Basis of Yearly Medisave Claim Limits

Ms Foo Mee Har asked the Minister for Health (a) what is the basis upon which the yearly Medisave claim limits are set; and (b) whether the Ministry will consider allowing Singaporeans suffering from chronic illnesses to fully fund their medical bills using their Medisave.

Medisave withdrawal limits are set such that basic, subsidised healthcare expenses are affordable for all Singaporeans, after taking into account Government subsidies and MediShield Life payouts where applicable. These withdrawal limits are reviewed regularly.

Under the Chronic Disease Management Programme (CDMP), Singaporeans can use up to $400 per Medisave account per year to pay for their chronic disease treatment. Nineteen chronic conditions are covered under CDMP, which accounts for more than 90% of chronic attendances seen at polyclinics today. In 2014, the $400 CDMP limit was sufficient for about eight in 10 subsidised patients with common chronic conditions. In addition, affordability will improve further with the introduction of Flexi-Medisave in 2015, where elderly Singaporeans can use an additional $200 per patient per year to pay for their outpatient treatments, including for chronic conditions, at public healthcare institutions and participating CHAS GP clinics.

Medisave withdrawal limits are necessary to avoid premature depletion of limited Medisave savings, which were mostly sized for inpatient treatment. Nonetheless, we understand the needs of patients with chronic illnesses. Hence, we carefully set the Medisave limits, to strike a balance between their ongoing chronic treatment needs and their future needs, such as hospitalisation and insurance premiums. Therefore, it would not be prudent to allow patients to use Medisave to fully pay for all their medical bills for chronic illnesses, regardless of amount. However, for patients whose bills exceed the $400 cap, they can use the Medisave of their family members to pay, or apply for Medifund at the polyclinics or subsidised specialist outpatient clinics in public hospitals if they face financial difficulties.

We will continue to monitor the affordability of subsidised care, especially for chronic diseases, and ensure that the Medisave withdrawal limits continue to be sufficient.