THE Health Ministry will use legislation to get private hospitals and doctors to publish bill prices and patient diseases codes.

This follows the success in stabilising public hospital rates when bill prices were made known five years ago.

Announcing this on Thursday at the 2nd International Conference on the Asia Pacific Society for Healthcare Quality, Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan said current efforts by private hospitals and doctors working there are on a voluntary or ad-hoc basis.

This leaves the data incomplete or with large gaps.

Mr Khaw said his ministry will be pushing this effort aggressively through law later this year.