KUCHING - The Malaysia healthcare market worth US$ 2.25 billion in 2012 is expected to grow to US$3.65 billion by 2018 at a cumulative annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.4% from 2012 to 2018.

Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific vice president of healthcare, Rhenu Bhuller, said this was on the back of the Asia Pacific healthcare market worth US$369.9 billion in 2012, which was expected to reach US$752 billion in 2018.

This represented a growth at a CAGR of 12.8% while global growth rates continued at less than 6% during the same period, she noted.

“Healthcare expenditure continues to experience growth as rising patient demands for better healthcare will result in healthcare reforms in Asia Pacific,” she said.

“The increasing life expectancy in the region will also result in more elderly requiring long-term care.” Frost & Sullivan found that healthcare expenditure in Asia Pacific would almost double in the next six years with the largest share coming from China, Japan and India.

Back in Malaysia, the Economic Transformation Programme is expected to generate 181,000 healthcare jobs in Malaysia by 2020 through entry point projects in the pharmaceutical, biotech and medical devices industry.

Meanwhile, Rhenu noted that the consumer profile was changing.

“Asia Pacific will consist of over 2.3 billion people above 65 years of age and the average percentage of people above 65 will rise from 9.8 per cent in 2013 to 11 per cent in 2018 across the region,” she noted.

“About 68.5% of people will be in the working age of 15-64 years.

“The urbanisation rate is expected to increase at a CAGR of 1.2 per cent between 2013 and 2018 in Asia Pacific.

Approximately 2.6 million people are expected to move from rural to urban areas in Malaysia between the same period.

“Increasing urbanisation is accompanied with growing consumer awareness and an expanding middle class, progressively skewing population density. “This all translates to an increased demand for improved healthcare services,” added Rhenu.

This would all contribute towards the growth of private hospital sector growth, she noted, with about 180 million new hospital beds needed over the next decade to meet the rising healthcare demand in Asia Pacific “Favourable government policies, increasing disposable income and changing demographics will drive growth in private hospitals.

Private hospital revenue in Asia Pacific is expected to grow at a CAGR of 17.1% from 2012 to 2018.

“In 2012, there were 225 private hospitals in Malaysia and the number is expected to increase to 239 by 2018.” Rhenu also underscored growth opportunities in top five sectors namely medical tourism, day care surgery/healthcare centre, specialty hospitals, private medical insurance as well as healthcare information technology.

source:mjn-e-news