Health insurance costs surge 9.1% as Malaysia’s healthcare inflation hits 3%
RISING health insurance costs emerged as a major pressure point for households as Malaysia's healthcare inflation accelerated to 3.0 per cent in 2025 from 1.3 per cent in the previous year. The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said health...
Health insurance costs in Malaysia skyrocketed by 9.1% in 2025, as the country's healthcare inflation surged to 3.0% from 1.3% the previous year, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM). The statistical agency's Health Price Index (HPI) 2025 report unveiled that health-related insurance expenditure swelled by 9.1%, contributing to a rapid acceleration in medical services inflation to 4.4% from 0.9% in 2024.
The HPI measures price movements across three primary categories: medicines, medical equipment, and health services. Medicines, which account for the largest share at 38.9% in the index, experienced a 2.8% increase in 2025 compared to 2.2% in 2024. The rise was fueled by heightened spending on medicines, vaccines, pharmaceutical preparations, herbal medicines, and homeopathic products.
Both subcategories posted increases of 4.5% in 2025, up from 2.2% and 0.7% in the prior year. Medical equipment inflation climbed to 1.1% from 0.6%, driven by a 1.3% surge in medical products expenditure. Medical diagnostic products saw a 1.6% increase, compared to 0.3% in 2024. The DOSM emphasized that the inaugural full HPI publication offered comprehensive insights following the July 2026 release of the Preliminary Malaysia Health Price Index Report 2025.
This index aims to assist the government, stakeholders, and the public in monitoring healthcare cost trends and facilitating more effective planning, implementation, and monitoring of the sector.
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