The Transport Ministry’s subsidised health screening programme for commercial vehicle drivers has attracted fewer than 20 participants in its first month, prompting concerns over the industry’s response to a road safety initiative.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook described the low participation as disappointing, particularly as the programme was introduced to encourage healthier drivers, improve road safety and ease the cost of mandatory medical examinations.
Under the programme, drivers pay only RM30 for the screening, while the Social Security Organisation (Perkeso) subsidises a further RM55 from the total RM85 cost. The initiative is available at 500 participating clinics.
Loke said the ministry was informed that fewer than 20 drivers had taken part several days before the latest figures, despite the significantly reduced fee. The weak response has raised questions about efforts to encourage commercial drivers to prioritise regular health checks.
He said many drivers were still choosing the existing manual medical examination process, making it difficult for the ministry to determine whether the method was effectively identifying and addressing health problems among drivers.
The ministry’s digitally integrated approach, meanwhile, is intended to make health screening more systematic while allowing authorities to monitor outcomes more effectively. Loke stressed that the initiative was not designed to create additional pressure or costs for drivers and operators.
Instead, he said the programme was part of wider efforts to strengthen road safety, as undetected medical conditions could put commercial drivers and other road users at risk. Driver health, he added, remained one of the fundamental components of a safer transport sector.
The ministry has also introduced other measures, including vehicle telematics and the Health Check for Drivers programme. However, Loke said launching new initiatives alone was not enough, as their effectiveness depended on proper implementation and participation.
He said the ministry would now place greater emphasis on ensuring recently introduced measures delivered their intended results rather than simply increasing the number of initiatives launched. The issue is expected to be among the matters discussed during the ministry’s half-year strategic planning meeting next week.
Launched on June 30, the Health Check for Drivers programme is initially aimed at around 30,000 commercial drivers aged between 40 and 59. The reduced-cost screening is being offered through 500 participating clinics, with Perkeso covering RM55 of the RM85 fee.
