Paradoxically, the health care dimensions of the vision of scientific and techno- logical progress articulated in Wawasan 2020 are likely to raise popular expecta- tions of the greater availability of expensive medical technologies, which the government maintains are beyond its financial means to provide. Aside from ideological reservations about the welfare model in health care, therefore, the Malaysian government has articulated concerns about the ability of the public health care system to cope with growing financial pressures both at present in the future. As Prime Minister Mahathir explained: