KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 28): The National B40 Protection Scheme will kick off with an initial fund size of RM2 billion on Jan 1, 2019, and be offered free to qualified low-income households or the B40 income group, the Ministry of Finance announced today.

In a statement, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said the scheme will provide free health insurance and takaful protection to the B40 group as assistance to cope with hardship arising from health issues, critical illness and hospitalisation that may adversely impact the income streams of their households.

The scheme, he said, will provide medical coverage for five years to the targeted recipients, benefitting individuals between the ages of 18 and 55 within the 4.1 million B40 households.

Qualified recipients will be provided free medical coverage against 36 critical illnesses under the scheme, with a maximum RM8,000 to be disbursed over a period that will be announced, if one is diagnosed with a critical illness.

The scheme also provides income replacement in the event of hospitalisation, at RM50 per day for a maximum of 14 days or RM700 a year.

"Coverage under the scheme commences Jan 1, 2019, and the scheme's registration and customer support services will be in operation from Mar 1, 2019," he said.

Registration can be made electronically over the internet without the use of paper forms and no medical examination is required for qualification checks. All qualified recipients under the scheme will be notified through SMS messages.

"Further information on the mechanism and implementation of the scheme will be disclosed when it is officially launched in early 2019. This scheme is a significant step taken by the Pakatan Harapan government to establish a comprehensive social safety net from the aspect of inclusive health insurance and takaful coverage for low-income groups for free.

"This scheme, the first of its kind in Malaysia, is guided by the Pakatan Harapan Election Manifesto to improve access to much-needed health services, lighten the cost of living burden, and improve the rakyat's wellbeing," the minister added.