enjoys finding the clearest way to explain them. Between articles, she is probably napping, on a hiking trail, or terrorising her sister’s cats.
Comments (0)