Cost of and Possible Waiver of Fee Charged for Seeking Doctor's Memo for Medical Test Results at Restructured Hospitals

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye asked the Minister for Health (a) what is the average cost of seeking a doctor's memo or copies of a medical test result at a restructured hospital; (b) what are the grounds for waivers for these charges; and (c) whether the Ministry will provide a fee waiver for first-time requests for such medical documents.

Formal requests for a doctor’s memo or medical test result through hospital administration cost $8 on average. However, results from routine laboratory tests performed in restructured hospitals are available in HealthHub and can be accessed freely by patients. Patients may also request for their doctor to review these test results with them during their regular consultations.

Medical reports containing more details of the patient’s medical condition, such as reports required for insurance underwriting, could range from about $90 to $535, depending on the complexity of the medical report.

Restructured hospitals charge for these reports on a cost recovery basis for manpower and other administrative costs incurred. For more complex reports, a doctor may need to review the patient’s medical records in order to produce the report. Charges are, therefore, levied for the service of generating these reports.

Patients with financial difficulty can request for these charges to be waived. Other reasons, such as whether the report is an official requirement, may be submitted to the hospital, for consideration for fee waivers.